California Sen. Laphonza Butler on Harris, the DNC, and Ann Coulter's bullying

Chicago — In an intimate conversation with The Advocate on Thursday afternoon, ahead of the Democratic National Convention’s grand finale, California U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler shared stories about Vice President Kamala Harris and the unique challenges of being a trailblazing leader.

Butler, the first Black LGBTQ+ woman to serve in the U.S. Senate, has known Harris for years.

“Anytime she sees unfairness or injustice or feels like somebody is being taken advantage of, she is quick to put on her cape,” Butler said. According to her, this commitment is not just political for Harris; it is deeply personal, shaped by her experiences in San Francisco.

Butler spoke of Harris’s connection to the LGBTQ+ community, noting that her understanding and empathy are rooted in the history of the community in San Francisco, from the assassination of Harvey Milk to the birth of Pride. “It only strengthens that connection and affinity,” Butler observed.

Harris’s rise to prominence has not been without significant challenges, the senator said. Butler reflected on the “vicious and vile” attacks Harris has faced, which have only intensified as she has ascended in her career.

“Whether they are attacks that are trying to go after her race or her gender or past relationships that she’s been in, or it’s just flat-out things that are not true about her,” Butler said, these attacks are often rooted in a fear of change and a desire to maintain the status quo.

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“It emanates from being threatened by something that we’ve never seen before,” she added.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

Former President Donald Trump is one of the most significant sources of disinformation and attacks against Harris. On Thursday morning, Trump labeled Harris a “Marxist” and predicted the country’s demise if she were to become president on Fox News. Butler dismissed Trump’s rhetoric as the “soap opera” he thrives on, designed to distract and manipulate.

“It’s the show that he wants everybody to get to buy into,” she said. “We have got to be about communicating clearly and often in every corner of this country,” she insisted, emphasizing the importance of countering disinformation with truth.

Butler also addressed the threat posed by Project 2025, a conservative agenda from which Trump’s campaign has distanced itself despite many former Trump administration officials being involved in its authorship. For Butler, the stakes are personal. “If Project 2025 were to be the law of the land, my family would not be permitted to exist,” she said. The project’s draconian measures would invalidate her marriage and those of countless other LGBTQ+ families. “My life would cease to exist as I know it,” she said.

Related: What is Project 2025 and how does it affect LGBTQ+ Americans?

The conversation also touched on the stark contrast between the Democratic and Republican parties regarding LGBTQ+ rights. Butler praised the Democratic Party’s inclusive approach, led by Harris.

“There is a place for everyone here,” Butler said, contrasting this with the Republican Party’s tendency to “play to the smallest and the lowest common denominator.”

Butler also discussed the attacks on Harris’s family and the broader implications of the political climate. One such moment happened when Gov. Tim Walz’s 17-year-old son, Gus, was seen weeping with pride during his father’s speech accepting the vice-presidential nomination. The sight of Gus, who has a nonverbal learning disorder, ADHD, and an anxiety disorder, instantly became an iconic feel-good moment of the convention, with many who saw the moment left in tears.

However, conservative commentator Ann Coulter quickly took to social media to mock the teenager, posting a photo of Gus in tears with the caption, “Talk about weird…”

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

Coulter deleted her post, but not before it had sparked a wave of criticism.

Butler, who has seen Harris’s reaction to similar attacks, noted that such bullying strikes at the core of what Harris stands for.

“She is probably as angry as she’s ever been, not just because of the sort of bullying nature of it, but because it gets at what is so fundamental to her core beliefs, and that’s family,” Butler said. Reflecting on how Harris might be processing the attack on Gus, Butler imagined her saying, “How dare they try to tell a young man how he should feel about his father.”

For Butler, the incident was emblematic of the broader political struggle. Harris’s candidacy, she suggested, represents a different kind of leadership that prioritizes inclusion, empathy, and a commitment to justice.

“So many people can see themselves represented in what is being brought forth by Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz,” Butler said, noting the diversity of families showcased during the convention. Whether they are immigrants, drag queens, transgender people, part of a mixed-race family, or have a child with special needs, “so many people can see themselves in the families that are on display,” she said.