Pete Buttigieg Surges
Slate News
Slate Podcasts
4.5 • 6K Ratings
🗓️ 20 November 2019
⏱️ 23 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Pete Buttigieg will take the stage at the fifth presidential democratic debate as the front-runner in the Iowa polls. His rise, while surprising for some, can’t simply be explained as luck. So, how did Buttigieg go from being the mayor of South Bend with a name nobody could pronounce to the Democratic front-runner for president in Iowa? Plus, how might competitors try to knock Mayor Pete off his game at the debate?
Guest: Adam Wren, contributing editor at Politico Magazine and Indianapolis Monthly.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | If you want to know how far Pete Buttigieg's come, just look him up on C-SPAN. |
| 0:10.0 | Back in February, he showed up to speak at this event with Democrats in a suburb, just outside |
| 0:17.0 | of Des Moines, Iowa. |
| 0:24.3 | There were maybe a couple dozen people in this room. |
| 0:26.6 | It felt a little bit like a book signing. |
| 0:30.8 | Buttigieg hadn't even officially declared his candidacy for president yet. |
| 0:36.1 | The Washington Post has called him the most interesting mayor you've never heard of. |
| 0:42.7 | When the woman introducing him mentions that Buttigieg won 80% of the vote back in South Bend during his last mayoral election, he makes this embarrassed smile. |
| 0:47.6 | Like, who? Me? |
| 0:53.7 | Flash forward to a couple weeks ago. |
| 0:56.0 | Please welcome to the stage, Mayor Pete Buttigieg. |
| 1:02.0 | This is also in Des Moines, and an event called a Liberty and Justice dinner. |
| 1:06.0 | But now, the audience is holding thundersticks. |
| 1:09.0 | They're wearing bracelets that light up in time with Mayor Pete's walk-on music. |
| 1:14.6 | They've become fans. |
| 1:16.6 | Thank you. |
| 1:19.7 | Thank you, Iowa. |
| 1:22.0 | And it takes Buttigieg a full minute to just get a word in edgewise. |
| 1:27.2 | Thank you so much. |
| 1:37.3 | Can you introduce me to some of the Iowans who are really responding to Mayor Pete? |
| 1:43.3 | Like, is it Beatlemania? |
| 1:44.8 | Like, screaming in the front row? |
... |
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