A note of appreciation for Mayor Pete . . .

[markpkessinger]

I am supporting Elizabeth Warren, and that is unlikely to change anytime soon. But I wanted to express my appreciation for the way Pete Buttigieg handled himself in the Fox News town hall. Butiigieg answered every question that was put to him in a straightforward manner that wasn't at all cagey. What's more, he deftly evaded every rhetorical trap Chris Wallace tried to snare him with.

On a very loaded question about late-term abortions, Buttigieg beautifully flipped the paradigm. He said (and I am paraphrasing here, not directly quoting): "We're getting all hung up on where to draw the line, but in doing so, we're missing the crucial question of who gets to draw the line. I trust women to draw the line." It was the best possible response anyone could have given to that very loaded question.

When Wallace tried to trap him into a rivalry with Warren over his decision to appear in a Fox News town hall, he said (and I quote): "A lot of people in my party were critical of me doing this, and I get where that’s coming from, especially when you see what goes on with some of the opinion hosts on this network. I mean when you’ve got Tucker Carlson saying that immigrants make America dirty. When you’ve got Laura Ingraham comparing detention centers with children in cages to summer camps,” there is a reason why anybody has to swallow hard and think twice before participating in this media ecosystem.”

That answer was a stroke of brilliance, in that while being confident in his own decision to appear in a Fox News-hosted event, he managed at the same time to validate Elizabeth Warren's decision not to do so. I came away feeling glad that Elizabeth Warren made the decision she did, and equally glad that Mayor Pete made the decision he made.

Whatever happens in 2020, I predict that Mayor Pete has a very bright future in national politics! (Oh, and I think he'd make an ideal running mate for Elizabeth Warren!)

[Celerity]

1. Senator Warren is my 2nd choice atm, and if Pete drops out, I will switch to her

would love to see a Warren/Buttigieg ticket

[True Dough]

2. Like Celerity above, I also rank Elizabeth Warren as my #2 choice

And kudos to your for your thread, Mark!

[SergeStorms]

3. They don't give those Rhodes Scholorships...

away in Cracker Jack boxes (for those old enough to remember Cracker Jacks ). Mayor Pete is one smart cookie, and although I back Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination, I contribute $10 a month to Mayor Pete's campaign. The young man definitely has a future in politics.

[Honeycombe8]

12. Rhodes Scholarship is a big deal. Bill Clinton got one. And Kris Kristofferson.

You have to be very intelligent to qualify for it.

[radical noodle]

17. I think Rachel Maddow

was also a Rhodes Scholar.

[JI7]

18. Cory Booker also

[radical noodle]

21. Yes!

We have an amazingly brilliant selection. The trouble is, some people want a dumbass like trump.

[Honeycombe8]

20. Wowzeewow! She sure did get a Rhodes Scholarship.

Impressive! And easy to believe...a person can tell she's super intelligent.

[stonecutter357]

4. K&R

[LuvNewcastle]

5. Excellent answers!

He can mix it up with the best. I haven't seen him at a loss for words yet.

[cwydro]

6. K AND R.

He’s very impressive.

[mobeau69]

7. Best I've ever seen. From JFK to Barack Obama.

[LAS14]

8. I've identified Buttigieg in the DU poll, not because...

... I expect him to be the nominee, but because I want him to blaze a trail in a spectacular fashion. Authentic and smart. They get me every time. Of course there are others, like Warren, who are authentic and smart, but Buttigieg may have the ability to attract people in the way the Bill Clinton and Barack Obama did.

[monmouth4]

9. Excellent post Mark, many thanks for your thoughts. n/t

[Honeycombe8]

10. I'd love to see him in the White House. But circumstances are against him.

It's a shame (for us). He's the kind of person who should be President and would do an excellent job.

[markpkessinger]

11. I'm not at all convinced that "circumstances are against him" n/t

[bullwinkle428]

15. "PFFFT! LIKE THIS COUNTRY WOULD EVER ELECT A BLACK GUY WITH A

MIDDLE NAME OF 'HUSSEIN'!!"

[Honeycombe8]

16. It was obvious early on that Obama could get elected.

You didn't know early on that Obama could get elected? I did. I never seriously thought that any demographic we needed wouldn't vote for him. Everyone loved him. Not every demographic is going for Pete. I'd love it, if we could have Pete as the nominee. But it's not likely.

[Politicub]

13. He is amazing with messaging

I think he's raising the game of the other nominees by his expert framing of issues. And, he's learning quickly as he goes along, too.

I agree about Pete's future and what you said in your last paragraph... Warren/Buttigieg makes my heart sing!

[bullwinkle428]

14. Fantastic, and beautifully put post. To echo the sentiments of several posters

in this thread, if Pete is my #1 choice, I would also have to add that Elizabeth Warren is my choice 1A, and Kamala Harris is my choice 1B.

[calimary]

19. I LOVED that takedown of Little Tucker and Laura Mean-Girl.

But that wasn’t the best one.

The best shade of them all involved “he-who-was-not-named”. Who got left out? Didn’t even rate a mention? Big-ass monster-ego self-anointed “first trump whisperer” and Pox prime time marquee-king not even brought up once. That guy-whose-name-rhymes-with-VANITY!

Oh woe! That had to burn. I sure do hope so!

[aikoaiko]

22. Two great candidates.