Pete Buttigieg
Secretary of Transportation
Peter Paul Montgomery Buttigieg was born in January 1982 in South Bend, Indiana. He earned an undergraduate degree in history and literature from Harvard University. He was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to study at the University of Oxford where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy, politics, and economics from Pembroke College, Oxford. While at Oxford, he was an investigative news reporter.
After earning his Oxford degree, he became a consultant at a management consulting firm in Chicago.
He joined the U.S. Navy Reserve and was sworn in as an ensign in naval intelligence. He spent some time deployed to Afghanistan and, among other things, was an armed driver for his commander on more than 100 trips into Kabul. He resigned his commission after eight years.
He was elected Mayor of South Bend, Indiana in 2011, serving two terms (part of which was spent in his Reserve duties in Afghanistan). He was a candidate for the office of President of the United States in the 2020 election, but he withdrew after the South Carolina primary.
He was nominated by President Joe Biden to be Secretary of Transportation, was confirmed by the Senate, and was sworn into office in early February 2021.
Buttigieg is married to Chasten. They have two adopted children. He is an Anglican Christian.
In the News…
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told a congressional committee the United States needs more domestic sourcing for the minerals essential to building electric batteries, or securing them from nations more friendly to the U.S. rather than from China.
Representative Ryan Zinke of Montana, the former interior secretary under President Trump’s administration, asked Secretary Buttigieg if he knew that China “controls either directly or indirectly” more than 62 percent of the minerals critical for EV batteries.
“We are working hard to change in this administration,” the transportation secretary responded. “The chemistry of our batteries has not completely stabilized in a way that I think can be fully predicted. There’s no question that we need to source more minerals both domestically and from friendly countries.”
He added that “some of the finer points about extraction” of domestic minerals would probably be better answered by the Interior Department. It is projected that demand for lithium will reach 2.4 million tons by 2030.
The U.S. currently has only one active lithium mine in the state of Nevada. Idaho has the only cobalt mine in the U.S. Both minerals are essential in current EV battery manufacturing.
Contact this Leader…
Did you pray for Secretary Buttigieg today? You can let him know at:
The Honorable Pete Buttigieg
Secretary of Transportation
1200 New Jersey Ave. SE
Washington, DC 20590
