South Bend Mayor Buttigieg at DNC forum calls on Democrats to unite around shared values

“We’re all talking about building the bench and fighting voter suppression and getting back to the grassroots and paying attention to redistricting,” Buttigieg said. “What’s really going to matter in this race is which among us is best positioned to deliver that.”

Participating in the third of four DNC-sponsored forums ahead of party elections in Atlanta later this month, the South Bend native and U.S. Navy veteran argued that he is that person.

“If we’re all saying we’ve got to reach out to the next generation, let’s put in the millennial. If we’re all saying we’ve got to organize at the grassroots, let’s put in the one candidate who went out to the Women’s March,” he said to applause from the crowd at Wayne State University, including about 30 supporters who traveled by bus to the event from South Bend.

He continued, “If we’re all saying we’ve got to be tough enough to fight voter suppression, let’s put in the war veteran. If we’re all saying we’ve got to fight in red and purple states, put in somebody from Indiana. If we’re saying we’ve got to pay attention from the top of the ticket on down, put in a mayor, someone who’s bread and butter is local office. If we’re saying that we don’t want to devolve into a factional struggle, put in somebody who doesn’t belong to any faction in the party. If we’re all saying that we want a turnaround, put in somebody that’s helped turn around a city that was on the brink.”