By Arit John, CNN
(CNN) — Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg made a campaign-like appearance at a town hall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Tuesday, where he blasted the Trump administration, alluded to his past presidential run, and took questions on what Democrats should do to rebuild their brand.
“We’ve never been a perfect democracy, but democracy is the most important thing about our country, and our country is the most important democracy in the world,” Buttigieg said. “We’ve got to lean into that.”
Buttigieg, a former intelligence officer in the Navy Reserves who deployed to Afghanistan, visited Iowa for a veterans-focused town hall hosted by VoteVets, a group that aims to elect progressives who’ve served. The event marked Buttigieg’s first public in-person event since finishing his Cabinet job with the Biden administration in January.
At the town hall, the former transportation secretary ripped into President Donald Trump, criticizing him over the tariff war, his consideration of accepting a plane from Qatar as a gift, and his Cabinet’s use of Signal to discuss military operations. He also leaned into the importance of American democracy and Democrats’ efforts to push back on actions by the administration they say encroach on it.
But Buttigieg’s appearance in the former early primary state also brought to mind his 2020 presidential run and questions about a possible 2028 campaign. That speculation was fueled by his decision this year to pass on running in Michigan’s open gubernatorial and Senate races.
Buttigieg leaned into the presidential buzz early. He referenced his 2020 campaign – and his narrow win in the Iowa caucuses – soon after he took the stage.
“Anyone can come to Iowa just before an election is coming up,” he said. “I wanted to make sure I had a chance to talk with the people I got to know five or six years ago and people I’m seeing for the very first time.”
Speaking with reporters after the event, Buttigieg also addressed the more recent past – speaking to the 2024 election and his time as transportation secretary under President Joe Biden.
Asked if the Democratic Party would have been better off if Biden hadn’t run for reelection, he answered “Maybe.”
“Right now, with the benefit of hindsight, I think most people would agree that that’s the case,” he said. “We’re also not in a position to wallow in hindsight.”
Buttigieg defended his former boss, however, when asked by a reporter if he noticed any signs of cognitive decline in Biden during his time in the Cabinet. “Every time I needed something from him, from the West Wing, I got it,” he said, pointing to their time working together to address the collapse of the Baltimore bridge.
Looking forward, Buttigieg weighed in during the town hall on the future of the Democratic Party as it seeks to rally around a cohesive strategy for the 2026 and 2028 elections.
One audience member asked how Democrats convince Americans to trust in the party and associate it with veterans, working people and patriotism. Buttigieg said in response that Democrats need to change their message and be less abstract.
“Democrats do not have the best brand around here, and a lot of places,” he said. “There’s a lot of reasons for that, some fair, some unfair. I think the most important thing is that we connect everything we believe, everything we say, everything we do, to everyday life.”
Buttigieg said that Democrats need to break out of information silos by appearing in conservative spaces – he referenced his own appearances on Fox News and podcasts as examples.
“We’ve got to understand each other, and I felt I got to understand the country better,” he said. “We need to seek that out in neighborhoods, in faith communities, in rooms like this, and it’s one of the things I’m determined to do in the months and years ahead.”
Another audience member asked Buttigieg how the party can reach young white men ages 18-25 who think that Trump is funny or interesting.
“At risk of sounding obvious, step one is talk to them,” he said.
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