NASHUA, N.H. — Social media giant Twitter on Tuesday banned 2020 Democratic presidential contender Pete Buttigieg for a tweet in which he voiced approval for heterosexual relationships.
According to a statement from the company, Buttigieg’s account was locked, then deleted, after he wrote, “As a presidential contender, I support heterosexual couples. Yeah, Mayor Pete says It’s okay to be straight!”
Twitter officials said it was obvious that the only openly gay Democrat running for the party’s nomination was trying to be flippant and hurtful of LGBTQ people.
“We at Twitter feel that it’s important that the platform is open, inclusive, and most of all, non-judgmental,” said spokeswoman Kimberly Frost. “It seemed rather obvious to us that Mr. Buttigieg was attempting to disparage people who live alternative lifestyles.”
Reached for comment, officials with Buttigieg’s campaign said the candidate was merely attempting to be inclusive.
“Mayor Pete wants to be everyone’s president,” Mitchell Ryan, outreach director for the Buttigieg 2020 campaign, said.
Frost wasn’t convinced.
“Yes, that’s what he told us as well,” she said of Ryan’s comments. “But what he wrote was homophobic. It’s clear to us that the candidate’s comments were discriminatory. So, he’s out. That’s just the way it is.
“He can always try Gab or Parler,” Frost added.
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