# Biden is reportedly considering nominating Pete Buttigieg, his former presidential opponent, to be ambassador to China **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [December 9, 2020, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659 "2020-12-09T18:42:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/62 "2020-12-15T18:16:19Z")
You don’t see how a stint as a cabinet secretary would help someone in their career as a public servant, elected or otherwise? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/63 "2020-12-15T18:17:46Z")
**Modhat** : Let’s ease up on making this personal please. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/64 "2020-12-15T18:17:50Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > You don’t see how a stint as a cabinet secretary would help someone in their career as a public servant, elected or otherwise? Nope. And I notice that, while I keep answering your questions, you don’t answer mine. I thus repeat my question to you. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/65 "2020-12-15T18:20:01Z")
About who MY governor, congressperson and Senator are? Why would you want to know who represents me personally? ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/66 "2020-12-15T18:20:22Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > I don’t see how a stint as a cabinet secretary would help the guy. It would, potentially, give him national exposure and name recognition, especially in a high profile cabinet slot. It would give him first hand experience in federal government operations. It would give him first hand experience in dealing with Congress. It would allow him to make contacts and network in Washington, with his fellow members of the administration, and with members of Congress. It would greatly increase his exposure within the Democratic party. Making him ambassador to China might be a way to give a mayor valuable foreign policy experience, and a degree of gravitas, and help him with his next presidential run. It might also, or instead, be a way to shunt him off to a position where he’s isolated from the American public, party officials, and donors… ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/67 "2020-12-15T18:20:23Z")
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**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/68 "2020-12-15T18:21:39Z")
Closed for 5 minutes to cool off. **Modhat** : As I said, let’s ease up on making this personal please. I’ll make it clearer. @Happy_Lendervedder & @The_Other_Waldo_Pepper ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/69 "2020-12-15T18:25:06Z")
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**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/70 "2020-12-15T18:36:03Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > About who MY governor, congressperson and Senator are? Why would you want to know who represents me personally? Because, hereabouts, ‘cabinet secretary’ hasn’t been a stepping-stone to being a Governor or a Senator, though being a Governor or a Senator can be a fine stepping-stone to the presidency; and so I wondered whether your Governor was likewise never a cabinet secretary, and if neither of your Senators were ever cabinet secretaries, and so on, and so on. If you’d rather, look instead at the current cabinet secretaries: does, say, Ben Carson’s stint make you more likely to vote for the guy, were he ever to run for the Senate? Or would you say, _no, it is to laugh, why would his time as a cabinet secretary impress me or anyone else?_ ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/71 "2020-12-15T18:45:58Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Because, hereabouts, ‘cabinet secretary’ hasn’t been a stepping-stone to being a Governor or a Senator, though being a Governor or a Senator can be a fine stepping-stone to the presidency; and so I wondered whether your Governor was likewise never a cabinet secretary, and if neither of your Senators were ever cabinet secretaries, and so on, and so on. It’s fairly rare, but it does happen. Andrew Cuomo and Bill Richardson were in Bill Clinton’s cabinet before becoming the Governors of New York and New Mexico respectively (though arguably Cuomo benefited more from his family name). Donna Shalala became a Congressperson after being in Clinton’s cabinet. From the George W. Bush Administration, Mel Martinez became Senator from Florida, and Rob Portman became Senator from Ohio. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/72 "2020-12-15T18:51:17Z")
And just from the Obama admin: Tom Perez and Hilda Solis are both now elected officials, not specifically Senator, governor or Congressperson, but head of the DNC and serving on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. My point, without making any of this personal toward anyone, is that experience as a cabinet secretary doesn’t hurt if someone wants to build or continue a career in public service, elected or otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/73 "2020-12-15T19:07:06Z")
Buttigieg takes Transportation. > **[Biden taps former rival Pete Buttigieg for U.S. transportation secretary](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-buttigieg/exclusive-biden-taps-former-rival-buttigieg-for-u-s-transportation-secretary-sources-idUSKBN28P2KK?il=0)** > > President-elect Joe Biden announced Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday as his nominee to lead the U.S. Transportation Department, making him the first of Biden's Democratic rivals for the presidency to land a role in his Cabinet. Good deal. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/74 "2020-12-15T19:08:46Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > My point, without making any of this personal toward anyone, is that experience as a cabinet secretary doesn’t hurt if someone wants to build or continue a career in public service, elected or otherwise. It doesn’t _hurt,_ but does it _help?_ This might be an unanswerable question, but: as you say, Solis is now serving on a County Board of Supervisors, after serving terms in Congress; I won’t argue that her time in between, as a cabinet secretary, _hurt_ her odds of getting her current post: but did it actually _help?_ Was there anyone who still had doubts about her when she got re-elected to Congress, but who nodded in approval once she’d put in some time in a cabinet? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/75 "2020-12-15T19:11:13Z")
I like it. Not a critical cabinet posting but a important one. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2020, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/76 "2020-12-15T19:21:56Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > It doesn’t _hurt,_ but does it _help?_ As much as anything else on someone’s resume helps, yes. Absolutely, whether that person goes on to run for governor, Congress, party chair, or run a public university system. And with that, I’m done with this conversation. Pete is now going to be SoT, and several ex-mayors have previously held this position, so there’s no reason to believe he’s going to be in over his head with this new role. And I also suspect serving in the president’s cabinet will indeed help him in his public service career beyond his role as Transportation Secretary, as most of the criticism about him heretofore has been that he has no federal experience, only local. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2020, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659/77 "2020-12-16T06:11:38Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > If you’d rather, look instead at the current cabinet secretaries: does, say, Ben Carson’s stint make you more likely to vote for the guy, were he ever to run for the Senate? Or would you say, _no, it is to laugh, why would his time as a cabinet secretary impress me or anyone else?_ Personally I think one of Mayor Pete’s weak points was his youth and lack of experience. Not because experience makes people more likely to vote for him but the reverse. When his opponents point to his lack of experience it makes people less likely to vote for him. That may seem like semantics but I do not think it is. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biden-is-reportedly-considering-nominating-pete-buttigieg-his-former-presidential-opponent-to-be-ambassador-to-china/927659.md?page=3)