Sen. Tom Carper Urges Colleagues to Confirm Pete Buttigieg
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The top Democrat on the committee on highway policy in the U.S. Senate is urging his colleagues to promptly confirm Pete Buttigieg as the country’s next transportation secretary.
Delaware Sen. Tom Carper, the Environment and Public Works Committee ranking member, endorsed Buttigieg’s nomination to lead the U.S. Department of Transportation during the Biden administration. The senator touted Buttigieg’s record of public service, as well as his managerial talents.
“It’s not hard to see why my dear friend, President-elect Joe Biden, has tapped Pete Buttigieg to be part of his Cabinet. Through his tenacity and intellect, Pete has managed to accomplish things in a matter of years that for many require decades,” Carper said in a statement his office released Jan. 5.
He added, “[Buttigieg] has what it takes to deliver on the promise of building back better and putting our transportation sector on a path to net-zero emissions. I urge my colleagues to quickly confirm Pete so that he can waste no time getting to work for the American people.”
With Democrats poised to gain control of the Senate, Carper likely would move to the role of chairman of the Environment and Public Works panel. In the previous session of Congress, Carper championed the inclusion of climate change provisions in a committee-passed multi-year highway bill. Congressional leaders did not schedule floor consideration for the highway policy legislation.
Buttigieg, formerly mayor of South Bend, Ind., and recently a presidential aspirant for the Democrats, has pointed to a need to address climate change concerns as part of transportation policy. If confirmed, he would succeed Secretary Elaine Chao.
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