{"id":2473523,"date":"2025-08-11T18:17:01","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T22:17:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/buttigieg-calls-vance-smart-but-not-very-principled\/"},"modified":"2025-08-11T18:17:52","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T22:17:52","slug":"buttigieg-calls-vance-smart-but-not-very-principled","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/buttigieg-calls-vance-smart-but-not-very-principled\/","title":{"rendered":"Buttigieg calls Vance &#8216;smart&#8217; but not &#8216;very principled&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbuttigieg-calls-vance-smart-but-not-very-principled%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2473523&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently commented on Vice President JD Vance during a podcast appearance. Buttigieg described Vance as &#8220;very smart,&#8221; &#8220;smooth,&#8221; and &#8220;capable,&#8221; but questioned his principles and integrity. he noted Vance&#8217;s dramatic shift in stance toward former President donald Trump, highlighting that Vance once compared Trump to &#8220;America&#8217;s Hitler&#8221; but later suggested Trump should be a world leader. Buttigieg&#8217;s remarks came amid speculation about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/desantis-appears-to-be-a-popular-lead-for-2024-straw-poll-shows\/\" title=\"DeSantis Appears To Be A Popular Lead For 2024, Straw Poll Shows\">potential presidential candidates<\/a> for the 2028 election. While trump has not formally endorsed Vance, he has shown some support for Vance&#8217;s possible candidacy. Buttigieg himself is also considered a potential contender for the 2028 presidential race.  <\/p>\n<div id=\"ld-4686-3758\"><\/div>\n<p><script>(function(w,d,s,i){w.ldAdInit=w.ldAdInit||[];w.ldAdInit.push({slot:14832835450050406,size:[0, 0],id:\"ld-4686-3758\"});if(!d.getElementById(i)){var j=d.createElement(s),p=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];j.async=true;j.src=\"https:\/\/cdn2.decide.dev\/_js\/ajs.js\";j.id=i;p.parentNode.insertBefore(j,p);}})(window,document,\"script\",\"ld-ajs\");<\/script><\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Buttigieg calls Vance &lsquo;smart&rsquo; but not &lsquo;very principled&rsquo; in possible 2028 preview<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2121508\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Former Transportation Secretary&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/pete-buttigieg\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Pete Buttigieg<\/a>&nbsp;conceded that Vice President JD Vance is &ldquo;very smart&rdquo; but doubted the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/carson-points-out-that-every-democratic-plan-has-backfired-in-trumps-favor-as-seen-in-the-bible-2\/\" title=\"Carson points out that every Democratic plan has backfired in ...&#039;s favor, as seen in the Bible\">vice president&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s integrity in a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/in_focus\/3427533\/substack-podcasts-midterms-2028\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">podcast appearance<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s very intelligent. I think he&rsquo;s very smooth. I think he&rsquo;s very capable. That&rsquo;s why we definitely shouldn&rsquo;t &mdash; I know there&rsquo;s a temptation to make fun of him, and &mdash; but, you know, I can do it with the best of them, sometimes when you see how he conducts himself out there,&rdquo; Buttigieg said on <em>Pod Save America<\/em>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3496684\/trump-briefing-room-expansion-announcement-police-takeover-ballroom-white-house\/\">Trump rejects suggestion to build &#8216;big, beautiful briefing room&#8217; for press<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3496500\/dc-home-rule-sidelined-trump-takeover-police\/\">Some aspects of home rule sidelined as Trump takes control of DC police force<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3496240\/trump-china-tariff-extension-beijing-trade\/\">Trump to extend China tariff pause, says Beijing has been &#8216;dealing quite nicely&#8217; on trade<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;But let&rsquo;s be clear, we&rsquo;re talking about a very smart person, not a very principled person,&rdquo; he continued.<\/p>\n<p>Buttigieg also commented on Vance&rsquo;s shift on President Donald Trump, whom he once called &ldquo;America&rsquo;s Hitler.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It didn&rsquo;t take him many years to go from comparing Trump to&nbsp;Hitler, which he did, to saying that he ought to be the leader of the free world,&rdquo; Buttigieg said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during a VoteVets Town Hall, May 13, 2025, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo\/Cliff Jette, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The former <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >transportation secretary<\/a> was responding to a question from the host regarding a possible presidential run for Vance. Trump has not outright endorsed his vice president but has indicated his support for Vance&rsquo;s would-be candidacy.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3464666\/where-2028-presidential-contenders-visit-early-primary-states\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong>HERE&rsquo;S WHERE POSSIBLE 2028 PRESIDENTIAL CONTENDERS ARE GOING AS THEY VISIT EARLY PRIMARY STATES<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Buttigieg himself is seen as a possible 2028 presidential contender, having run for president in 2020. Other Democrats in the national conversation about a 2028 nominee include Govs. Gavin Newsom (CA), Andy Beshear (KY), and Josh Shapiro (PA).<\/p>\n<p>No one has announced a bid for president in the 2028 race.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2121508\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2121508\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Buttigieg says Vance is smart but lacks strong principles<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2910,"featured_media":2473524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/vance-buttigieg.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[4943,7375,5894,55679,15469],"class_list":["post-2473523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-buttigieg","tag-criticism","tag-politics","tag-principles-2","tag-vance"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/vance-buttigieg.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2473523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2910"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2473523"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2473523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2473527,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2473523\/revisions\/2473527"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2473524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2473523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2473523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2473523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}