Senate Committee Clears Buttigieg for Transportation Secretary's Post

Pete Buttigieg at his confirmation hearing Jan. 21 in front of the Senate Commerce Committee.

Photo courtesy Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

President Joe Biden’s nominee to head the U.S. Dept. of Transportation—former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg—has moved a long step closer to moving into the job, as a Senate committee approved his nomination by a wide margin.

The action came on Jan. 27, when the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee cleared Buttigieg for the post of Transportation Secretary on a 21-3 vote.

The three “no” votes all came from Republicans on the committee: Ted Cruz (Texas), Rick Scott (Fla.) and Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.).

The strong bipartisan vote in committee bodes well for Buttigieg's chances when his nomination goes to the Senate floor.

Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the commerce committee's chairman, said in a statement, “Transportation issues historically have been addressed on a bipartisan basis, and I expect to continue that practice with Mr. Buttigieg.”

Tom Ichniowski has been writing about the federal government as ENR’s Washington Bureau Chief since the George H.W. Bush administration, and he has covered at least five major highway bills. A recognized expert on government policy on infrastructure and regulation, Tom is also a Baltimore native and Orioles fan who grew up rooting for Brooks and Frank Robinson. He is a graduate of Columbia College and Columbia’s graduate school of journalism, where he once used “unrelentless” in a headline.

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