Buttigieg Says 'right Now I’m Not Running For Anything' During Iowa Stop

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - Pete Buttigieg pushed backmost against disapproval from President Donald Trump connected nan occupation he did arsenic proscription caput successful erstwhile President Biden's management and declined to opportunity if Biden knowledgeable cognitive diminution during his last years successful nan White House, arsenic he took questions from reporters connected Tuesday night.

Buttigieg, speaking pinch reporters aft headlining a municipality hallway pinch veterans successful this eastbound Iowa metropolis that sparked much speculation that nan 2020 Democratic statesmanlike contender is mulling different White House tally successful 2028, told Fox News that 'right now I’m not moving for anything."

Buttigieg won nan 2020 Iowa statesmanlike caucuses and came successful a adjacent 2nd successful nan New Hampshire statesmanlike superior earlier Biden surged to declare nan party's information and later nan White House.

While Iowa's caucuses for half a period kicked disconnected some awesome governmental parties' statesmanlike nominating calendars, nan Democratic National Committee (DNC) demoted nan Hawkeye State connected their 2024 schedule, and it's unclear if Iowa will regain its early authorities position successful nan 2028 calendar.

LESS THAN FOUR WEEKS INTO TRUMP'S SECOND TERM, DEMOCRATS ALREADY EYEING 2028 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

Former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg headlines a veterans municipality hallway successful Cedar Rapids, Iowa, connected May 13, 2025. Buttigieg's quality sparked speculation he whitethorn make different statesmanlike tally successful 2028. (Fox News - Paul Steinhauser)

But Buttigieg's visit, on pinch his announcement successful March that he would walk connected a 2026 tally for a Democrat-controlled unfastened Senate spot successful battleground Michigan, his adopted location state, are seen arsenic signals of his liking successful a imaginable 2028 nationalist run.

Buttigieg told a Substack writer successful a unrecorded question and reply hours earlier nan municipality hallway that erstwhile it comes to 2028, he would see "what I bring to nan table."

But asked by Fox News if the travel to Iowa - wherever he besides gathered pinch staffers from his 2020 run and was followed astir by a videographer from his governmental group Win nan Era - was nan opening of an appraisal period, Buttigieg said "right now, I’m not moving for thing and portion of what’s breathtaking and compelling astir an opportunity for illustration this is to beryllium campaigning for values and for ideas alternatively than a circumstantial electoral campaign. So that's what I'm about."

Told that assemblage members who said they voted for him successful 2020 and would beryllium willing successful backing him again if he runs successful 2028, Buttigieg said "of people it intends a batch to perceive that group who supported maine past proceed to judge successful what I person to say."

WATCH: TRUMP TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY LAYS OUT NEW PLAN TO UPGRADE AGING AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM

The travel by Buttigieg came arsenic he's faced incoming occurrence successful caller days from Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy complete a surge successful formation delays and cancellations astatine New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport, which is 1 of nan 3 awesome airports that services nan New York City metropolitan area.

Duffy blames his predecessor astatine nan Department of Transportation and nan Biden management for what he claims was a nonaccomplishment to upgrade nan engaged airport's aerial postulation power system.

And Trump, past week, besides chimed in, claiming that during his tenure arsenic proscription caput Buttigieg "didn’t person a clue. And this feline is really a contender for president?" Trump added. "I don't deliberation he's going to do excessively well."

The president's jabs came a fewer days aft Buttigieg, pointing to Trump's underwater support ratings successful nationalist polling, said successful a societal media station that "Donald Trump is nan astir unpopular 100-day-mark president successful modern American history."

WATCH: TRUMP TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY LAYS OUT NEW PLAN TO UPGRADE AGING AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM

The Trump management argues that Buttigieg oversaw a rocky modulation of nan Newark airport's airspace to nan Philadelphia Terminal Radar Approach Control (Tracon) past July.

And Duffy, who earlier this week unveiled a awesome scheme to overhaul nan nation's aging aerial postulation power system, claims nan Biden management is to blasted for nan caller problems, including aerial postulation power instrumentality outages.

"Maybe erstwhile you activity from home, aliases possibly erstwhile you activity from Michigan arsenic a secretary, possibly you’re not focused connected nan existent issues that are taking spot passim nan airspace," Duffy said, arsenic he took purpose astatine Buttigieg, who lives successful Michigan.

Buttigieg, responding, told reporters connected Tuesday nighttime that "when you’re nan caput of transportation, you person a reliable occupation and your work is to hole reliable problems. You don’t person clip to indulge successful trying to constituent fingers aliases blasted different people."

"What I tin show you is we inherited a shrinking aerial postulation power workforce. We turned it into a increasing aerial postulation power workforce," he added. "My successor is, of course, not asking for my advice, but my proposal would beryllium to making judge that it grows and really delivering nan technological alteration that’s needed."

Then-President Joe Biden speaks astatine nan State Department, during nan closing days of his presidency, connected Jan. 13, 2025. (AP)

Buttigieg's Iowa travel besides came connected nan aforesaid time that excerpts from a caller book offered specifications connected Biden's expected intelligence and beingness diminution during his past 2 years successful nan White House.

Asked whether Biden knowledgeable cognitive decline, Buttigieg would only opportunity that "every clip I needed thing from him from nan West Wing, I sewage it." 

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But he said "maybe" erstwhile asked whether nan Democratic Party would person been amended disconnected if Biden had not tally for re-election successful 2024. "Right now pinch nan use of hindsight, I deliberation astir group would work together that that's nan case."

Biden dropped retired of nan title past July, 1 period aft a disastrous statement capacity pinch Trump sparked a chorus of calls from chap Democrats for nan then-81-year-old president to extremity his re-election bid. He was replaced astatine nan apical of nan summons by then-Vice President Kamala Harris, who ended up losing successful November to Trump.