U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay person to be confirmed to a presidential cabinet, has spoken about the “joy” of parenting since he and husband Chasten Buttigieg became fathers to twins in August.
Last week, the former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination dropped by MSNBC’s Morning Joe to discuss disruptions to global trade and supply chain disruptions.
When asked by co-host Mika Brzezinski about parenting, Buttigieg described raising Penelope Rose and Joseph August as “the most demanding thing I think I’ve ever done.”
“It’s been wonderful,” Buttigieg said. “It’s everything people tell you to expect and more.
“I think the biggest thing that has surprised me is just how much joy there is even sometimes in the hard parts,” he continued.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s the most demanding thing I think I’ve ever done, that Chasten and I have ever taken on. But it’s just amazing.
“I used to think of 5 a.m. as ‘early,’ now I think of it as ‘nap time,’ if I’m lucky. And yet I catch myself grinning half the time,” he added. “We’re just over the moon.”
"It's been wonderful. It's everything people tell you to expect and more. I think the biggest thing that has surprised me is just how much joy there is even sometimes in the hard parts." —@secretarypete on being a new dad pic.twitter.com/UwovzGxTNH
— Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) October 7, 2021
After trying to start their family for about a year, the Buttigiegs announced that they had become dads in August.
In September, Buttigieg shared a picture of him, Chasten and the twins in a Twitter post, prompting homophobic ire and conspiracy theories from Christian conservatives.
In July, a Republican Senate candidate had previously attacked Buttigieg and other rising stars in the Democratic Party for not having children, arguing that those with children should have more voting power.
Related:
Chasten and Pete Buttigieg announce birth of twins — and Christian conservatives are furious
Pete Buttigieg slams the GOP’s “terrible” attacks on transgender youth
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