Latest news with #Buttigieg
The Hill
32 minutes ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Pete Buttigieg says Dems are too attached to a ‘failing' status quo
In a recent interview with NPR, Pete Buttigieg shared some powerful thoughts about where the Democratic Party — and the country — needs to go from here. He made a compelling point: it's not enough to just fix what Donald Trump broke. Instead, Buttigieg argues, Democrats have to go further. They need to reimagine the entire system so that it actually works for people today. It's a wake-up call. For years, Buttigieg has pushed the idea that the government needs more than a fresh coat of paint — it needs a full renovation. In his conversation on 'Morning Edition,' Buttigieg highlighted a few critical points. 'Democrats have been slow to understand the changes in how people get their information,' he said. 'Slow to understand some of the cultural changes that have been happening and — maybe most problematic of all — too attached to a status quo that has been failing us for a long time.' And that's really the crux of it. There's a gap between the way the party sees the world and how everyday Americans are experiencing it. Buttigieg is saying out loud what many have been whispering: the old ways of doing things just aren't cutting it anymore. He went on to say: 'Right now, you've got an administration that is burning down many of the institutions that we have in this country, which is wrong. It is also wrong to imagine that we should have just kept everything going along the way it was. If our politics, our economy and our culture were healthy, the rise of a figure like Donald Trump would have never happened in the first place.' He's not just criticizing Trump—he's challenging Democrats, too. Buttigieg is pointing to something deeper: that the system itself hasn't been working for a long time. And pretending we can go back to 'normal' just isn't going to cut it. Instead of just repairing departments like Education or USAID, he is pushing for transformation. He wants these institutions to be more modern, more accountable, and more connected to the real needs of today's America. But it's not just about structure. It's about trust. Buttigieg is warning that public faith in government has eroded — and that's opened the door for conspiracy theories, misinformation, and extreme politics. If Democrats want to win people back, they have to stop avoiding the hard questions and start making bold, meaningful changes. In the end, Buttigieg's message is simple but urgent: the Democratic Party has to evolve. That means letting go of what no longer works and being brave enough to build something new. It's about tuning in to how people live now — how they get their news, who they trust, what they need — and designing a government that reflects that. Looking ahead to 2028 and beyond, this could be a real blueprint for Democrats. Buttigieg isn't asking them to look back; he's challenging them to look forward — with open eyes, open ears, and the courage to truly listen to the people they're supposed to represent.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pete Buttigieg Has A Name For What Trump Does When He's Desperate, And It's Spot On
Donald Trump's efforts to shift the nation's conversations away from files concerning the crimes of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein don't seem to be working. Instead, Trump's base has begun turning on him over his administration's flip-flopping about whether an Epstein "client list" does or does not exist... Related: And they're burning their hats to be heard. Twitter: @krassenstein Amid the backlash, Trump used this time to bolster the unsupported claims of National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, who says she has evidence of an 'Obama Administration Conspiracy to Subvert Trump's 2016 Victory and Presidency.' (The Obama administration has denied this, and former CIA director John Brennan told NBC News, 'There is no factual basis for the allegations that Tulsi Gabbard is making.") But, of course, that didn't stop Trump from sharing a fake, AI-generated video of Obama being arrested on his Truth Social account. Related: Well, when asked about the chaos during his appearance on The Breakfast Club, former secretary of transportation Pete Buttigieg called Trump's actions exactly as he saw them. "So, Trump says, 'We're going to release the files, we're going to release the files, we're going to release the files.' And then he says, 'We're not going to release the files,'" Buttigieg told hosts. Related: "And people are mad, including MAGA, saying, 'Wait a minute, you said you were going to release this information and you're not.'" "And what does he do?" Buttigieg posed. "He's like, 'Uh, we're going to arrest Obama.'" As hosts laugh, Buttigieg concludes, "That has nothing to do with anything," before adding a term for Trump's behavior anytime he's cornered, "It's the distraction machine." Related: Viewers appear to resonate with the interview as a whole, which you can watch in full here. What are your thoughts on his take? Let us know in the comments. Also in In the News: Also in In the News: Also in In the News:
Buzz Feed
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Buzz Feed
Pete Buttigieg Nails Trump's Panic Mode Behavior
Donald Trump's efforts to shift the nation's conversations away from files concerning the crimes of convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein don't seem to be working. Instead, Trump's base has begun turning on him over his administration's flip-flopping about whether an Epstein "client list" does or does not exist... And they're burning their hats to be heard. Amid the backlash, Trump used this time to bolster the unsupported claims of National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, who says she has evidence of an 'Obama Administration Conspiracy to Subvert Trump's 2016 Victory and Presidency.' (The Obama administration has denied this, and former CIA director John Brennan told NBC News, 'There is no factual basis for the allegations that Tulsi Gabbard is making.") But, of course, that didn't stop Trump from sharing a fake, AI-generated video of Obama being arrested on his Truth Social account. Well, when asked about the chaos during his appearance on The Breakfast Club, former secretary of transportation Pete Buttigieg called Trump's actions exactly as he saw them. "So, Trump says, 'We're going to release the files, we're going to release the files, we're going to release the files.' And then he says, 'We're not going to release the files,'" Buttigieg told hosts. "And people are mad, including MAGA, saying, 'Wait a minute, you said you were going to release this information and you're not.'" "And what does he do?" Buttigieg posed. "He's like, 'Uh, we're going to arrest Obama.'" As hosts laugh, Buttigieg concludes, "That has nothing to do with anything," before adding a term for Trump's behavior anytime he's cornered, "It's the distraction machine." Viewers appear to resonate with the interview as a whole, which you can watch in full here. What are your thoughts on his take? Let us know in the comments.
