Jokes aside, this film is great in showing how grounded Chasten is as a person and also how he is not able to keep Pete’s performative personality grounded.
The lens captured how Pete refused to represent the gay community multiple times throughout the campaign. The most hearbreaking one in my opinion is when Chasten asked him if he was going to be the only candidate who doesn’t bring their partner to the stand after winning the Iowa caucus. Pete just dodged the bullet by giving some unrelated excuses and pretending that’s not an issue worth debating. Seconds later, Pete would be whole-heartedly discussing his speech wording with a campaign strategist, as if that was more important than sharing the winning moment with his life partner.
Let’s be honest. Pete Buttogieg knew exactly that he did not and would not get there by being gay. Instead, he got there by being and acting “presidential”, which in American is the synonym of being a privileged white male. Being gay is just a talking point, like his hundreds of other woke middle-class talking points.
Jokes aside, this film is great in showing how grounded Chasten is as a person and also how he is not able to keep Pete’s performative personality grounded.
The lens captured how Pete refused to represent the gay community multiple times throughout the campaign. The most hearbreaking one in my opinion is when Chasten asked him if he was going to be the only candidate who doesn’t bring their partner to the stand after winning the Iowa caucus. Pete just dodged the bullet by giving some unrelated excuses and pretending that’s not an issue worth debating. Seconds later, Pete would be whole-heartedly discussing his speech wording with a campaign strategist, as if that was more important than sharing the winning moment with his life partner.
Let’s be honest. Pete Buttogieg knew exactly that he did not and would not get there by being gay. Instead, he got there by being and acting “presidential”, which in American is the synonym of being a privileged white male. Being gay is just a talking point, like his hundreds of other woke middle-class talking points.