Harris says Buttigieg 'first choice' for VP in 2024 but proved 'too risky'

[TheProle]

8. Buttigieg responds to Harris' VP snub: You earn voters' trust on 'what they think you're going to do,' not 'on categorie

BLOOMINGTON, Indiana — Pete Buttigieg said he believes in “giving Americans more credit” than assuming they couldn’t vote for a Black woman and a gay man on the same presidential ticket, as former Vice President Kamala Harris asserts in her new book.

The former Transportation secretary told POLITICO Thursday that he was “surprised” to read a passage from Harris’ upcoming book that said Buttigieg was her first choice for a running mate and “would have been an ideal partner — if I were a straight white man.”

“My experience in politics has been that the way that you earn trust with voters is based mostly on what they think you’re going to do for their lives, not on categories,” Buttigieg said minutes before a ribbon cutting ceremony at the Monroe County Democratic Party headquarters.

The divergence comes as their party is grappling with its approach to diversity, as the Trump administration slashes through diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Democrats disagree about how much to emphasize such values after the GOP successfully painted the party as too “woke” — and now face new questions over how to field winning candidates.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/18/buttigieg-harris-runing-mate-107-days-00571954