First openly gay US cabinet secretary talks about country’s acceptance of LGBTQ people – WLKY Louisville

December 6, 2022 News Editor

First openly gay US cabinet secretary talks about country’s acceptance of LGBTQ people

JUST CALL FIVE, SEVEN, FOUR. ALLEN PD, US TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY PETE BOOT, A JUDGE WAS IN LOUISVILLE TODAY TO VISIT THE UPS HUB. WHILE HE WAS THERE, WLKY GOT AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH THE FORMER PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFUL. WLKY MARK VANDERHOFF JOINS NOW WITH EXCERPTS FROM THAT INTERVIEW. AND MARK, WHAT DID YOU ALL TALK ABOUT? RICK, I ASKED HIM ABOUT EVERYTHING FROM THE HOLIDAY TRAVEL SEASON TO THE RECENT VIOLENCE TARGETING LGBTIQ EVENTS, THE HOLIDAYS SEASON MEANS TRAVEL. SO WE ASKED TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY PETE BUDA, WHAT IS HE DOING ABOUT EXPENSIVE CANCELED FLIGHTS AND BUMPED PASSENGERS, UNACCEPTABLE LEVELS, DELAY AND CANCELLATION OVER THE SUMMER. PROMPTED ME TO CONNECT AIRLINES AND PRESS THEM TO DO BETTER. THEY’VE MADE MORE REALISTIC SCHEDULING DECISIONS AS A RESULT. THEY HAVE STEPPED UP AND OFFERED BETTER PAY. I THINK THAT’S PART OF WHY WE SAW MUCH BETTER RESULTS GOING INTO THANKSGIVING. WHILE TOURING THE UPS WORLD TOUR HUB IN LOUISVILLE ON TUESDAY, BUDA GEORGE TOUTED THE $1.2 TRILLION INFRASTRUCTURE, INVESTMENT AND JOBS. BUT HOW SHOULD THE U.S. CONTINUE FUND INFRASTRUCTURE AT THIS LEVEL ONCE MONEY RUNS OUT? MY EXPECTATION IS THAT IF WE CAN DELIVER WELL AND WE’RE HARD AT WORK ON THAT, THAT’LL BUILD SUPPORT FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. AND THE NEXT FIVE AFTER THAT. BUT I THINK IN ORDER TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN FUNDING THESE KINDS INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS, CONGRESS AND THE PUBLIC WANT TO SEE US GETTING THINGS DONE WITH THE DOLLARS WE’VE BEEN GIVEN. AND THAT’S OUR FOCUS TODAY. AND WHAT DOES FIRST, OPENLY GAY CABINET SECRETARY THINK ABOUT HOW AMERICA TREATS LGBT TEACUP PEOPLE IN THE YEAR 2022? MOST AMERICANS THINK THAT A MARRIAGE LIKE MINE COUNTS JUST AS MUCH AS ANYBODY ELSE’S. MOST AMERICANS THINK YOU SHOULDN’T BE ABUSED OR HARMED OR DISCRIMINATED AGAINST BECAUSE OF WHO YOU ARE, BECAUSE OF WHO YOU LOVE. BUT WE DO HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO BECAUSE THERE IS SMALL BUT LOUD MINORITY, ESPECIALLY IN THE POLITICAL, THAT SEEM TO FIND SOME KIND OF POLITICAL ADVANTAGE IN PICKING ON VERY VULNERABLE PEOPLE. THERE’S ALSO TOLD ME THAT HE’S WORKING ON REGULATIONS SIMILAR TO WHAT’S OFTEN BILLED AS A AIRLINE PASSENGER BILL OF RIGHTS. THAT’S SOMETHING CONGRESS HASN’

First openly gay US cabinet secretary talks about country’s acceptance of LGBTQ people

On one hand, the country just passed the Respect for Marriage Act, which recognizes same-sex marriages as legal unions.On the other, the country has seen recent incidents of violence that appear to target LGBTQ businesses and events since that law’s passage last month.U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is the first openly gay U.S. cabinet member. He was in Louisville Tuesday, and while in town, we asked him about LGBTQ acceptance in the country. He said, overall, he thinks most Americans accept and respect LGBTQ citizens.”Most Americans think that a marriage like mine counts just as much as anybody else’s,” Buttigieg said. “Most Americans think you shouldn’t be abused or harmed or discriminated against because of who you are, because of who you love. But we do have a long way to go because there is a small but loud minority, especially in the political space, that seem to find some kind of political advantage in picking on very vulnerable people. As long as that continues, we’re going to continue to see a lot of harm out there.”Hear Buttigieg’s remarks from the UPS Worldport on Tuesday:

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —

On one hand, the country just passed the Respect for Marriage Act, which recognizes same-sex marriages as legal unions.

On the other, the country has seen recent incidents of violence that appear to target LGBTQ businesses and events since that law’s passage last month.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is the first openly gay U.S. cabinet member.

He was in Louisville Tuesday, and while in town, we asked him about LGBTQ acceptance in the country.

He said, overall, he thinks most Americans accept and respect LGBTQ citizens.

“Most Americans think that a marriage like mine counts just as much as anybody else’s,” Buttigieg said. “Most Americans think you shouldn’t be abused or harmed or discriminated against because of who you are, because of who you love. But we do have a long way to go because there is a small but loud minority, especially in the political space, that seem to find some kind of political advantage in picking on very vulnerable people. As long as that continues, we’re going to continue to see a lot of harm out there.”

Hear Buttigieg’s remarks from the UPS Worldport on Tuesday: