Daily Wire Host on Buttigieg: “Two Men Shouldn’t Be Allowed to Adopt Babies”

Conservative Catholic blogger Matt Walsh, whose primary function in life is to infuriate anyone with a brain, has always been quick to go further than even typical right-wing figures. He once celebrated an abortion ban because the victim’s baby would serve as “proof” the rape occurred (implying he would never believe the victim otherwise). He doesn’t think progressive Christians are True Christians™.

And now, in response to Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg going on paternity leave to care for his adopted twins, Walsh says that this is evidence for why men shouldn’t be allowed to go on paternity leave at all — and why gay people shouldn’t be allowed to adopt children.

It’s absurd for any public employee, paid on taxpayer dime, to be given that much time off. Now, you can make an argument for women on maternity leave but not for men. Paternity leave is a nice luxury for private companies that can afford it. The U.S. government is not a private company — it’s a public institution, deeply in debt, failing in just about every way and everywhere. So this is not a time and not the place for those kinds of luxuries…

…

… as far as caring for the newborn himself, most of that is going to be done by the mother. She, in most cases, will be feeding the child. The child also needs and wants his mother’s presence, his mother’s touch, her voice. The father should be interacting with the baby also, obviously, but the infant is far more focused on his mother at that age. And needs his mother more. There is no mother in the Buttigieg household, but that doesn’t change the point here.

Babies need their mothers, which is why two men shouldn’t be allowed to adopt babies in the first place. And the outrage mob can now start a secondary campaign over that comment. But I’ll say it again. Two men should not be allowed to adopt babies because babies need mothers. They also need fathers, which is why two women shouldn’t be allowed either.

That’s a very long way for Walsh to admit his father never pitched in.

Look: There’s no real point in debunking all of this because Walsh is merely a provocateur. He doesn’t care about making a good argument; he only wants to get a rise out of liberals. It doesn’t matter that we’ll attract better workers to government jobs if they’re offered paid leave. Or that the amount of money we’d spend on paid leave is dwarfed by the amount we spend on the military or tax cuts for the wealthy. Or that the existence of excellent single dads and gay couples — as well as horrible opposite-sex parents — disproves his entire point. Or that if more same-sex couples were able to adopt kids, it would be good news for the “pro-life” side.

None of that matters because Walsh cares more about promoting religious bigotry than making sense. He knows who his audience is. They’re not thoughtful people; they’re conservative internet trolls.

Ultimately, Buttigieg’s kids will be just fine. They have caring parents, money, and plenty of resources. I can’t say the same for Walsh’s kids, who have to live in a house where hatred drives their father’s career. Hell, Walsh’s own parents were straight. That ought to be proof enough that growing up with a mother and father has no bearing on whether you turn out to be a decent human being.

(via Media Matters)