Pete Buttigieg becomes 1st openly gay person confirmed to Cabinet seat


Pete Buttigieg was confirmed Tuesday to lead President Biden's Transportation Department.
In an 86-13 vote, the Senate confirmed the former South Bend, Indiana, mayor and 2020 candidate to lead the DOT. The overwhelming vote marks the first time an openly gay person has been confirmed by the Senate to any Cabinet-level department. Former Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell was previously the first openly gay person to serve at a Cabinet-level, serving for four months last year without Senate confirmation.
In his confirmation hearings, Buttigieg signaled support for enforcing mask mandates on public forms of transportation. He also affirmed climate change would be a "central feature" in any Biden administration infrastructure packages, and noted that "misguided policies and missed opportunities in transportation can reinforce racial and economic inequality."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Buttigieg's confirmation received congratulations from both sides of the aisle, including from former Democratic primary rival Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.).
Several other Biden Cabinet nominees have been confirmed in the past two weeks, includes Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The Senate will also vote on the confirmation of Homeland Security Secretary nominee Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday. He is expected to be confirmed.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Tied Supreme Court blocks church charter school
speed read The court upheld the Oklahoma Supreme Court's decision to bar overtly religious public charter schools
-
GOP megabill would limit judicial oversight of Trump
speed read The domestic policy bill Republicans pushed through the House would protect the Trump administration from the consequences of violating court orders
-
Judge scolds DOJ over Newark mayor arrest
speed read Ras Baraka was arrested during a May 9 surprise visit to a migrant detention facility
-
Trump lectures South Africa president on 'white genocide'
speed read Trump has cut off aid to South Africa over his demonstrably false genocide claims
-
Trump twists House GOP arms on megabill
speed read The bill will provide a $350 billion boost to military and anti-immigration spending and 'cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and green energy programs'
-
Trump DOJ said to pay $5M to family of Jan. 6 rioter
speed read The US will pay a hefty sum to the family of Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt, who was fatally shot on January 6
-
Trump DOJ charging House Democrat in ICE fracas
speed read Rep. LaMonica McIver is being charged with assault over a clash outside an immigration detention facility in Newark
-
Biden diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer
speed read The diagnosis hits close to home, as the former president 'dedicated much of his later career to cancer research'