Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg hit back at Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) after he called for his resignation following the East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment.
Buttigieg alleged that Rubio has taken steps to weaken rail safety, citing a letter to the Transportation Department he signed in 2021. Rubio wrote a letter to President Joe Biden last week demanding he request Buttigieg’s immediate resignation for his handling of the train derailment that leaked massive amounts of toxic chemicals into the environment.
OHIO TRAIN DERAILMENT: BIDEN ADMINISTRATION THREATENS PENALTIES FOR NORFOLK SOUTHERN
“We heard from Sen. Rubio last week, who had some pretty strong words about this incident,” Buttigieg said on a Monday night press call outlining new rail safety proposals. “I can’t help but notice the last time this agency heard from him on rail regulation was his signature being on a letter that was pretty obviously drafted by industry, calling on us to weaken our practices around track inspection.”
The 2021 letter Buttigieg was referencing called for more automatic track inspections and was signed by 21 other senators. Rubio’s office told the Washington Examiner it was “strange” Buttigieg would focus on this letter, pointing to the Federal Railroad Administration’s response, in which the agency acknowledged the safety benefits of more inspections.
Rubio responded to the allegation in a Tuesday afternoon tweet. “First [Buttigieg] was m.i.a. on the derailment. Then he lies to media claiming my 2021 letter calling for more track inspections was a letter calling for deregulation. He is an incompetent who is focused solely on his fantasies about his political future & needs to be fired,” he said.
The transportation secretary has come under fire for not visiting the disaster site but assured reporters that he plans to visit at some point. Both of Ohio’s senators, J.D. Vance and Sherrod Brown, visited the town last week, and former President Donald Trump will visit on Wednesday.
“I am very interested in getting to know the residents of East Palestine, hearing from them,” Buttigieg said. “When the time is right, I do plan to visit East Palestine. I don’t have a date for you right now.”
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The Biden administration said there may be consequences for the railroad company, Norfolk Southern, that operated the train that derailed. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said he would do everything in his power to “hold their feet to the fire” to ensure the corporation would “pay for everything as we move forward.”
