Otis Mayfield
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- Sep 17, 2021
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary who holds the purse strings to much of President Joe Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure package, was holding forth with reporters on its impact — the promise of more electric cars, intercity train routes, bigger airports — when a pointed question came.
How would he go about building racial equity into infrastructure?
The 39-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate laid out his argument that highway design can reflect racism, noting that at least $1 billion in the bill will help reconnect cities and neighborhoods that had been racially segregated or divided by road projects.
“I’m still surprised that some people were surprised when I pointed to the fact that if a highway was built for the purpose of dividing a white and a Black neighborhood ... that obviously reflects racism,” he said.
At the White House, staff warmly refer to him as “Secretary Mayor Pete,” and Biden has compared Buttigieg to his late son Beau. The White House celebrated Chasten’s birthday with cupcakes. “You’re the best, man,” Biden said after Buttigieg spoke at the White House over the summer.
Yet in a city laden with ambition, Buttigieg’s potential to move farther onto the national stage can make him a target.
Nina Smith, Buttigieg’s former traveling campaign press secretary, said as Biden’s top lieutenant on the bill, Buttigieg has the opportunity to lead an effort to “eradicate past injustices.” Buttigieg during the 2020 campaign was never able to win over large shares of Black voters.
“That’s an added responsibility that I think he’s very much aware of and making a central part of the work,” said Smith, a Democratic political consultant.
apnews.com
Good to see Buttigieg doing well.
What do you see in Buttigieg's political future?
How would he go about building racial equity into infrastructure?
The 39-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate laid out his argument that highway design can reflect racism, noting that at least $1 billion in the bill will help reconnect cities and neighborhoods that had been racially segregated or divided by road projects.
“I’m still surprised that some people were surprised when I pointed to the fact that if a highway was built for the purpose of dividing a white and a Black neighborhood ... that obviously reflects racism,” he said.
At the White House, staff warmly refer to him as “Secretary Mayor Pete,” and Biden has compared Buttigieg to his late son Beau. The White House celebrated Chasten’s birthday with cupcakes. “You’re the best, man,” Biden said after Buttigieg spoke at the White House over the summer.
Yet in a city laden with ambition, Buttigieg’s potential to move farther onto the national stage can make him a target.
Nina Smith, Buttigieg’s former traveling campaign press secretary, said as Biden’s top lieutenant on the bill, Buttigieg has the opportunity to lead an effort to “eradicate past injustices.” Buttigieg during the 2020 campaign was never able to win over large shares of Black voters.
“That’s an added responsibility that I think he’s very much aware of and making a central part of the work,” said Smith, a Democratic political consultant.
Buttigieg's star rises as $1T Biden agenda shifts toward him
As President Joe Biden gets set to sign a $1 trillion infrastructure package, many eyes are turning to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
apnews.com
Good to see Buttigieg doing well.
What do you see in Buttigieg's political future?
