Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has responded to critics of his neglect of the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, by calling them members of the “elite” who can’t relate to the average American because they don’t know “the difference between a T.J. Maxx and a Kohl’s.”
The Ohio train derailment occurred on February 3 when dozens of rail cars, including 11 that had been carrying toxic chemicals, derailed in a town near the state’s border with Pennsylvania. Buttigieg neglected the disaster, refusing to even visit the site until three weeks later after receiving wide criticism.
Buttigieg made his comments during an interview with CNN, saying he should have visited the train derailment earlier. However, he went on to attack those who criticized his neglect of the tragedy for their alleged elitism and their alleged lack of T.J. Maxx expertise.
“It’s really rich to see some of these folks – the former president, these Fox hosts – who are literally lifelong card-carrying members of the East Coast elite, whose top economic policy priority has always been tax cuts for the wealthy, and who wouldn’t know their way around a T.J. Maxx if their life depended on it, to be presenting themselves as if they genuinely care about the forgotten middle of the country,” the Transportation Secretary said. “You think Tucker Carlson knows the difference between a T.J. Maxx and a Kohl’s?”
Pete Buttigieg: "You think Tucker Carlson knows the difference between a T.J. Maxx and a Kohl's?" https://t.co/E4S7tQ3Use pic.twitter.com/mzkLSbnSLg
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) March 5, 2023
