Buttigieg gets honest about what his historic nomination means to him and his community

“You’re going to be the first openly gay person to serve in a Senate-confirmed Cabinet secretary position,” Tucker stated. “You’ll also be the first millennial Cabinet member. Do these milestones mean something to you personally?”

We all know Buttigieg is no stranger to eloquent, moving remarks. And his answer to this question is no different.

“I can remember being a teenager,” Buttigieg stated. “I remember being in Indiana in the ‘90s, watching on the news, as an appointee of President Clinton’s, James Hormel was put forward to be an ambassador. Couldn’t get a hearing in the Senate, was attacked relentlessly because he was gay. I wasn’t even out to myself at the time, but I noticed that story.

And, you know, over the weekend, having mentioned historia, I tracked down the former ambassador and called him. He did get to the serve in the end, though only by recess appointment. And he said that he made sure, he asked, to be put forward for something that would have to go to the Senate, knowing full well what would happen. Because he knew that would chip away at that barrier for the next person to come along. So, I was mindful as that announcement came out that I was standing on the shoulders of people who came before me.

And I understand that part of my responsibility, and my opportunity, is to make it a little bit easier for the next person to come along. And I hope there are young people who may have wondered if they belonged, maybe been given reasons to wonder if they belong in their own families and communities, understanding the message that is sent by the President-Elect when he creates a place of belonging at a place like the Cabinet table in the White House.”

Here is that clip.

And when it comes to specifics on transportation, Buttigieg talks about what he would focus on as Transportation Secretary, in addition to an enormous, hopefully bipartisan infrastructure package Biden has said is a major priority. Buttigieg says, “Americans shouldn’t settle for less when it comes to the infrastructure resources that we really count on.” He describes his perspective as part of a “mayor’s-eye view” and that in a community like South Bend, “daily life is shaped by transportation,” as well as the economy. 

So, as Buttigieg told Tapper, he’s thinking about transportation in terms of jobs, economy, and, thankfully, climate. “I’m thinking about climate,” he stated. “There is no way we’re going to do what we must do as a country unless we move the transportation sector forward.”

Buttigieg, also thankfully, brought up race and transportation, an enormous but under-discussed aspect of infrastructure development and climate in general. “It’s disproportionately Black and brown neighborhoods that were divided by highway projects plowing through them, because they didn’t have the, sometimes, the political capital to resist, or, sometimes nothing at all. Coming to the most low-income, or minoritized, neighborhoods. We’ve got a chance to get that right.”

He also discussed worker safety, which is, of course, especially pertinent given our ongoing pandemic crisis.

Tapper brought up that Trump recently held an Oval Office meeting where his allies reportedly discussed potentially invoking martial law in states that Biden won. (On Twitter, Trump asserted this was “fake news.”) 

“Obviously, it’s irresponsible and it’s dangerous,” Buttigieg said to Tapper, adding that this is ultimately a “country of laws.” Buttigieg confirmed that Biden will become President Biden on inauguration day.

As a veteran, Buttigieg said he felt reassured that professionals in public and uniformed service will follow the law, though he felt that the Secretary of the Army—of course— shouldn’t have had to come out and clarify that there’s no role for the U.S. military in determining the outcome of the election.