Fox News
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Pete Buttigieg acknowledges 'fairness issues' with trans athletes in women's sports
Prominent Democrat and former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg weighed in on the debate about transgender athletes competing in women's sports. During an interview with NPR, Buttigieg acknowledged "fairness issues" in the debate. "Around sports, … I think most reasonable people would recognize that there are serious fairness issues if you just treat this as not mattering when a trans athlete wants to compete in women's sports," Buttigieg said. The Democrat then agreed that parents who have complained about trans athletes competing against their daughters "have a case." However, Buttigieg also argued that politicians shouldn't be dictating policy to determine whether males can compete in women's and girls sports. "And that's why I think these decisions should be in the hands of sports leagues and school boards and not politicians … in Washington trying to use this as a political pawn," Buttigieg said. "Chess is different from weightlifting, and weightlifting is different from volleyball and middle school is different from the Olympics. So, that's exactly why I think that we shouldn't be grandstanding on this as politicians. We should be empowering communities and organizations and schools to make the right decisions." Democrats, including former President Joe Biden, have advocated for policy changes that would allow trans athletes to compete in women's and girls sports. Biden passed an executive order on his first day in office in January 2021 that said "Children should be able to learn without worrying about whether they will be denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports." Democrats in Congress also tried to pass the Transgender Bill of Rights and the Equality Act, both of which would have allowed trans athletes to compete in girls and women's sports. President Donald Trump signed the "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order Feb. 5, and 27 states have passed their own laws to ensure similar restrictions. Buttigieg joins several other prominent Democrats and media pundits who have spoken out against allowing males to compete with females, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom; Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass.; and HBO host Bill Maher. An April report by The New York Times claims that Biden did not agree with trans athletes participating in women's and girls sports. "According to a number of former Biden-administration officials, there remained a simmering debate inside the administration about whether those Title IX protections should extend to sports," the Times reported,. "One side …maintained that there was no legal difference between letting trans students use bathrooms that align with their gender identity and letting trans student athletes play on sports teams that align with their gender identity." However, Biden was "on the other side … who believed that the competitive, zero-sum nature of sports made them different from bathrooms — that some transgender athletes would enjoy unfair physical advantages over women. Most important, one of the officials holding this view was Biden himself." A New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, don't think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women's sports. "Thinking about transgender female athletes — meaning athletes who were male at birth but who currently identify as female — do you think they should or should not be allowed to compete in women's sports?" the survey asked. Of the 2,128 people who participated, 79% said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to participate in women's sports. Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women. Other data suggests the issue affected the outcome of the 2024 election. A national exit poll conducted by the Concerned Women for America (CWA) legislative action committee found that 70% of moderate voters saw the issue of "Donald Trump's opposition to transgender boys and men playing girls' and women's sports and of transgender boys and men using girls' and women's bathrooms" as important to them. And 6% said it was the most important issue of all, while 44% said it was "very important."
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pete Buttigieg says Democratic Party's attachment to two words handed Trump the White House in 2024
Former Transportation Secretary and 2020 presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg has argued that Democrats suffered heavy losses in 2024 because they're 'too attached' to the 'status quo.' Speaking to NPR, he said Democrats shouldn't try to restore everything being torn down by President Donald Trump. "You've got an administration that is burning down so many of the most important institutions that we have in this country, which is wrong," said Buttigieg. "It is also wrong to imagine that we should have just kept everything going along the way it was." The 43-year-old argued that what Democrats attempted to do after taking power in 2021, namely, repairing institutions harmed by the first Trump administration, shouldn't be the first port of call the next time the Democrats are in charge. He said his party has been "too attached to a status quo that has been failing us for a long time." "It is wrong to burn down the Department of Education, but I actually think it's also wrong to suppose that the Department of Education was just right in 2024," he added. "You could say the same thing about USAID. It is unconscionable that children were left to die by the abrupt destruction of USAID. Unconscionable. But it's also wrong to suppose that if Democrats come back to power, our project should be to just tape the pieces together just the way that they were." The former Biden cabinet member also said that the scandal surrounding the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has had such staying power because of a 'breakdown in societal trust.' Many Americans don't trust the government and don't believe that all has been revealed about Epstein, who had expansive connections to wealthy and powerful people, including his former friend, Trump. While Buttigieg noted to NPR that Epstein "was historically more of an area of interest for the MAGA base" compared to the Democrats, he defended the pressure that the party has put on Trump. "You shouldn't have to be a Republican or a Democrat to care about making sure there's transparency on something as horrific as the abuses that happened. And to want to understand why an administration that promised to shed light on this decided not to," said the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor. When asked about the issue of the supposed cover-up of former President Joe Biden's condition as he aged in office, Buttigieg said, "I told the truth, which is that he was old. You could see that he was old. And also, when it came to my ability to do my job and have my boss, my president, support me in that job, I always got whatever I needed from him, from the Oval Office." Buttigieg told NPR that the fear of political retribution or violence "is more real than at any point in my lifetime." He added that concerns about losing funding are "already impacting who gets invited to speak at a university or who gets hired at a law firm…. We can't allow that.' "The thing about the politics of fear is the more you give into it, the worse it gets. The only antidote to a politics of fear is a politics of courage,' said Buttigieg.
