Mayor Pete's Town Hall is pretty rough so far.

[nolabear]

CNN is covering it when Michael Eric Dyson isn’t telling us what he SHOULD be doing just as he was telling what Joe should have been doing.

I honestly don’t see how anyone can do anything in the atmosphere of nothing being good enough and everyone being in a blind rage.

This isn’t going well.

[Corgigal]

1. This is Petes

national trial by fire. He wants to be President, he's got to handle it.

I think he's doing the best he can.

[nolabear]

2. Ain't that the truth. This will make or break him.

And CNN needs to stop cutting away!

[Corgigal]

5. Yeah,

We are now steaming it off the Internet. I personally like that an elected official steps up, so un republican. Thankfully.

[nolabear]

6. Absolutely. Where are you streaming it from?

[Corgigal]

7. Hubby found it off

of WNDU.com

[Iliyah]

4. Agreed . . .

A fair and compassionate President of over 300 millions . . .

Same applies to South Bend, Indiana. I think he will be just fine.

[leftofcool]

35. At least he is listening which is more than I can say for the rest of the Dem contenders

Listening to teeny bopper girls in fine but it takes courage and leadership to listen to a bunch of angry people.

[tishaLA]

3. I hope this doesn't cause lasting harm

This morning on MTP, Peggy Nooner regaled the audience with stories about her recent trip to SB where residents happily told her than the mayor is a "trechnocrat" because, you know, regular people love to talk to Peggy and regular people who talk to Peggy always use words like "technocrat." Even if I didn't like the Mayor, I'd cheer for him just to annoy Ms Nooner.

One thing I did learn, though, is that the SBPD has become less rather than more diverse during his tenure. That's not good.

[Indygram]

10. I think if he continues to run for president with such a big problem in his city it's going to cause

permanent damage to his image. No matter how much he is dedicated to fixing problems, if he is campaigning he will be accused of not caring or doing enough. He's still so young, though, so if he can navigate his way through this correctly he will definitely have future prospects. Realistically, I think his only good choice is to suspend his campaign to deal with this full time. If it gets resolved well then maybe rejoin later on or consider running for a state office.

[RLG]

23. To me, this is his Achilles' heel.

His supporters can talk about how thoughtful and well-spoken regarding issues, but if he cannot overcome how the African American community sees him, it doesn't matter how well he thinks or speaks.

He already has a reputation that will be hard to erase.

[leftofcool]

37. Really?

What reputation? Firing a chief who was under FBI investigation? Pete, at least, has a clean record which is more than one can say for the rest of the Dems.

[RLG]

44. Do you truly believe low information African American voters will overlook this?

Face facts, he will not get enough African American support to win the nomination.

[nolabear]

8. I honestly don't know how he can address this.

I am absolutely sympathetic to the anger and the YEARS of wrongdoing. But as with Biden and so many others, I don’t see how to address something in the heat of an election that demands that you had done something different, not that you now do something different. It’s the beginning of a big conversation that will take months, years, and so much trust building that I don’t see how it can’t be difficult as part of a presidential run.

[Indygram]

9. Just switched to CNN...he looks so uncomfortable

Although he was not my choice, I feel so bad for him right now. What an awful, awful thing to have to deal with.

[nolabear]

21. Well, it is an appropriate bellwether. He did as well as anyone could.

The problem with having history is that you have history. All history is ammunition for someone. I think he’s honest and sincere. I’m not sure he’s yet presidential. The country is a powder keg. I don’t know.

[Indygram]

28. I think he has a lot of work to do at home

And if he continues to run for president I think the residents of his city are going to be extremely unhappy and angry. I would not be surprised if we see him suspend his campaign, at least for awhile.

[nolabear]

30. You think? I don't think he could, but it's being used against him.

The CNNers have brought thatvup several times already since the Town Hall.

[Indygram]

43. He's doing the best he can all things considered

The level of anger in that town hall is a powder keg waiting to explode. The town is high profile because of Mayor Pete's campaign. I don't see how he can continue running for president unless he resigns as mayor. If he resigns it looks really bad. With how high profile this is I can see nationwide protesters descending on South Bend and leading to riots. Pete will be perceived as not caring about his town if he goes and campaigns. How he handles this situation is going to decide whether or not he has a future in politics. I hope he has some good advisers.

[customerserviceguy]

11. When I left northwestern Indiana

in 1969, even though I was just a teenager, I knew that racial tension in that part of the state ran high. The country had just finished going through urban riots every summer for a few years, culminating with the ones that followed the death of MLK. It was so bad that Nixon could run and win on a slogan of "Law and Order".

A visit five years ago back to that part of Indiana, where we were there for the better part of a week showed that black people and white people pretty much kept to themselves. It would not surprise me that tensions still boil under the surface. The lack of trust between racial groups makes this a tough time for Pete.

