U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg defended his job performance and pointed to a project in Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s home state of Kentucky after the senator said Buttigieg was more focused on “woke initiatives’' and media coverage than his day job.
“Even amidst a catalog of crises on his watch, from this and other recent train derailments, to the meltdown in air travel back during the holiday season, Secretary Buttigieg has seemed more interested in pursuing press coverage for woke initiatives and climate nonsense than in attending to basic elements of his day job,” McConnell said on the Senate floor Monday.
“I would not call the Brent Spence Bridge a woke initiative,” he said in the interview. “As for climate, climate is not nonsense. Dealing with climate change is one of the biggest things that people like me and people like him will be remembered for after we’re gone.”
The secretary went on to criticize McConnell for what he said was the Republican’s hindering the transportation department’s push for more regulations.
“He is the caucus leader in the Senate,“ Buttigieg said. ”He could be a partner to us right now in making sure that there are fewer rail disasters in the future. As I mentioned earlier, the rail—the freight rail industry has wielded a lot of power here in Washington. I would love to see Leader McConnell join us in standing up to them.”
Buttigieg Criticized Previously
Buttigieg has faced heavy criticism for major air travel disruptions during the 2022 holiday season as well as a string of recent train derailments, including the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment that resulted in spillage of toxic chemicals. The secretary was criticized by Republicans and Democrats for what they called a slow response to the fiery Norfolk Southern Railway train derailment on Feb. 3.Buttigieg made his first visit to East Palestine on Feb. 23.
At a recent Senate hearing, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), chairwoman of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, spoke about the situation.
“This sector needs a more effective policeman on the beat,“ Cantwell said. ”They need someone over at the Department of Transportation who is going to lead.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) weighed in on Twitter.
“East Palestine railroad derailment will have a significant negative impact on the health and wellbeing of the residents for decades and there is almost zero national media attention,“ Omar posted on Feb. 13. “We need Congressional inquiry and direct action from @PeteButtigieg to address this tragedy.”
On Feb. 15, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) posted on Twitter, “What is going on in Ohio? Corporations won’t answer for their negligence, EPA won’t answer about safety, Mayor Pete won’t show up.”
A day later, in a TV interview, he called for Buttigieg to step down.
“Yes, my gosh, he should have resigned after the rail strike. He should certainly resign now,” Hawley said.
The secretary is also facing an audit of his travel using government private jets.
In Tuesday’s CNN Interview, Buttigieg welcomed the audit of his travel.
“Yes, it’s good for it to get an independent look,” he said. “I won’t say anything about the motivations of the senator. I will just say that we are here with the facts, and we'll put forward the math, and I think people will see how we make these decisions, why we make these decisions, and I think it’s a good thing for people to understand that.”
