Out author Chasten Buttigieg slammed Fox News for remaining silent on Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy taking his family on a presidential delegation, something that the conservative network strongly criticized former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg for doing three years ago.
“I remember when Fox News absolutely melted when a certain secretary took a family member on a presidential delegation,” Chasten Buttigieg wrote, sharing a video of Duffy joining Donald Trump on a trip to the Daytona 500 car race. “Let’s see how this one plays out.”
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I remember when Fox News absolutely melted when a certain Secretary took a family member on a presidential delegation. Let's see how this one plays out. https://t.co/VIAmeCd5Uq
— Chasten Glezman Buttigieg (@Chasten) February 18, 2025
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According to Mediaite, Fox News reported that Duffy took the trip with Trump to Daytona twice this past Sunday but Fox News hasn’t mentioned it since.
Chasten Buttigieg was referring to how Fox News pushed a story in 2022 about Pete Buttigieg going to the Invictus Games on a military flight with his husband, accusing him of abusing his position to get a free trip for his family on taxpayer money.
“Pete Buttigieg brought husband Chasten on military aircraft to attend sporting event in Netherlands,” the Fox headline blasted.
The far-right news site Breitbart demanded to know “whether Buttigieg has reimbursed the government for his husband’s travel costs” in a story from this past Wednesday.
Buttigieg “took Chasten on a military plane to attend a sporting event in Europe… with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. [Former Republican Rep.] Tom Price resigned for much less,” complained GOP strategist Matt Whitlock.
“Your holiday flights were delayed or cancelled but Pete Buttigieg brought his husband on a military aircraft to attend sporting event in Netherlands,” Sen. Josh Hawley’s (R-MO) press secretary Abigail Marone complained.
Fox’s Bret Baier asked Pete Buttigieg about it: “You also brought your husband Chasten on a military aircraft to attend this sporting event in the Netherlands. Was that reimbursed?”
But Pete Buttigieg explained that he was following protocol as a representative of the American government traveling to support an international event.
“Of course not,” Pete Buttigieg responded. “I led a presidential delegation to support American wounded warriors and injured servicemembers, the Invictus Games. It was one of the great honors of my time in this job.”
“And the diplomatic protocol, on a presidential delegation is that the principal is often accompanied by their spouse,” he added.
At the time, Pete Buttigieg noted that no one seemed to care about straight politicians bringing their spouses along on presidential delegations, like former Secretary of the Army Mark Espe, who went to the Invictus Games with his wife, and Donald Trump, who went with Melania Trump another year. During the Obama administration, Michelle Obama went with Barack Obama.
“The question on my mind is, if no one’s raising questions about why Secretary Esper and his wife led that delegation – as well they should have – why is it any different when it’s me and my husband?” Pete Buttigieg asked Baier.
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