“There is a side controversy to that question,” Buttigieg said in an interview. No less than David Axelrod, the lead strategist for the last two victorious Democratic presidential campaigns, privately urged the 37-year-old to look more grown-up by wearing a jacket on the campaign trail.
“I don't know,” Batzig said, hesitating as if embarrassed by how far-fetched his next thought might sound. “I just feel more comfortable with my sleeves rolled up.”
The Navy veteran with a hard-to-pronounce name from a town small enough to fit every resident on a college football field seems to be winning the argument right now. Weeks after declaring his interest in challenging President Trump, he has become, if not exactly a household name, a topic of interest for many Democratic voters, boosted by a wild CNN town hall performance on March 10.
His moment came just days before another young candidate, former Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke, grabbed the spotlight by announcing his entry into the race.
Buttigieg played down the impact of a fresh-faced opponent entering the fray, joking that he has the “white veteran of gay bishops” to himself.
“It's not worth the energy and effort to try to play what other people are doing,” Buttigieg said. “Maybe if there were three people running. But when there are about 20, you're not running against any of them. You run against the house. Especially me.”
Buttigieg has trouble even breaking into many polls, so his rise shouldn't be overstated. But the buzz surrounding him, at least for now, reflects how fluid, unpredictable and divisive the Democratic race has become, with no clear leader and various candidates garnering attention at different times and for different reasons.
Even in a Democratic field full of non-traditional candidates, Buttigieg stands out in many ways. An Army veteran who deployed to Afghanistan, he is openly gay and his husband, Chasten, maintains a lively Twitter presence. He would be the youngest president in history. No mayor has ever ascended directly to the presidency, let alone from a city of about 102,000.
Buttigieg is also one of the few Democratic candidates from a Trump-carried state. Central to his message is the fact that he knows how to appeal to Republican voters who, he says, Democrats too often ignore.
CNN's town hall attracted 22,000 donors to its undeclared campaign in 24 hours, its staff said. On Saturday, his campaign announced it had cleared the 65,000-donor threshold necessary to win a spot in the Democratic debates scheduled to begin in June. Two prominent Democratic donors, whom his campaign declined to name, also reached out, advisers said.
He plans to double his campaign staff from 20 to 40 “in a matter of days,” and his team is narrowing down options for a larger headquarters in South Bend — perhaps an entire floor of a downtown apartment building.
“In some ways it seems fantastic that a 37-year-old openly gay mayor from South Bend can even be in this conversation,” said Axelrod, who is neutral in the Democratic primary. “These types of donors are pretty narrow-minded, but they want to be passionate about their choices.”
Many Democrats praised the way Buttigieg went after Vice President Pence, a vocal religious conservative, describing him on CNN as “the cheerleader of the porn star presidency.”
“Is it that he stopped believing in scripture when he started believing in Donald Trump?” Buttigieg asked.
The mayor says he is not claiming any artifice. “I'm not skilled enough or energetic enough to create a persona. I just have to be who I am and I hope people like it,” Buttigieg said. “I think people in our party are tying themselves in knots trying to be more elite.”
He asks questions differently than most other candidates, relying on numbers and context and maintaining a remarkable willingness to answer yes or no.
Buttigieg also shows a facility with Twitter. When Howard Schultz, the former Starbucks CEO who is considering an independent presidential run, said he had spent more time in the military than any other candidate, Buttigieg was quick with a flamboyant response that highlighted his time in the Afghanistan war zone.
“I remember a green bean coffee at the Bagram exchange and a decent espresso machine run by the Italian NATO element at ISAF HQ,” he tweeted, referring to the Afghanistan mission. “But I don't remember seeing any Starbucks there.” Schultz apologized.
In his recent memoir, Buttigieg credits his rhetorical approach in part to his education, including four years at Harvard University and two at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar.
“In the community of people who run around Harvard in handkerchief suits, he was definitely not in that category,” said Massachusetts Sen. Eric Lesser (D), a Harvard classmate and longtime friend. “He's always had a pretty understated style. He wasn't a table screamer.”
Some of Buttigieg's ideas are unorthodox, though he is not alone in the Democratic field in this regard. He is outspoken about his desire to abolish the electoral college, for example, and has proposed a Supreme Court of 15 justices, including five who would be appointed by the other 10. Both ideas would likely require a constitutional amendment.
Buttigieg often argues that Democrats should not concede the word “liberty” to Republicans, citing his marriage as a way the government gave him the freedom to pursue his rights.
“He says things that I think, that no one else does,” said Carrie Clifford, a 47-year-old actress and writer who lives in Los Angeles. I'm like, 'Oh, that makes a lot of sense. Why don't we do that?' I haven't felt that way in a long time.”
Some of Buttigieg's positions are more in line with other Democrats. He supports the Green New Deal being pushed by liberals in Congress, saying it's a good start to tackling the climate crisis. He supports a single-payer health care system, though he says private insurers must play a role. He opposes the Trump administration's tough approach to immigration.
Some Democrats say privately Buttigieg may not be prepared to be president, given his youth and the fact that he has never served in national or even state office. (Buttzig is a decade younger than O'Rourke and wasn't born when former Vice President Joe Biden was first elected to the Senate.) Trump's tenure, they say, has hurt Democrats at the idea of inexperienced candidates jumping into the presidency.
Buttigieg counters that, having served as mayor of South Bend since 2012, he has more government experience than Trump and more executive credentials than Pence, who served as governor of Indiana for four years.
As mayor, Buttigieg said, he had to solve problems every day, and he can't escape their spin.
“You can't walk down a street and have someone point out a pothole and say, 'There's no pothole over there,'” said Buttigieg's senior adviser, Mike Small, a high school friend who also ran his mayoral campaigns. .
Buttigieg claims his government has filled 365,000 potholes during his eight-year tenure.
However, a strong track record in the potholes is not a traditional stepping stone to the presidency. Some wonder if his long bid is an attempt to boost his profile and perhaps win a Cabinet slot, rather than a genuine bid to reach the White House.
“I've never believed in running for office so you can eventually run for some other office,” Buttigieg said. “Especially not this office.”
As he toured the fundraiser at Bar Lubitsch in West Hollywood on Thursday, his casual style was on display. He took pictures with Louganis, told Eichner he would talk to him later and joked about how more people recognize him.
“I saw the town hall meeting he held. I really liked what he had to say about very important issues that are important to me — not just LGBT issues but a lot more,” Louganis said. “Education, health care, environment. It checks so many boxes for me that are near and dear to my heart.”
As he worked the rooms full of potential donors, Buttigieg didn't even have an employee carry a jacket just in case.
