Pete Buttigieg Takes Multiple Taxpayer-Funded Private Jets, Despite Calls to Ease Carbon Emissions

Flight records reveal United States Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has taken flights on taxpayer-funded private jets while pushing to ease carbon emissions.

Buttigieg has taken at least 18 flights using a private jet fleet managed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and paid for by the American taxpayer to multiple states, including Florida, Ohio, and New Hampshire, since being a part of President Joe Biden’s cabinet, according to records obtained by the government watchdog group Americans for Public Trust (APT) and first reported by Fox News.

Flight records obtained by the government watchdog group showed that Biden’s transportation secretary’s flight records also align evenly with his external and public engagements schedule. The report noted that the “exact taxpayer cost of Buttigieg’s flights is unclear.” Still, the Washington Post reported that the FAA charges federal agencies roughly $5,000 an hour to use the private jet fleet.

Of course, this comes after multiple former President Donald Trump appointees also came under scrutiny for using private jets. Trump Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigned after reportedly taking 26 private jet flights, costing taxpayers about $1.2 million.