Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he “plans to go” to East Palestine, Ohio, where a large train derailment that released multiple chemicals occurred earlier this month.
In an appearance on CBS News, Buttigieg addressed criticism over his response to the derailment, admitting that he could have reacted sooner. When asked if he had plans to visit the community, Buttigieg said he did but didn’t specify when he would make the visit.
OHIO TRAIN DERAILMENT: BUTTIGIEG SAYS HE ‘COULD HAVE SPOKEN OUT SOONER’
“So I’m planning to go, and when I do, it will be focused on action, not on politics, not on show,” he said. “In the early days, I had been respecting the role that the independent [National Transportation Safety Board] plays and staying out of their way, but we are now entering the policy part of our response to this. And even as the NTSB continues finalizing their work, this is the right time for us to be looking at immediate steps from the USDOT,” he said.
CBS News political correspondent Caitlin Huey-Burns then pressed Buttigieg on why he did not visit the state sooner, arguing that he should be aware of the importance of being seen there due to his work in politics.
“The administration was on the ground from day one. I have followed the normal practice of transportation secretaries in the early days after a crash, allowing NTSB to lead the safety work and stay out of their way. But I am very eager to have conversations with people in East Palestine about how this has impacted them,” Buttigieg responded.
On a Monday call with reporters, Buttigieg had given a similar answer, saying he was following the common practice of past transportation secretaries in not showing up to the crash site immediately.
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“I am very interested in getting to know the residents of East Palestine, hearing from them about how they’ve been impacted, and communicating with them about the steps that we’re taking,” he said. “But yes, when the time is right, I do plan to visit East Palestine. I don’t have a date for you right now.”
