Pence refuses to apologize for making Buttigieg 'maternity' leave joke

Former Vice President Mike Pence refused to apologize Thursday for a joke he made about the chaos that ensued when Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was on “maternity” leave.

‘The Gridiron Dinner is a roast. I had a lot of jokes directed at me, and I directed a lot of jokes at Republicans and Democrats,’ Pence told reporters at an event in Keene, New Hampshire. “The one thing I can relate to is that Pete Buttigieg not only can’t do his job, he can’t take a joke.”

Pence was the GOP speaker at Saturday night’s Gridiron dinner in Washington and mocked the Transportation Secretary for taking time off after the birth of his adoptive twins.

“When Pete’s two children were born, he took two months of maternity leave, where thousands of travelers were stranded in airports, the air traffic system shut down, planes nearly collided in full flight,” Pence said. “I mean, Pete Buttigieg is the only person in the history of mankind to have had a child and all of us, we all have postpartum depression.”

The White House called the joke “homophobic”, saying it was “offensive and inappropriate”, while Pete’s husband Chasten went to The View on Thursday where it was the main topic of conversation.

Former Vice President Mike Pence refused to apologize Thursday for a joke he made about the chaos that ensued when Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was on ‘maternity’ leave

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg with his twins Gus and Penelope. The White House called Pence’s joke ‘homophobic’, as well as ‘offensive and inappropriate’

Chasten Buttigieg told the co-hosts that the joke “goes against” the “family values” preached by Pence and revealed that the Buttigiegs have not received an apology from the Republican.

The transport secretary’s husband told The View that ‘when your child is hooked up to a ventilator, you don’t want to be anywhere but by their bedside’.

The Buttigiegs’ son Gus spent two months in the NICU as a newborn.

“I don’t take that when it’s directed at my family,” Buttigieg said, explaining why he decided to speak out.

“And I don’t think anyone else would, especially when you bring in a very small, medically fragile child,” Buttigieg explained.

Buttigieg told The View co-hosts that Pence deliberately used “maternity” leave to feminize her husband, calling the move “misogynistic.”

Chasten Buttigieg hit out at Pence on Thursday, saying a ‘maternity leave’ joke he made about Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg ‘goes against’ the ‘family values’ preached by pence

Pence was the GOP speaker at Saturday night’s Gridiron. Pence joked that the country was suffering from ‘postpartum depression’ because of travel problems created while Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg was on ‘maternity leave’

He argued that the first weeks spent with the twins, when he and Pete were on paternity leave, were not a “vacation”, but an incredibly trying time, as their daughter Penelope also needed 24-hour care. 24.

“And there’s nothing weak about that job,” Buttigieg said on The View.

The Gridiron Club is made up of journalists who perform skits and songs poking fun at both political parties – and themselves. Each year there is also a Democrat, a Republican, and a President representing the White House.

Dinner humor is meant to “scorch, not burn.”

On Saturday night, Pence’s comments about Pete Buttigieg were overshadowed by topical remarks he made about former President Donald Trump, as he recounted how he felt on Jan. 6 when the Capitol was attacked by a pro-Trump mob.

“I wasn’t scared, I was angry. President Trump was wrong,’ Pence said. “I had no right to void the election and his reckless words endangered my family and everyone on Capitol Hill that day.”

“And I know history will hold Donald Trump accountable,” Pence said.