On Monday evening, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg appeared for a wide-ranging 19-minute interview on “The Daily Show,” the place he confirmed why he excels as a Democratic messenger.
“I think part of what [President Joe Biden] achieved with what’s a really extraordinary thing,” Buttigieg went on, “I think even now we might be underselling how world-historically rare it is to be literally the most powerful person in the world and lay power aside, right? Just because it’s the right thing to do. But in doing so, I also think he’s consolidated his own standing as one of America’s great presidents.”
The total interview will be discovered on the finish of this text, however we’ll dive into extra highlights after the break.
After Stewart requested about variations in Democratic messaging after Biden ended his marketing campaign, the subject turned to the unending dud that’s Donald Trump’s operating mate, JD Vance:
Buttigieg: There’s a temptation to have our message be solely about Donald Trump as a result of we’re so disturbed by what his return would imply, and possibly a bit of extra additionally about JD Vance due to how odd he is turned out to be.
Stewart: I obtained to let you know, boy, did that dude drop a turd on launch, proper? I’ve by no means seen something like that, the place sooner or later they have been like, “Heir to the MAGA fortune, Prince JD, shall march,” and he comes out and he’s like, “I hate cat ladies,” you already know?
Buttigieg: Yeah, it is tough. He systematically insulted so many individuals, and it isn’t simply the sort of stuff you mentioned, however the coverage concepts behind them. Like he has this concept that it’s best to get additional votes when you’ve got children.
Stewart: Additional votes?
Buttigieg: Yeah. He urged that it’s best to have additional votes should you’re a guardian.
Stewart: Actually? You do not even get that in your individual home.
Joking apart, Buttigieg introduced the truth of Vance’s disrespectful statements again to the forefront, explaining:
[Vance] does not simply say that being a guardian offers you, you already know, an necessary function as a citizen, which I agree with—that it offers you a singular perspective on the long run. It is that not being a guardian makes you much less. … He mentioned individuals who do not have youngsters—it is a quote—“have no physical commitment to the future of this country.” And I simply take into consideration how, like, “no physical commitment to the future.” Like, after I was deployed to Afghanistan, I did not have children again then, however I’ll let you know, particularly when there was a rocket assault occurring, my dedication to this nation felt fairly, fairly bodily.
Buttigieg then identified that the Biden administration’s assist of labor has helped to right the false narrative that the Republican Occasion embodies some sort of financial populism. After Stewart requested why that mythology nonetheless continued, Buttigieg answered:
Nicely, it isn’t primarily based on coverage. It is simply physique language. It is this concept that should you simply act like you’re populist, that that counts. Look, I am underneath no illusions that elections are only a coverage train. A variety of it’s vibes, quite a lot of it’s fashion. But when your occasion has been systemically in opposition to unions, in opposition to the next minimal wage, in opposition to issues like paid household depart, in opposition to extra time, then simply since you discovered Hulk Hogan and Child Rock and put them on stage does not make you a buddy of the working man, proper?
It’s true. The Republican Nationwide Conference ditched any coverage speak about serving to working Individuals, as an alternative specializing in issues like appearances from Eighties skilled wrestler Hulk Hogan, actual title Terry Bollea.
Lastly, a couple of potential second Trump administration, Buttigieg mentioned you simply want to have a look at what he did when he was in workplace the primary time.
“The promises [Trump] kept are the really interesting ones because I think they tell you what the next Trump administration, if you got one, would be like,” Buttigieg finished. “One was the promise he made to the Christian right to eliminate the right to choose. And the other was the promise he made to corporate America to cut taxes for corporations and the wealthy. Those are the promises he followed through on. That’s what he’s about, Hulk Hogan or not?”
Buttigieg continues to be an asset in messaging throughout the board.
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