Buttigieg: Why he’s my pick for 46th president

I first learned of Pete Buttigieg in a comedy skit that had outtakes of newscasters trying to pronounce his name. Curiosity piqued, and dissatisfied with the usual cast of characters being presented, I started digging.

What struck me first is the tenor of the campaign. Pete, and all those who support him in text banking, phone banking, canvassing, etc., agree to abide by his Rules of the Road: respect, belonging, truth, teamwork, boldness, responsibility, substance, discipline, excellence and joy.

Next came his intelligence: Magna Cum Laude at Harvard, Rhodes Scholar, speaks at least 7 languages.

Then came his platform and his approach to it. It’s not that he isn’t progressive, it’s that he has a mature (in spite of being the youngest candidate) approach to implementing those plans - one that isn’t about making others see his way, but rather about communicating to find the common ground and building from there.

I encourage readers to take a deeper look at this candidate. And as for pronunciation? I just tell folks it’s easier to pronounce it “46”!

This story was originally published February 21, 2020 at 8:46 PM with the headline "Buttigieg: Why he’s my pick for 46th president."