Buttigieg pressed on Biden's exit, crime in Chicago
Harris-Walz campaign surrogate Pete Buttigieg responds to criticism facing Democrats on crime and the economy.
"Fox & Friends" co-host Lawrence Jones put Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in the hot seat Tuesday at the Democratic National Convention, addressing the successful effort to oust President Biden from the 2024 ticket and spikes in violent crime across major U.S. cities.
"I just want to know, when did you guys know that the president was unfit [to serve]…?" Jones pressed Buttigieg.
"The president is not unfit," he replied.
"So why is he not the nominee right now?" Jones pressed further.
"Because he did something that Donald Trump cannot comprehend, which is to put his ego aside," Buttigieg answered.
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Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during a press conference on June 28, 2021, in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Jones pointed out that Democrats only began their push to replace Biden after his poor debate performance against former President Trump in late June, when he appeared to stammer over words and struggled to answer questions.
In the following weeks, reports began to emerge, claiming that top Democrats like former President Barack Obama, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer believed the president should pass the torch to someone else.
"You can go over whether he slips up and says one name when he wants to say another name, or you can look at what he's actually accomplished as president," Buttigieg said, addressing the point.
"It turns out he's really good at being President of the United States."
Jones also pressed the Transportation Secretary on crime, pinpointing a statistic from the Coalition for Law, Order & Safety, indicating violent crime has risen by a total of nearly 10% across 66 major U.S. cities, including Chicago, the site of this year's DNC.
Just Monday, Jones spoke with Monee Jacobs, a heartbroken mother from the Windy City whose son Jeremy was murdered last year.
On-air, she pleaded for political leaders to take the violence seriously and act to stop it.
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Monee Jacobs said her son was murdered in Chicago last year, and she's still seeking answers. (Fox & Friends)
"How can I vote for somebody who I don't feel like has my back, or [the back of] any parent who lost their child…? But you want me to vote for you? What are you going to do for me? You say what you're going to do when you get in office. Do you really do what you said you [are] going to do? I don't think so. Because this crime has been going on for decades, and it's getting sickening to watch parents on TV crying about the loss of their child," she said.
Compare the lack of protection for everyday citizens to the beefed up security outside United Center, the site of the convention, Jones highlighted.
"You guys sent the cavalry in for your protection, but the people of Chicago don't see that on a day-to-day basis. What are you guys going to do to stop the bloodshed in our community?" he asked.
"The big question, I think, for politics, for policy, for media, is, who is going to help them versus who is going to use them?" Buttigieg answered in part. "That mother is asking the exact right question, and the question is, ‘What are you going to actually do when you come into office?’"
On that note, he argued that Democrats have done more to help through pushes for gun safety measures.
He also insisted that this November's match-up between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will be a litmus test for voters' attitudes toward crime in America.
"When you have Donald Trump, an unrepentant convicted criminal, running against a prosecutor like Kamala Harris, we have an opportunity to send a message about whether we're serious on law and order in this country or whether it's a talking point, whether it's just something people try to use as a political theme for partisan gain," he said.
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