Speaker Pelosi, Senator Harris Get Political Before SF Pride Parade
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) -- Each year before the San Francisco Pride parade begins, you can find just about every Bay Area local, state and federal official decked out in rainbow colors at the Alice B. Toklas breakfast.
The event is a favorite among current and former local politicians; a group that now includes the Speaker of the House and one of the front runners to be the Democratic nominee for President.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was recognized for her longtime dedication to funding AIDS research and treatment, but gave credit to the local activists. "All the things that we did on Capitol Hill started in San Francisco."
And while she is one of the most powerful people in the country, she assured the crowd her biggest honor is representing the city. "No matter what honors may be bestowed upon my colleagues, Leader, Whip, Speaker of the House, none of them matches the title of Representative of San Francisco in the Congress of the United States."
Pelosi also talked about San Francisco values, referring to, "Something the President said in Japan that didn't sort of make sense about San Francisco."
[The President was asked to comment on Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement that liberalism has "become obsolete." The President said, "[i]f you look at what's happening in Los Angeles, where it's so sad to look; and what's happening in San Francisco and a couple of other cities, which are run by an extraordinary group of liberal people--I don't know what they're thinking."]
"We want to say to him: let us introduce you to San Francisco values," said Pelosi in response to the President.
"Here we are, the city of St. Francis, our patron saint, his song of Saint Francis, our anthem: make us an instrument of thy peace; where there is darkness, light; hatred, love; despair, hope. Those are our San Francisco values."
Later when presented with a rainbow-colored gavel, she gamely pounded the lectern and said, "The House will be in Order!"
When it was time for Senator Kamala Harris to speak, she attacked the President's record on LGBTQ rights.
"He stayed silent when LGBTQ people were being attacked from Chechnya to Egypt, he banned transgender servicemembers from defending their country, the Twitterer-in-chief was silent over the last two years as hate crimes went up, silent during these deadliest years on record for transgender people and nominated judges who called transgender children proof of Satan's plan," she told the crowd.
"We need a new president who fights for all people, understanding our equality and right to believe and belong."
