Buttigieg Addresses Criticism of His Derailment Reaction

Pete Buttigieg's reaction to the disastrous Ohio train derailment was controversial not because of what he said, but because of the fact that he didn't say anything at all for 10 days. On Tuesday, the transportation secretary acknowledged to CBS News that was a mistake. "I was focused on just making sure that our folks on the ground were all set, but could have spoken sooner about how strongly I felt about this incident, and that's a lesson learned for me," Buttigieg said on Red & Blue. He also explained why he hasn't visited East Palestine, where the Norfolk Southern train derailed while transporting hazardous chemicals that contaminated at least 1.1 million gallons of water and 15,000 pounds of soil. Among those criticizing the transportation secretary are Florida's GOP senators, Marco Rubio and Rick Scott, Politico reports.

While he himself has not yet been to the site, representatives from the Department of Transportation have been "on the ground from day one," Buttigieg said, adding that it's "normal" for transportation secretaries to steer clear in the initial days following an incident like this in order to give the National Transportation Safety Board time and space to do its job. He says he is "eager" to visit when his visit will be one of "action," not just projecting a certain image. He said the NTSB probe, not him, will determine whether any safety rules were violated, but added that Norfolk Southern "is a multi-billion-dollar railroad company that has stood with its peers to push back on regulation after regulation, to try to water down, weaken or in some cases, remove, important rail safety rules and too often they get their way." Republican lawmakers, however, say Biden administration policies may be to blame, Fox News reports. (More Pete Buttigieg stories.)