Southwest meltdown: Buttigieg said in September airline issues would ‘get better’ by holidays

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said just months ago that the airline that stranded thousands of people at Christmas after promising Americans that ongoing air travel problems would improve before the holidays. has been deceived in its response to the meltdown.

During an appearance on “The Late Late Show with James Corden” in September, Buttigieg called out pressure on U.S. airlines after travelers experienced an expensive and chaotic summer. Said it was getting stronger.

“I think it will be better by the holidays,” the Secretary of Transportation said at the time. “We are pushing airlines to provide better service. So many people have been delayed or cancelled. It has happened to me several times this summer. In fact, They must be ready to service the tickets they sell.”

“If you’ve been mistreated by an airline, if they haven’t given you the refund they owe you, if they haven’t fulfilled their customer service obligations, we can help you. “For example, we went from 0 out of 10 airlines that promised meals and hotels to 8 out of 10. So we are pushing those airlines. increase”

Republican lawmakers blast Biden, Buttigieg after kids stranded in Baltimore amid airline chaos

Buttigieg this week called on Southwest Airlines to fully reimburse travel, food and lodging expenses after thousands of flights were canceled during the holidays and travelers were stranded at airports.

Mr. Buttigieg has been in a frenzy from both sides of the political scene over the debacle.

Republican Rep. Nancy Mace says Buttigieg will step up pressure on Southwest Airlines to audit the company to see how the billions of taxpayer-funded bailouts it received were spent. said there was a need. She told “Hanity” that her role on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, along with the fact that a teenager was stranded at Baltimore’s BWI airport on Christmas Eve, was a testament to her interest in finding answers. said to be the key.

“[T]My kids, my teens, were stranded in Baltimore trying to get home on Christmas Eve, so it hit close to his house. Five days later, I still don’t know where their packages are,” he said.

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Texas Republican Rep. Beth Van Duyne echoed many of Mace’s sentiments, telling “Hanity” that Buttigieg was unqualified for his current position, citing a supply chain crisis early in his tenure. pointed out.

“Earlier this year, the possibility of a rail strike loomed large,” said Van Duyne. “We will again, I mean, hit our economy on a massive scale. There will be municipalities that will not have access to the chemicals to treat their drinking water. And where was Pete? Oh, yes, he was on a family vacation in Portugal.”

“This is a man who is not qualified for the job and has never actually had one,” she added. “And we trust him with $1.2 trillion of taxpayer dollars. increase.”

Nina Turner, the national co-chair of Senator Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential election, has accused Buttigieg’s over-the-top ambitions for higher office to be problematic.

“What’s happening to railroads, airlines and supply chains is the result of a small mayor becoming secretary of transportation as a way to fill out a presidential resume,” she tweeted on Tuesday. “Secretary Buttigieg is a prime example of failure.”

The Senate Commerce Committee said it would look into Southwest’s cancellation.

“Southwest Airlines’ problems over the past few days have gone beyond the weather,” said Senator Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. “The commission will investigate the causes of these disruptions and their impact on consumers.”

Buttigieg was warned by members of his party of concerns within the airline industry ahead of Southwest Airlines’ mass cancellations. Cantwell, along with Massachusetts Democratic Senator Ed Markey and Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, submitted comments to the Department of Transportation in November to ensure consumers need to expedite the process to finalize the rule. said there is. Properly refunded for cancellation and get accomodation.

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In August, a bipartisan group of attorneys general from 38 states sent a letter to Congress reporting that Buttigieg had failed to adequately respond to airline consumer complaints, prompting states to pass federal consumer protection legislation. He called for a bill to enable the enforcement of

Others reading the letter signed by Mark Brunovich of Arizona and Letitia James of New York.

Fox News’ Charles Creitz and Patrick Hauf contributed to this report.