Jim Clyburn told CNN today that there’s no question that Buttigieg being gay is a big issue for older black voters in his state:
Here’s more from DC Examiner:
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said there is “no question” Pete Buttigieg’s sexual orientation and views on same-sex marriage are an obstacle for the 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful obtaining support from older black voters.
“That’s a generational issue. I know of a lot of people my age who feel that way,” Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat, said on CNN Sunday when asked whether Buttigieg being gay explains his struggle to gain support from black voters in South Carolina.
Clyburn, a longtime South Carolina Democratic congressman, said that while there is “no question” his sexual orientation is an issue for older black voters, “I’m not going to sit here and tell you otherwise. Because I think everybody knows that is an issue.”
Anyone who saw the 2008 presidential election in California won’t be shocked by this. So many blacks came out to vote for Obama that the state voted down gay marriage. It had to be taken to the courts to overturn the results of the referendum.
Clyburn tries to play it off as a generational issue, and perhaps that’s true to some degree. But it doesn’t help Buttigieg who would face older black voters all over the country voting against him. And not just among older black voters, but among most Christian voters too.