Senators interview Buttigieg to take on transportation post

WASHINGTON — Pete Buttigieg made a pitch Thursday to senators weighing his nomination to become President Joe Biden’s transportation secretary, drawing praise from Democrats and Republicans alike.

Winning the job would continue the rapid rise of the 39-year-old former mayor of South Bend, Ind., who amassed supporters in the Democratic presidential primaries before dropping out and endorsing Biden. In the span of 2½ hours Thursday, Buttigieg advanced the case for Biden’s climate change agenda and an infusion of money to rebuild the nation’s transportation infrastructure.

Buttigieg pointed to a “bipartisan appetite for a generational opportunity to transform and improve America’s infrastructure.” He also said that “good transportation policy can play no less a role than making possible the American Dream,” by moving people and goods while also generating jobs.

“But I also recognize that at their worst, misguided policies and missed opportunities in transportation can reinforce racial and economic inequality, by dividing or isolating neighborhoods and undermining government’s basic role of empowering Americans to thrive,” he said.

The hearing was chaired by the Commerce Committee’s Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., who holds the gavel while both parties work out a power-sharing agreement in the 50-50 split Senate. Wicker said Buttigieg was almost certain to win confirmation.

“Mayor Buttigieg has impressive credentials that demonstrate his intellect and commitment to serving our nation,” Wicker said.

Biden has framed the transportation role as a significant part of the nation’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and the rebuilding of the economy.

Buttigieg would become the first openly gay member of a Cabinet to be confirmed by the Senate. At the beginning of his remarks, he turned back to look at his husband, Chasten Buttigieg.

“I’m really proud to have him by my side,” Pete Buttigieg said.

The couple attended Biden’s swearing-in at the Capitol, along with Elaine Chao, whom Buttigieg would follow as transportation secretary.

Buttigieg, who turned 39 Tuesday, would be the youngest person to serve as transportation secretary. The job involves overseeing billions of dollars in highway construction funds, tens of thousands of air traffic controllers and ensuring the safety of everything from jet planes to pipelines. The department’s budget is far bigger than South Bend’s and employs more than 58,000 people — about half the population of the Indiana city.

While the hearing was mostly convivial, there were moments that underscored a partisan split on the environment.

Republican Sens. Dan Sullivan of Alabama and Ted Cruz of Texas challenged Buttigieg over an order Biden signed Wednesday halting construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline. The project’s supporters say the order will cost thousands of jobs.

Buttigieg said the administration’s climate agenda ultimately will create jobs and stressed the importance of curbing the use of fossil fuels.

“When the books are written about our careers, one of the main things we’ll be judged on is whether we did enough to stop the destruction of life and property due to climate change,” he said.

Buttigieg is likely to play a significant role on infrastructure, advocating for the administration on Capitol Hill and helping to direct the spending of any new funds.

In his remarks Thursday, Buttigieg described the reach of Biden’s infrastructure vision: “creating millions of good-paying jobs; revitalizing communities that have been left behind; enabling American small businesses, workers, families and farmers to compete and win in the global economy; and tackling the climate crisis.”

A bill authorizing federal highway and transit programs expires at the end of the year, and Democrats are hoping to use the opportunity to steer transportation funding in more environmentally friendly directions.

In both chambers, though, the party narrowly holds control, which could limit lawmakers’ ambitions. While leaders of both parties say they support an increase in spending, there are significant divisions over how the money could best be used — and how to raise the funds.

Buttigieg’s team walked back a comment he made after being asked directly by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., whether he supports an increase in the gas tax. At the hearing, Buttigieg said options to cover the costs of transportation spending “could include revisiting the gas tax, adjusting it, and/or connecting it to inflation.”

But after the hearing, a Buttigieg spokesman ruled out supporting an increase in the gas tax, saying a “variety of options need to be on the table to ensure we can invest in our highways and create jobs, but increasing the gas tax is not among them.”