Buttigieg Introduces, Thanks Husband Chasten at Confirmation Hearings

On Thursday morning, Pete Buttigieg faced a committee of the U.S. Senate for his confirmation hearing around his nomination for U.S. Secretary of Transportation. In prepared remarks delivered to the panel considering his nomination for, the nominee made sure to thank the most important person in his life.

"I also want to take a moment to introduce my husband, Chasten Buttigieg, who is here with me today," the former mayor and candidate to be the Democrat's presidential nominee. "I'm proud to have him by my side, and I want to thank him for his many sacrifices and his support in making it possible for me to pursue public service."

Buttigieg came into the hearings with bipartisan support. He was introduced today by Senator Tim Young of Illinois, a Republican, and Buttigieg's nomination is expected to be approved by a wide margin.

If confirmed, Buttigieg will be the first out LGBTQ+ Cabinet nominee to be confirmed by the Senate in the history of the country. Previously, Ambassador Richard Grenell served briefly as the acting director of national intelligence, but was never confirmed by the Senate. This morning, when he was sworn in, Buttigieg became the first out gay person to ahve a confirmation hearing for a Cabinet-level position.

In his prepared remarks, Buttigieg acknowledged the seriousness of the moment, saying "we have a real chance to deliver for the American people." He said that "by implementing President Biden's infrastructure vision - creating millions of good-paying jobs, revitalizing communities that have been left behind, enabling American small businesses, workers, families and farmers to compete and win in the global economy, and tackling the climate crisis."

He concluded by noting "so much is at stake today - and so much is possible, as our country works to emerge from the crises of the moment, with bipartisan appetite for a generation opportunity to transform and improve America's infrastructure."

On Wednesday night, Buttigieg outlined some goals were he to be confirmed. Of the things he mentioned were the increased use of electric vehicles, as well as improving roads and bridges. During the hearing, he was quizzed on many things and made many commitments, among them was a commitment to hiring American-based companies to help with infrastructure.

"The goal is to make sure that as much as possible is made in America," he said at one point.

You can watch the live Senate confirmation hearings for Buttigieg below.

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