[Corgigal]

12. My DU'ers.

He's just there to listen for the most part. He's fine, he can't fix this. People feel better when someone hears them when they are hurt or angry. It's the right thing to do, and if it calms the town by 5 percent, it could save someone's life.

Trump could have done something like this at Charlottesville, but nope, didn't go and didn't engage. He showed us by having not engaging our concerns, and throwing us out of his rallies, how small of a man Trump is.

I'm from South Carolina, and I'm gonna call back to my tan friends down there for their opinions.
People can be heckling , they might even be right. It's what all mayors should do when it hits the fan.

Well, except for Trump.

[MBS]

19. I agree completely with your take on this.

I'd only add that I think it takes guts to do this, and that it was the right thing to do, whatever the pundits of the day might opine regarding political fallout.

[nolabear]

24. He does listen beautifully. I'm monitoring responses now.

It’s a thankless task. Now he’s being criticized for being too thoughtful and not emotional enough.

So much is not what is happening but how it’s spun by people who are attached to an outcome in one way or another.

[JI7]

36. the criticism of his emotional state is pretty unfair. that's just how he is

even when talking about issues lgbt people face and his personal struggles he talks in the same way. it doesn't mean one cares any more or less than those who might come off more emotional.

in fact it would be worse if he put on a fake act. trump does that all the time.

[Skittles]

39. that's a tough line

you have to be sympathetic, but you cannot show too much emotion as a leader - this is ESPECIALLY true of women and gay men

[Corgigal]

40. Yeah,

I heard he wasn't emotional enough. Nope, he's a political figure, the last thing we need is emotional. Facts work though.

Regardless, I think he tried and did the right thing. Institutional racism been here for 100s of years, but let's at least agree it exists.

[peggysue2]

13. This would be tough regardless of who the mayor was

The whole incident/controversy is exacerbated by the fact that Buttigieg is running for national office and the frustration that has boiled over in the community of South Bend. From the sounds of it these complaints about the police department are not new and a general lack of trust has spread through the African American citizenry. Worse yet, if I heard the detail correctly, the number of AA officers has been reduced by 50% over the last few years. Which makes little sense.

This is going to take a lot of work and genuine commitment to turn around.

[riversedge]

15. I do not know why there has been that reduction in Black officers. Maybe they said it

but I missed it?? I had to leave for a while.

[dalton99a]

38. Details:

https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/23/politics/pete-buttigieg-south-bend-police-department-officer-involved-shootings/index.html

Under Pete Buttigieg, racial tension has long plagued South Bend's Police Department
By Dan Merica and Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN
Updated 5:00 PM ET, Sun June 23, 2019

[riversedge]

42. Thanks much.

[Corgigal]

41. This retired LEO

family wants to let you in on a secret. No one wants to work in law enforcement anymore, check your local agency for vacancies. Our kids don't work in law enforcement either. I only did 911 for 8 years, but my hubby is a retired traffic homicide investigator.

[riversedge]

14. I have been watching for the hour or so. Voters are very angry. I give Pete credit

for staying cool==but maybe too cool??

[appalachiablue]

16. Have to agree, maybe too cool. These folks have genuine

grievances and rights. And communities like this have been struggling for years, generations..

[riversedge]

18. Yes, many have made it know, that this have been going on for a LONGGGGGGGGGG time. They

want immediate answers--and some passion.

[RandySF]

17. Doesn't help that

the shooting came on the heels of Pete terminating an African American police chief.

[Celerity]

20. It did not happen 'on the heels', it was 2012. Also Boykins ended up not

not being terminated, he was demoted (he illegally wired-tapped other cops for over a year, before Buttigieg was even mayor) and served out the rest of his career at captain rank. Boykins retired last year with full pension.

[mobeau69]

22. Sometimes facts are too complicated and take too much reading and research to ascertain.

Just talk to an average trump supporter.

[Celerity]

47. Unfortunately this new tragedy is probably going to do him in. Perception is everything in politics,

and fair or not, it is not a good look. If Pete can handle this, he truly can handle most anything so far. We still need to see how it all plays out. All I can do as a poster is try to add truth and context. I think he should have resigned as mayor before running, not to cover anything up, as there is nothing to cover up, but in order to concentrated on his campaign.

Being a mayor of city is fairly unique as the that person is going to be held to blame for anything that goes pear shaped inside their jurisdiction, unlike a Representative or a Senator or even a Governor (unless any of those can be directly tied to a scandal where in they did something wrong personally.) South Bend is large enough to have the potential for a lot of serious problems, but is not so huge (like say LA or NYC) where the sheer size can somewhat insulate (unless, again, the mayor is directly involved in some illegal action.)

