It appears someone at the DNC may have sat Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg down for a heart-to-heart. Despite the media fawning and attempting to bill Buttigieg as the next big thing, it just isn’t taking. Forget that he looks about 14 years old, rarely speaks in any language other than his native corporate consultant, and was absent on paternity leave during a supply-chain crisis. As the city’s mayor, he has only demonstrated that he couldn’t fix the potholes in South Bend, Indiana.
Despite the glaring lack of demonstrable skills or an actual resume, Buttigieg threw himself into the Democrat presidential primary. It turns out that was a good move on his part. As a far-left progressive, Buttigieg knew he could not win a statewide race in red Indiana. As a failed primary candidate, he got enough press, profile, and leverage to get himself a spot in the intersectional administration. It is unclear what he has done since then other than take two months off and call roads racist.
But the Democrats desperately need young intersectional faces on their bench. Where does a secretary of transportation go when the Biden administration ends? Someone more politically astute than Buttigieg must have told him. It is not the top of the national ticket in 2024. Despite having no intersectional cred, the party seems to be teeing up Kamala Harris’s old boss, Gavin Newsom, to displace both her and Joe Biden.
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Nor is it the number two slot. If Newsome runs, the Democrats can’t have two white guys on the ticket, even if one of them is gay. The Democrat base won’t tolerate it. So Mayor Pete needs to have a shot at a job more significant than a mayor, but one much smaller than the president. Maybe while he does said job, Buttigieg could even accomplish something notable, though that is not required to rise through the ranks of the Democrat Party. Obviously, he cannot take the new family and go back to Indiana and make anything happen.
So, he and the crew landed in Michigan. Detroit News reports:
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his husband Chasten are officially Michiganians — a move that may help bolster the former South Bend, Indiana mayor’s future political prospects.
The couple have moved to Traverse City, Chasten’s hometown, and plan to register to vote there before the midterm election this fall, a U.S. Department of Transportation spokesperson confirmed to The Detroit News.
The move will allow the Buttigiegs to be closer to Chasten’s parents, who have helped the couple with child care since they adopted their twins last August, according to the spokesperson.
Really? The Buttigieges moved for babysitting? Theoretically, the Biden administration will end on January 20, 2025. While President Biden says he is running again, it is not clear anyone believes him. Certainly not after seeing Newsome jaunt into the West Wing like he owned as soon as Biden was airborne to Israel.
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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who ran on fixing the potholes then didn’t, is up for reelection this November. If she wins, Whitmer is term-limited. That means the next race for governor in the state will be in November of 2026—just enough time for Buttigieg to get settled in Traverse City, kick off a campaign, and maybe have a silver hair or two at age 44. Democrat Sen. Debbie Stabenow will be 74 on Election Day 2024. If she chooses to retire, Buttigieg could leave the Biden administration early.
It looks like he is already running for something. Buttigieg visited Grand Rapids on July 12 to award $63 million in federal funding for the state’s three airports. Political analyst Larry Sabato told the Detriot News that Buttigieg has his eye on running for president again. He added that if he can get elected in Michigan, a decisive swing state, that might entice the Democrats to make him the nominee.
But is he really from Michigan? An Oakland University political science professor told the paper that Buttigieg risks being seen as an outsider. “How much will (voters) believe that he understands the issues facing Michigan, given that most of his time is spent in D.C.?” he asked. That is a question you should ask everyone you know in Michigan when he inevitably decides to run for something. Other Michiganders may be the only thing that can save us from President Pete.
