-Our guest tonight was the mayor
of South Bend, Indiana,
and a presidential candidate.
He's currently the United States
secretary of Transportation.
Please welcome back to the show
Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Hello! How are you, Secretary?!
-Hey, good to see you. I'm doing well, thanks.
-I guess that's the first thing I want to ask you,
is how are you adjusting to the new title?
People knew you, obviously, as Mayor Pete for a long time.
How is Secretary Buttigieg fitting you?
You know, they say, "Once a major, always a mayor,"
so I'm always happy to answer to "Mayor Pete,"
but I'm certainly excited to be the secretary.
-You got off to a sort of inauspicious start,
in that you had to quarantine after being exposed.
How was quarantine for you?
Was it as difficult as it's been for many people?
-You know, I didn't love it,
but I'm glad to be on the other side of it.
This morning, I took the dogs out for a walk before breakfast
and it just felt, even though it was gray and icy,
it felt fantastic just to be outdoors again.
And, obviously, you know, we're urging people to be careful,
to take every safety measure and it was important to me
to make sure we're practicing what we preach.
-And so this was your first Oval Office meeting.
Obviously, you couldn't be there in person,
-[ Laughs ] -so you were wheeled in
on a big-screen TV.
[ Laughter ] How was that as an experience?
-Yeah, I mean, you know, like most Americans, right?
I've always wondered what it's like inside the Oval Office.
And, the first time in my life I'm actually invited
to go into the Oval Office for a meeting
and it's in like this disembodied form, right?
Coming in on a TV cart by Zoom.
So, basically, the most 2021 thing
that could possibly happen,
but it was a good meeting. White House did a great job
of making it possible for me to participate.
We were talking with senators from both parties
about how important it is to build up our infrastructure
and I'm glad I could be there,
even if it had to be in that way.
-You mentioned infrastructure and the previous administration
sort of was always promising an infrastructure week
that never came.
Based on that, I'm wondering
what was the state of the department
or how are you finding the state of the department
in your early days of the job?
-You know, the department has about 55,000 employees
and they're doing fantastic work,
but we do need to make sure that we're actually putting our money
where our mouth is on infrastructure.
There's been a lot of talk about it for years and years.
Now, we've actually got to do something
and I think we have a chance to do it.
It's a huge priority for President Biden.
It's something most Americans from both parties want us to do
and we've just got to make sure Washington actually responds.
It's a big part of what I feel I'm here to do.
-President Biden is proposing billions of dollars
in transportation aid in this COVID relief package.
Why is money for transportation so important,
in a time of a pandemic,
where maybe people think the money
could be better spent elsewhere?
-Right, so I think a lot of people are asking,
"Why would you put transit funding into a bill
that's about COVID relief?"
And let's be clear -- the reason this bill is so urgent is
because it's about getting relief to Americans.
It's about getting shots in arms.
But transit and transportation is part of that.
I mean, how are people supposed to get their shots,
if transit agencies around the country are
at risk of shutting down
or cutting their routes even further,
if they don't get immediate financial relief?
So this package really is about the things
that cannot wait, that have to happen right away,
and it's why it's the top priority
of the president and the administration.
Look, most Americans want this to happen,
Americans from both parties.
We just got to make sure Congress actually responds.
-I think a lot of people maybe fail to see
how transportation connects to all different parts
of our political life.
One other thing it touches is climate change.
Do you feel, in your position, that there's a future
for transportation in this company, that maybe --
in this country -- excuse me -- that maybe takes climate change
more into account with what the future is?
-Absolutely. We have to.
There's no other choice.
Look, the biggest contributor
of greenhouse gases in the U.S. economy
is the transportation sector.
But that means the transportation sector
could actually be the biggest part of the solution,
and we're seeing that happen
in every different form of transportation.
We've got to support it.
I mean, you look, to take one example,
at electric vehicles.
More and more, we're seeing automakers,
including the classic longtime automakers out of Detroit,
coming up with ideas for electric vehicles
and committing to them and developing them
and selling them as we speak.
Now, of course, simultaneously,
we've got to make sure not only that our cars are greener,
but that people have alternatives to driving,
that we have good subway systems,
that we have good trains in this country.
I don't know why Americans should be expected to settle
for fewer options for passenger rail
than people who live in China or Britain or Italy.
We should be the best in all of these fields,
and that's what we're calling on Congress to help us do.
-Be honest -- how excited does the president get
when you start talking about trains?
Like when high-speed rail comes up,
is it a noticeable change in his demeanor?
-I mean, you know, he famously loves passenger rail,
so I thought I would be
the biggest passenger rail enthusiast around,
but I think I'll be a close second,
but always second place in this administration.
He's all over this. And, again,
I think, not just as a personal fondness,
but an understanding that so many of the things
this administration's here to do.
Yes, climate, but also creating jobs,
delivering equity in this country.
These are some of the things that are at stake
in the choices we make
about our trains, planes, automobiles, ships, and more.
-Racial inequality is something else
that is affected, you know, very much
by access to things like public transportation.
Is that something that's sort of
near the front of your list as well?
Although, I am mentioning a lot of things
that would be at the front of your list, I understand.
-Yeah, but we've got to do all these things at once --
safety, climate, equity, and jobs.
And, yes, when it comes to equity,
racial equity is a huge part of that.
Look, I know, when you're thinking about, you know,
racial justice in this country, Department of Transportation
may not be the first thing to pop into your mind,
but think about the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Think about Rosa Parks.
The history of civil rights in this country
has always been very closely tied
to the question of equity in transit and transportation.
And it's not just about, you know, what neighborhoods
get the subway stop or what communities get the investment,
but also the fact that, frankly, in this country,
we have a legacy of investments happening
at the expense of communities of color.
So many Black neighborhoods, for example,
that were sometimes destroyed or literally cut in two
by a highway project going through them.
That's something that has happened in this country
and not just in the distant past, but in very recent memory.
And it's something we could fix and do something about,
if we have racial equity in mind as we make the next set
of transportation decisions for this country.