If Pete doesn't have large, multiple break-out moments at the debates, his best chance to continue in politics is probably going to be at cabinet level (or something similar.) Indiana is far too red now for him to win statewide office, unless he got incredibly lucky like the since-defeated Donnelly did in 2012 and drew a self-destructing RWNJ in a Senate race or Governor. Post Trump, even that might not work. His Congressional district is also gerrymandered now to hard RW, Trump at over plus 20, so is out of luck there, probably.

[RLG]

25. It doesn't matter.

The chief lost his post. You can explain it any way possible but the damage is done.

This will hurt in him South Carolina and the larger states with high African American primary voters. The best he could hope for, and this is a stretch, is a vice president spot on the ticket.

[Celerity]

46. I simply corrected an incorrect statement about it being 'on the heels' as it happened over 7 years

ago. Buttigieg was re-elected well after the tapes saga came out with over 80% of the vote, including a vast majority of the minority vote (South Bend is 45% non-white).

[brush]

31. Get it right. He didn't wire tap other cops. Didn't his sec'y find out...

about a taping system, told him about it, he listened and found racist white cops were making demeaning remarks about him.

When this was found out the mayor pressured him to resign, which he did. Then the chief tried to rescind his resignation but the mayor only allowed him back with a demotion.

Now the police departent has lost half of its officers of color and the last six hires have been all white.

Not good, should've left the black chief in pllace to weed out the racist cops. Oh well, you live and learn—at the expense of a presidential run though.

[Celerity]

45. Listening to tapes and keeping it going without informing the other party is wiretapping by

definition. They listened for around a year before the coms director found something, told Boykins, who then confronted the other cops. They went to thr FBI at that point. The chief was under FBI investigation when Buttigieg was told (weeks after being sworn in as mayor). He did pressure Boykins to resign, Boykins did, but Boykins rescinded it the next morning, and Buttigieg just demoted him.

No one other than Boykins and the coms director has heard the tapes. Buttigieg has not. Every court has ruled it illegal wiretapping up until now, including a federal one.

The other cops won far greater judgements than Boykins did. You cannot use illegal methods to 'weed out' cops, no matter what they said. It will not hold up in a court of law.

The city appealed at federal level and it got kicked back to a state court level, where it is now in the hands of a RW Pence-appointed judge (whom Pence almost had placed on the IN Supreme Court).


There is nothing I got wrong.

[brush]

48. The chief didn't initiate the taping and was not charged.

It does seem like a pattern has developed though that the black chief was ousted, half the POC officers are gone and the last six officers just hired are all white.

What's up with all that? All on the mayor's watch too.

Doesn't look good. The mayor has to be aware of this.

[lapfog_1]

26. hopefully he will still be able to be UN Ambassador

once Joe wins the Presidency.

[nolabear]

27. Maybe something more substantive. A new department.

Im not sure what but he is a good resource.

[BannonsLiver]

29. The behavior of some of the speakers was highly counterproductive.

Raw emotion doesn’t really help get problems solved. It may feel good, and play well on Instagram and Twitter, but it’s not a solution.

[still_one]

32. All the candidates need to have their feet put to the fire, not just Biden and Sanders, and it looks

like that is exactly what is happening to Mayor Pete, fairly or unfairly

My initial preference was Harris, then I changed to Biden, and now am undecided.

It is way too early for me to choose a candidate preference until I see not only where they stand on issues, but also how they handle tough questions

[Hassin Bin Sober]

33. There's always...

[still_one]

34. Yes. Of course that isn't what I meant by candidates having their feet put to the fire, that is

just stirring thing up among some.

I am of course referring to issues, and the differences the candidates have on those issues among themselves, and which candidate can defend those issues the best in a general election

[mopinko]

49. this crisis is an opportunity for pete. he has 2 choices.

he can take the wrong step, and end his candidacy, or he can set an example for the nation.

i am sure he is working on figuring out how the true blue do it.

dont let us down, mayor pete. shine the light.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

50. I'm pretty sure that he won't end his campaign, my dear mopinko.

I'd bet good money on it.

He will shine the light!

[mopinko]

51. i like him. he is on my short list, but

he cant win w/o black votes, and there are too many good choices.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

52. I hear you, and I know you're right.

It's a shame, since he has so many good ideas.

However, it will play out and we'll see what happens.

I knew from the start that he's a long shot, and he still is.

[blm]

54. I think he'll find the right words and actions to get through

this, because I do believe he tries to come from the right place in his heart.

[nolabear]

55. I think he has the chance to create a body of work, so to speak

and to be judged by it later. I hope he does well, because though I don't support him this time I like him.

[mopinko]

56. this will tell us a lot.