Richard Grenell — Photo: U.S. Consulate Munich / Wiki Commons
Richard Grenell, the openly gay U.S. Ambassador to Germany, is taking aim at presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg, accusing him of trying to capitalize on Vice President Mike Pence’s anti-gay religious beliefs to further his candidacy.
According to Grenell, Buttigieg is capitalizing on stereotypes about Pence’s religiosity and wrongly accusing him of being “anti-gay” in order to raise money from political left-wingers who oppose Pence.
“Mayor Peter has been pushing this hate hoax, along the lines of Jussie Smollett, for a very long time now, several weeks,” Grenell said. “And I find it really ironic that Mayor Pete stayed silent about the so-called hate hoax on him and others during 2015, 2016, 2017 when Mike Pence was governor.
“There was total silence. It’s ironic that right about now when he’s starting his fundraising apparatus to run for president that he comes up with this idea and this attack.”
Grenell defended Pence and his wife, Karen, saying they are not hateful people.
“One of the things that really bothers me about this attack is that Mike Pence is a friend of mine,” he said. “Mike and Karen are great people, they’re godly people, they’re followers of Christ. They don’t have hate in their heart for anyone. They know my partner. They have accepted us.”
He also took the opportunity to criticize the LGBTQ community for failing to be tolerant of people whose religious beliefs may no longer be considered politically correct.
“The gay community used to be the community pushing tolerance and diversity. We were the ones that were saying everyone should be able to love and accept each other. Now suddenly there’s a whole community of people demanding that we all think alike,” Grenell said. “I think it’s outrageous. When Mayor Pete came out, the vice president complimented him and said he holds him in high regard. The vice president or then-governor has said nothing but positive things about Mayor Pete. I think this is a total hate hoax and I think it’s outrageous.”
Grenell was later criticized on Twitter for attacking a presidential candidate as a sitting ambassador.
Former White House Press Secretary Joe Lockhart asked: Why is a sitting US ambassador going on TV to talk about a Presidential candidate?”
Grenell replied: “My friend was attacked. I’m defending my friend from a terrible & erroneous charge of homophobia. And I’m gay.”
My friend was attacked. I’m defending my friend from a terrible & erroneous charge of homophobia. And I’m gay. https://t.co/PvJsPq1APy
He also lashed out at GLAAD for criticizing him, after the advocacy organization similarly noted that a “sitting ambassador shouldn’t be going on TV to attack a Presidential candidate.
“Odd that GLAAD wants to silence gays they don’t agree with,” Grenell replied. “Are we all supposed to think the same? #realdiversity.”
Grenell also attempted to prove that Pence is not as anti-gay as everyone thinks, retweeting a 2015 tweet from Pence reading: “If I saw a restaurant owner refusing to serve a gay couple, I wouldn’t eat there anymore.”
“The hate hoax being perpetrated on my friend @VP Mike Pence is sadly tied to a political fundraising strategy. Mayor Pete was silent for years — I’m outraged by his phony outrage,” Grenell wrote as part of the retweet.
Here’s a tweet from 2015 that is barely mentioned. The hate hoax being perpetrated on my friend @VP Mike Pence is sadly tied to a political fundraising strategy. Mayor Pete was silent for years – I’m outraged by his phony outrage. pic.twitter.com/KA0DrknNR2
Pop star gushes over romance with Big Brother co-star Chris Hughes while saying she felt pressured to identify as a lesbian — fueling right-wing backlash.
Last weekend, queer pop star JoJo Siwa abruptly canceled her upcoming performance at a Chicago Pride event scheduled for Sunday, June 29.
Back Lot Bash Chicago, host of the two-day outdoor event, announced on Instagram that Siwa would no longer be performing, citing a "scheduling conflict," according to the Daily Mail.
No further explanation was given for the cancellation.
Siwa, 22, recently released her latest single, "Bulletproof," independently after parting ways with Columbia Records, which had issued her 2022 EP Guilty Pleasure. Neither she nor the label commented on the split.
Tammy Baldwin, Angie Craig, and Mark Pocan were among the Democrats named by the alleged shooter, a right-wing pastor with a history of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric.
At least three out LGBTQ Democrats in Congress have been told their names appeared on a list kept by Vance Boelter -- a right-wing preacher suspected of shooting two Minnesota state lawmakers, killing one.
The LGBTQ lawmakers -- Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) and U.S. Reps. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) and Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) -- were among several dozen Democrats at all levels of government whose names appeared on Boelter’s alleged "hit list."
Boelter is accused of killing Minnesota Democratic State Rep. Melissa Hortman (Brooklyn Park) and her husband at their home on June 14, and of shooting Democratic State Sen. John Hoffman (Champlin) and his wife at their home. Hoffman and his wife are expected to recover.
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump were upstaged by a gaggle of drag queens at the Kennedy Center Opera House during a performance of the French Revolution-set hit musical Les Misérables on Wednesday, June 11.
The couple’s appearance -- Trump’s first of the term at the historic venue -- coincided with a special fundraising night aimed at supporting the reportedly financially struggling arts institution.
According to the The Washington Post, ticket sales have slumped following Trump’s takeover of the storied institution, long considered a cornerstone of D.C.’s theater scene. Subscriptions for the upcoming season are down by $1.6 million -- roughly 36% -- compared to last year.
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