Editor Daily Rundown: Biden World Under Criminal Investigation
- January 13, 2023
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg privately used his parental leave to refuse key meetings despite saying otherwise publicly, documents show.
Buttigieg told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Oct. 17 that “when you take a job like mine, you understand and accept that you’re going to have to be available 24/7,” in response to questions about why he did not publicly announce his paternity leave when his twins were born in August.
Watchdog group Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) obtained the records through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Department of Transportation (DOT), according to PPT. Buttigieg was reportedly using his parental leave status to delay key meetings, including a call with Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, according to newly released public records. Grassley’s office requested a meeting with Buttigieg about a Buy American waiver request for the I-74 bridge connecting Iowa and Illinois. (RELATED: WH Chief of Staff Lashes Out At Report On Buttigieg Troubles: ‘Ridiculous Take’)
“It appears as though, during his paternity leave, he was not always available when called upon and did not have some necessary contingencies in place to ensure the continuity of operations at DOT,” PPT Director Michael Chamberlain said in a statement to the Daily Caller. “Perhaps it is not a coincidence that so many crises involving the Department, from the supply chain breakdown to the FAA system outage that grounded flights all over the country, have occurred on his watch.”