Focusing on non-existent problems instead of real issues


Buttigieg earlier this month appointed 24 new members to his Advisory Committee on Transportation Equity, an Obama-era body that Buttigieg is reviving after the Trump administration scrapped it. Included on the committee is Andrea Marpillero-Colomina, a "spatial policy scholar" who says "ALL CARS ARE BAD" given that they cause "a myriad of environmental issues and conditions." Another Buttigieg appointee, self-described "transportation nerd" Veronica Davis, argued in an August essay that cars perpetuate "systemic racism" and are therefore "the problem" in America's transportation system.

Buttigieg's appointments—and his decision to revive the equity advisory committee—reflect the Biden administration's whole-of-government emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion. President Joe Biden shortly after taking office in 2021 issued an executive order that called on federal agencies to "pursue a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all." Under the order, agency heads must conduct an "equity assessment" to identify policies that create "systemic barriers" in minority communities.