(CNSNews.com) - In a video interview on May 3, 2019 with The Advocate, Pete Buttigieg, who is now a frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, explained how he believes “a gay ambassador or a trans president” could exert the moral authority of the United States “in even the most anti-gay country."

Here is a transcript of the part of the interview where Buttigieg discusses this issue:

Host Jeff Masters: “But I’m curious how you’re going to exert a moral authority in a country where it’s illegal to be gay.”

Pete Buttigieg: “Yeah.”

Masters: “When you’re coming in to lead that conversation."

Buttigieg: “Yeah, it’s going be a challenge, no question. But it’s one example of why it’s so important for America to be credible, right. So, if America were unquestionably credible then when a gay ambassador or a trans president or whoever it was showed up in even the most anti-gay country, they would kind of have to at least have a conversation with you because they would be engaging the country that leads the world, and there’s something that just comes from that. And in the same way that as mayor I was able to enter some environments that are not the most-queer friendly, but by virtue of the fact that I was mayor and that I think I did a good job was able to sort of be invited into those places, met with a certain level of goodwill, and then build more of that goodwill around our desire to serve before or desire to prosper as a community before it comes to any of that stuff."