CNN analyst Harry Enten argued that South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s personal feud with Vice President Mike Pence was a “smart move” in a Friday morning episode of “New Day.”
“I think the polls are indicative that Mayor Pete has a good shot at the electorate. Democratic voters are in favor of same-sex marriage and the fact is Mike Pence is not well liked among the Democratic electorate. I would say this has been a smart move by the mayor of South Bend and it is showing up in the numbers so far,” Enten said during his analysis. (RELATED: Pence Breaks Silence On Buttigieg’s Attack On His Faith)
Buttigieg has attacked Pence multiple times during the course of his campaign for the White House so far. During a Sunday LGBTQ event in Washington, he asserted that if the vice president had any problem with his sexuality, he should take it up with God.
“If me being gay was a choice, it was a choice that was made far, far above my pay grade,” said Buttigieg. “And that’s the thing I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand. That if you got a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me — your quarrel, sir, is with my creator.”
Pence responded by saying that the Democrat has to engage in such behavior to differentiate himself from the rest of the candidates fighting to win the 2020 Democratic primary.
“He said some things that are critical of my Christian faith and about me personally. And he knows better. He knows me,” Pence stated. “But I get it. You know, it’s- look, again, 19 people running for president on that side in a party that’s sliding off to the left. And they’re all competing with one another for how much more liberal they can be.”
Buttigieg also called anyone who supported President Donald Trump a hypocrite during a Sunday interview on “Meet The Press.”
He said:
It’s something that frustrates me because the hypocrisy is unbelievable. I think there was a cynical process where he decided to, for example, pretend to be pro-life and govern accordingly which was good enough to bring many evangelicals over to his side. But even on the version of Christianity that you hear from the religious right, which is about sexual ethics, I cannot believe that somebody who was caught writing hush money to adult film actresses is somebody they should be lifting up as the kind of person you want leading this nation.
Buttigieg’s support in the polls has increased. He also attended a fundraiser Wednesday in Hollywood where he spoke to celebrities and workers alike about his plan for the country.