Pete Buttigieg: ‘Cars Are Going Electric, With Or Without Us’

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Wednesday that cars were “going electric” whether the people were ready to go along with them or not.

Buttigieg made the comments during a CNN appearance — in response to a question about President Joe Biden’s visit to speak with striking auto workers on the United Auto Workers (UAW) picket lines in Michigan.

WATCH:

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg responds to workers' concerns over Biden's forced "transition" to electric vehicles:

"These cars are going electric with or without us" pic.twitter.com/lj2ouOIBNp

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 27, 2023

The Transportation Secretary referenced Biden’s appearance in Michigan and the fact that auto workers have voiced concerns about the transition to electric vehicles — and where that could leave their jobs moving forward.

Buttigieg began with a callback to his hometown of South Bend, Indiana, where he name-dropped two local UAW chapters before pivoting to talk about the economy and the transition to electric vehicles.

“Look, I come from South Bend, Indiana,” he said. “It’s the home of UAW Local 5 and UAW Local 9, I saw how the past generation of union auto jobs helped build the middle class build communities like the one I grew up in.”

“I also saw what happened when those factories closed,” he continued. “What the UAW is trying to do right now is to make sure that this next chapter of auto industry, which, let’s be very clear, these cars are going electric with or without us.”

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While President Biden was on the picket line in Michigan, Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) made an appearance at a UAW protest in Wentzville, Missouri — where he took aim at the Biden administration’s efforts to force the auto industry to go electric “with or without” the workers.

“I’d call on the Biden Admin right now: Cancel all of your terrible electric mandates that are killing these guys and taking their jobs,” Hawley said. “And these companies … need to invest in America and in American workers.”

WATCH:

WATCH: Hawley Joins UAW Picket Line In Wentzville, MO

"I'd call on the Biden Admin right now: Cancel all of your terrible electric mandates that are killing these guys and taking their jobs.

"And these companies […] need to invest in America and in American workers." pic.twitter.com/fMppoa2261

— Senator Hawley Press Office (@SenHawleyPress) September 26, 2023

RELATED: Obama’s ‘Car Czar’ Blasts Biden For Joining Auto Worker Picket Line