Buttigieg builds his foreign policy heft
218 endorsements aim to rival a Biden strength
More than 200 foreign policy and national security professionals, including veterans of the Obama administration, Monday are endorsing Democrat Pete Buttigieg for president.
Their joint letter targets President Donald Trump, but the subtext is aimed at former Vice President Joe Biden, who touts his foreign policy experience during the Obama administration as a major asset in his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. The endorsements are designed to burnish Buttigieg's credentials as a commander in chief and portray him as the leader of a new generation.
“Many of the signatories are the next generation of foreign policy leaders whose careers are definitely still ahead of them,” said Doug Wilson, a former assistant secretary of defense in the Obama administration who helps lead Buttigieg’s foreign policy team. “We have involved people we think have a tremendous amount to contribute to that next generation, who have experience and expertise but are not at the end of their careers.”
In November, the Biden campaign released its own list, announcing his endorsement by 133 former national security and foreign policy officials.
Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg has garnered the endorsement of more than 200 foreign policy and national security professionals, who have signed a joint letter voicing their support.
Among those from the Obama administration who signed the statement are former Secretary of the Army Eric Fanning, former deputy CIA director David Cohen, former Assistant Secretary of State Philip Gordon, former Under Secretary of Commerce Francisco Sanchez, former State Department adviser Vali Nasr, former White House associate counsel Tess Bridgeman and former National Security Council spokesman Ned Price.
The list of 218 names also includes Anthony Lake, national security adviser for President Clinton; Peter Galbraith, former deputy U.N. envoy to Afghanistan; Virginia Rep. Don Beyer; a dozen former U.S. ambassadors; and former officials from the State Department, Pentagon, the CIA, National Security Council and elsewhere.
“Over the course of the past year, we have watched the emergence of a young leader who shares our belief in America’s leadership role and values,” the letter says, citing Buttigieg’s “intelligence, steadiness, demeanor and understanding of the forces now shaping the world.” It praises “his long-term approach to the generational consequences
of near-term decisions.”
Last month, the Biden campaign released its own list, announcing his endorsement by 133 former national security and foreign policy officials. They included some of President Barack Obama’s top aides, among them former national security adviser Tom Donilon, former deputy CIA director Avril Haines, former Under Secretary of State Nick Burns, former Homeland Security adviser Lisa Monaco and 65 former ambassadors.
Biden’s list featured many officials who have served at the senior levels of government. Buttigieg’s list is notably diverse in gender and race and includes more people working at think tanks, universities and non-governmental organizations.
The endorsements of experts rarely do much to sway voters. In 2016, a series of public declarations signed by foreign policy veterans with impressive resumes backed Hillary Clinton and warned against Trump, who won the White House anyway.
Still, Buttigieg’s ability to command robust support among those who work on national security and foreign policy issues helps him make a key case: that at 37 and the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, he can be entrusted with the presidency and all that involves. Buttigieg is also a former Navy intelligence officer who served in Afghanistan.
Biden, 77, has spotlighted his deep foreign policy experience during the campaign. As a U.S. senator from Delaware, he chaired the Foreign Relations Committee before serving two terms as vice president. A TV ad showed NATO leaders who seemed to be mocking Trump. “We need a leader the world respects,” the ad concluded.
“The common thread in supporting Pete is – somebody we feel can take us past Trump but not going back to the default of pre-Trump,” said Doug Wilson, a former assistant secretary of defense in the Obama administration who helps lead Buttigieg’s foreign policy team. “We have great respect for the Obama administration, but there is also a recognition that there are new issues and a new set of challenges, and we feel that Pete understands them.”