Pete Buttigieg on Saturday employed one of Donald Trump's signature 2016 campaign slogans, "drain the swamp," to contend that the priorities of current Republican leaders "is not our bottom line."
Speaking at the Texas Democratic Party's Johnson-Jordan Dinner in Dallas, Buttigieg argued that many people initially believed Trump's promise to "drain the swamp." However, he asserted that upon closer examination, it became clear that "billions in crypto money [went] right into his pockets and corporate lobbyists getting their way everywhere from the AI industry to my old haunts at the U.S. Department of Transportation."
Buttigieg, who previously served as Secretary of Transportation, recalled being in Washington, D.C., the previous day and running on the National Mall. "I couldn’t help but thinking, as I rounded the edge of the mall, that the only thing he’s actually managed to drain is that reflecting pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial," he stated, drawing laughter from the audience.
He continued his critique by referencing a Trump campaign proposal to send Americans "dividend" checks of $5,000 after the election, a plan estimated to cost $1.2 trillion and described by some as a "bribe."
"So forgive us if we don’t believe him when he says he’s going to give everybody $5,000, but only after the election and only if they win," Buttigieg said.
He further suggested that if Republicans were genuinely interested in distributing funds, they would have acted during their recent seven-week pre-midterm recess instead of departing during multiple national crises. "You know, if Republicans really wanted to give everybody a few thousand dollars,” he said, “they would have done it this week instead of going home for two months in the middle of multiple national crises.”