MANCHESTER, New Hampshire — Pete Buttigieg took aim at primary rival Joe Biden by painting him as yesterday’s man and a relic of an old political era.
Buttigieg, during a Democratic presidential debate on Friday night, took aim at the former vice president.
“I freely admit that if you’re looking for the person with the most years of Washington establishment experience under their belt, you’ve got your candidate,” said Buttigieg, 38, clearly referencing the former Delaware senator. “The perspective I’m bringing is that of somebody whose life has been shaped by the decisions that are made in those big, white buildings in Washington, D.C.”
The former South Bend, Indiana, mayor is the youngest candidate in the race and stakes his bid on a promise to bring a fresh vision for politics to the White House.
“We need a perspective right now that will finally allow us to leave the politics of the past in the past, turn the page, and bring change to Washington,” Buttigieg said.
Biden hit back with force.
“The politics of the past, I think, were not all that bad. I wrote the Violence Against Women Act. I managed a $900 billion recovery act, which, in fact, put millions and millions of dollars in his city before he came,” Biden said. “So I don’t know what about the past with Barack Obama and Joe Biden was so bad.”
Biden added that he “knows how to get things done and can lead the free world at the same time.”
Buttigieg was careful not to degrade Obama’s legacy, noting that while his administration had great achievements, “this moment is different.”
