In the News

(CNN)Caitlyn Jenner's debut last week was met with a social media firestorm and bipartisan support.

 

Vanity Fair tweeted its latest cover Monday, starring the former Bruce Jenner, now Caitlyn, who not only came out as a woman in the groundbreaking interview with Diane Sawyer last month, but also, as a Republican.

 

The most recent support for Jenner comes from Republican presidential candidate and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who said on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday, that he would welcome Jenner as a political ally.

 

"I haven't walked in her shoes. I don't have all the answers to the mysteries of life," he said. "I can only imagine the torment that Bruce Jenner went through. I hope he's -- I hope she has found peace."

 

Upon posting her first Tweet, the former Olympian broke the Twitter Guinness-certified record, previously held by President Barack Obama, by acquiring over a million followers in a mere four hours.

 

It took Obama five hours to reach a million followers but he has no hard feelings, as the @BarackObama account, which is run by Obama for America, tweeted support for Jenner and hailed her bravery for sharing her story with the world.

 

The tweet also asked people to share their own stories in the fight for LGBT rights.

 

The most recent support for Jenner comes from Republican presidential candidate and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who said on CNN's State of the Union Sunday, that he would welcome Jenner as a political ally.

 

"I haven't walked in her shoes. I don't have all the answers to the mysteries of life," he said. "I can only imagine the torment that Bruce Jenner went through. I hope he's -- I hope she has found peace."

 

Obama's senior adviser Valerie Jarrett, one of Caitlyn's new Twitter followers, also tweeted words of encouragement. Jarrett is the Chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls and has spoken out in support of banning "conversion" therapies that promise to cure gay and transgender people.

 

Just last month the White House issued a statement by Jarrett, who wrote that "The overwhelming scientific evidence demonstrates that conversion therapy, especially when it is practiced on young people, is neither medically nor ethically appropriate and can cause substantial harm," proclaiming the Obama administration's support for efforts to ban the use of conversion therapy for minors.

 

Openly gay Rep. Mark Takano, a Democrat from California, tweeted "The world loves you already."

 

And Minnesota Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison, the first Muslim ever elected to Congress, also expressed his support.

 

Jenner also received support from Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who has been outspoken about her support for her transgender son Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen. The Florida congresswoman, who is one of the most outspoken advocates for the LGBT community on Capitol Hill, invited Jenner to join her on the Hill.

 

Democratic Rep. Gwen Moore congratulated Jenner on her "Vanity Fair" cover and tweeted #YouDoYou.

 

The Log Cabin Republicans, which is the largest Republican organization dedicated to representing the LGBT community, also welcomed Jenner.

 

Meanwhile, Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee questioned Caitlyn's party affiliation, tweeting "Well is #CaitlynJenner a Republican too ?"

 

Cohen also retweeted a response from a follower, who wrote "What "Republican liberty" should Caitlyn support? The one where LGBTQ rights R marginalized & criminalized?"

 

Republican presidential candidate and former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, who once likened homosexuality to beastiality recently clarified comments he made about the then, Bruce Jenner, when he said "If he says he's a woman, then he's a woman. My responsibility as a human being is to love and accept everybody. Not to criticize people for who they are."

 

Santorum took to Facebook to clarify that while he affirms Jenner "as a person, made by God in His likeness," he is not suggesting any policy changes to accommodate transgender individuals, which would include bans on "conversion" therapy.

 

E!, the home of the family's reality show "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," will air an eight-part series about Jenner's transition starting July 26.