Hunter
05/14/25
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg held a rally in Cedar Rapids Tuesday, campaigning on what he categorized as a set of values.
Buttigeig emphasized that he’s not running for office at this time, quashing rumors that he’s considering a run for president in 2028.
Buttigieg spent a lot of time in Iowa when he was campaigning for president in 2020.
The town hall, held at Veterans Memorial Building, was standing-room only. It featured a short speech followed by about an hour of questions from the audience. The event was hosted by VoteVets Action Fund, a progressive veterans organization. Questions ranged from veterans issues to more broad questions about the future of the Democratic Party.
Republican leaders in the state dismissed Buttigieg’s appearance as “empty rhetoric.” Jeff Kaufmann, chairman of the Iowa Republican Party, issued a statement that said President Trump has been delivering real results for veterans, whether by improving health care access, cutting waste, or what he categorized as “ending DEI nonsense at the VA.”
It was Buttigieg’s first public in-person appearance since leaving the Transportation Secretary’s office in January.