‘Meet the Press’ host Chuck Todd offered a scathing review of Democratic presidential hopeful Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Sunday morning.
“Who had the worst week in the Democratic primary; is it Joe Biden, or is it Pete Buttigieg?” Todd asked his panel of political commentators.
While Joe Biden has been mired in controversy the past week for comments he made about his positive relationships with segregationist senators, Pete Buttigieg faced harsh criticism of his reaction to the fatal police shooting death of Eric Logan in South Bend, Indiana. Buttigieg, who currently serves as the mayor of South Bend, left the campaign trail when Logan, a black man, was allegedly shot and killed by a white police officer.
Residents of South Bend and the family of Logan were outraged over the shooting, which many believed was racially motivated. Todd and his panelists maintained that Buttigieg did not do enough in the situation to set himself apart as a leader.
Citing data from other cities with difficult police shooting records, Todd revealed that, “The South Bend police department has not gotten more diverse under Mayor Pete Buttigieg, it’s actually gotten whiter.” He noted that several other cities had diversified their police departments in an effort to ease race relations.
Panelist Lanhee Chen included that the presidential candidate, who had risen to national popularity with his seemingly fearless nature, appeared timid when confronted by angry citizens, saying, “Beyond [Mayor Buttigieg’s] record, there’s also just a thin-skinnedness about his response that will not wear well on the campaign trail.”
Peggy Noonan, who was also on the panel, recalled a recent encounter she had with residents of South Bend, who had mixed feelings on Buttigieg. She concluded, “This is a sort of cool and technocratic fellow that doesn’t always translate higher.”
