周一，白宫要求前副总统迈克·彭斯为其周末针对同性恋者开的“恐同玩笑”道歉交通部长皮特·布蒂吉格。
白宫新闻秘书郭佳欣-让·皮埃尔在一份声明中说:“这位前副总统关于布蒂吉格部长的恐同笑话是无礼且不恰当的，尤其是因为他把患有产后抑郁症的女性当作笑点。”声明。“他应该向女性和LGBTQ人群道歉，他们有权得到尊严和尊重。”
彭斯在华盛顿为记者和政治家举行的年度Gridiron Club晚宴上成为头条新闻，他嘲笑Buttigieg在他收养的双胞胎出生后休产假，同时他说美国人面临航空旅行的问题。
“他休了两个月的‘产假’，成千上万的旅客被困在机场，空中交通系统关闭，飞机差点在我们的跑道上相撞。皮特是人类历史上唯一一个有孩子的人，其他人都有产后抑郁症，”彭斯说，据在场的记者说。
值得注意的是，Buttigieg的双胞胎早产，患有呼吸道合胞病毒感染(RSV ),其中一人住院并戴上了呼吸机，这是他的丈夫Chasten在一条针对传言中的2024年总统候选人的推特上指出的。
“迈克·彭斯，在你本周末开了一个玩笑之后，这是一个诚实的问题。如果你的孙子早产，在两个月大的时候被放在呼吸机上——他们的小手指缠着你的手指，监视器在背景中发出哔哔声——你会在哪里?”他说。
彭斯的前幕僚长马克·肖特(Marc Short)称白宫的回应是“虚假的愤怒”。
肖特在一份声明中说:“白宫明智的做法是，少关注安抚觉醒的警察，多关注银行倒闭、飞机险些在半空中相撞、火车出轨以及持续的供应链危机。”自录音再现装置发出的高音。
这已经不是Buttigieg第一次面对来自右翼的批评了休带薪育儿假彭斯的话呼应了福克斯新闻频道主持人塔克·卡尔森多次支持的台词。
“收养了一个孩子后，皮特·布蒂吉格从八月份开始休假。他们称之为陪产假。卡尔森在双胞胎出生两个月后，在他的黄金时段节目中说:“我想知道如何母乳喂养，但没人知道结果如何。”。
ABC新闻的Gio Benitez周一问Buttigieg他是否认为Pence欠他一个道歉，他回答说，“你知道，我会让别人去说的。你知道，这对我来说很奇怪，因为上次我见到他时，他像正常人一样问起我的孩子。我想，你知道，在一个政治活动中，穿白色领带，有点不同。但同样，我没有太多时间关注华盛顿的比赛，因为我们有真正的工作要做。”
但是tigieg之前已经回避了批评，说他所面临的攻击“可能会有一些好的结果”。
“这有助于我们就育儿假展开对话，”他说告诉共同主持人2021年10月的《观点》杂志。“每个美国人都应该能够享受带薪育儿假。这是总统所相信和提议的事情。这是我所相信的。”
但是，他继续说，“当父母休育儿假时，他们需要在做出选择时得到支持。”
彭斯明显打破了卡尔森最近1月6日粉饰他在周六的演讲中对前总统进行了最强烈的谴责唐纳德·特朗普还没有。
“历史将让唐纳德·特朗普为1月6日负责，”彭斯在晚宴上说。“毫无疑问:那天发生的事情是一种耻辱，以任何其他方式描绘它都是对体面的嘲弄。特朗普总统错了。他鲁莽的话语危及了我的家人和那天国会大厦的所有人。”
“游客不会仅仅因为观光而伤害140名警察，”他补充道。“游客不会破门而入去见议长。游客不会威胁公职人员。”
ABC新闻已经联系了彭斯的团队进行评论。
White House demands Pence apologize for 'homophobic joke' aimed at Buttigieg
The White House on Monday asked former Vice President Mike Pence to apologize for what it called a "homophobic joke" he made over the weekend geared atTransportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
"The former vice president's homophobic joke about Secretary Buttigieg was offensive and inappropriate, all the more so because he treated women suffering from postpartum depression as a punchline," White House press secretary Karine-Jean Pierre said in astatement. "He should apologize to women and LGBTQ people, who are entitled to be treated with dignity and respect."
Pence, headlining at the annual Gridiron Club dinner in Washington for journalists and politicians, mocked Buttigieg for taking parental leave after the birth of his adopted twins while he said Americans faced issues with air travel.
"He took two months 'maternity' leave whereupon thousands of travelers were stranded in airports, the air traffic system shut down, and airplanes nearly collided on our runways. Pete is the only person in human history to have a child and everyone else gets postpartum depression," Pence said, according to reporters present.
Notably,Buttigieg's twinswere born prematurely, developed Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV) and one was hospitalized and put on a ventilator, a point his husband, Chasten, called out in a tweet directed at the rumored 2024 presidential hopeful.
"An honest question for you, @Mike_Pence, after your attempted joke this weekend. If your grandchild was born prematurely and placed on a ventilator at two months old - their tiny fingers wrapped around yours as the monitors beep in the background - where would you be?" he said.
Marc Short, Pence's former chief of staff, called the response from the White House "faux outrage."
"The White House would be wise to focus less on placating the woke police and focus more on bank failures, planes nearly colliding in mid-air, train derailments, and the continued supply chain crisis," Short said in atweet.
It's far from the first time that Buttigieg has faced criticism from those on the right fortaking paid parental leave, with Pence's language echoing lines repeatedly espoused by Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
"Pete Buttigieg has been on leave from his job since August after adopting a child. Paternity leave, they call it. Trying to figure out how to breastfeed, no word on how that went," Carlson said on his prime-time show two months after the twins were born.
ABC News' Gio Benitez asked Buttigieg on Monday if he thinks Pence owes him an apology, to which he responded, "You know, I'll I'll let others speak to that. You know, it's it's a strange thing to me because last time I saw him, he asked me about my kids like a normal person would. I guess, you know, at a political event in white tie, it's a little different. But again, there's not a lot of time for me to focus on the Washington game because we have real work to do."
Buttigieg has spun the criticism before to say that "maybe some good came out of" the attacks he's faced.
"It's helped us have a conversation about parental leave," hetold co-hostsof "The View" in Oct. 2021. "Every American ought to be able to get paid parental leave. That's something that the president believes in and has proposed. It's something I believe."
But, he continued, "When parents take that parental leave, they need to be supported in making that choice."
Pence notably broke with Carlson's recentwhitewashing of Jan. 6in his speech Saturday and offered his strongest rebuke of former PresidentDonald Trumpyet.
"History will hold Donald Trump accountable for Jan. 6," Pence said at the dinner. "Make no mistake about it: What happened that day was a disgrace, and it mocks decency to portray it in any other way. President Trump was wrong. His reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day."
"Tourists don't injure 140 police officers by simply sightseeing," he added. "Tourists don't break down doors to get to the Speaker of the House. Tourists don't threaten public officials."
ABC News has reached out to Pence's team for comment.
