Pete Buttigieg Slammed for Filming Ad to Expand DOT as Supply Chain Crisis Continues 

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 1: U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during an
Drew Angerer/Getty
Wendell Husebø

Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday was slammed for filming an advertisement to further expand the Department of Transportation (DOT) while the supply chain crisis persists.

Buttigieg has failed to avert supply chain woes that have impacted American daily life. Under Buttigieg’s leadership, grocers are unable to adequately stock shelves, massive amounts of container ships are stalled off California’s coasts while the trucking industry is short drivers.

The ad shows Buttigieg slow walking through the DOT among a diverse group of supposed employees. Walking toward the camera, Buttigieg said the DOT “is undertaking one of the biggest investments of transportation in our history.”

“And that means we are hiring,” Buttigieg explained while he continued to walk with background elevator music. “I hope you’ll consider becoming one of our colleges here at the DOT.”

Abigail Marone, press secretary for Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), slammed Buttigieg for focusing on expanding the agency at taxpayers’ expense instead of resolving the supply chain crises.

“There’s still a supply chain crisis and Pete Buttigieg is literally just filming videos about applying to work at DOT. is this for real?” she asked.

Buttigieg, perhaps feeling that Marone “hit a nerve,” responded to the press secretary and excused the ad because it only took him “about ten minutes” to film. Buttigieg did not mention the expense of the ad or his desire to grow the federal agency with additional employees.

“Good news—you’ll be relieved to hear that filming this DOT recruiting video took me about ten minutes. (Hard to believe, I know, but our team is very efficient!) More good news: if you’re passionate about supply chain solutions, we’re hiring!,” Buttigieg responded.

Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R) press secretary Christina Pushaw also commented on Buttigieg’s tone deaf ad. “Patronizing Pete. @abigailmarone must have hit a nerve!” the tweeted.

Buttigieg is a powerful member of Biden’s administration. It is his job to allocate the president’s $1 billion infrastructure package throughout the nation. Buttigieg’s ability to disseminate such a large cash injection into the economy gives him outsized influence in Washington, DC.

Biden’s decision to pass the infrastructure package in Congress instead of a different initiative may indicate his fondness for Buttigieg, who has presidential ambitions.

In contrast, Biden asked Kamala Harris to be his vice president and assigned her to end the southern border invasion — a thankless task among Democrats. Harris has so far failed at the duty, which has given her lots of negative media attention. Harris also has presidential ambitions.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.

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