DETROIT (WXYZ) — U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg attended the North American Auto Show in Detroit on Wednesday.
While he was there, he spoke with 7 Action News and responded to a recent controversial tweet made by Michigan Republican Party Co-Chair Meshawn Maddock.
In the tweet, Maddock calls Buttigieg, who is gay, a "weak little girl," and references his move to Michigan.
Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, moved to Traverse City with his husband, Chasten, who grew up in Traverse City. He also served in the U.S. Navy Reserve for eight years and was deployed to Afghanistan for seven months in 2014.
Maddock's tweet was in reference to California's ban on new gas cars starting in 2035.
"We’re so blessed this weak little girl moved to Michigan! Looks like he’s bringing all his California Dreaming here with him," Maddock wrote.
Buttigieg told 7 Action News at the auto show, “… I’m raising a little girl and a little boy, and I’m going to raise them with better values than the chairwoman. We need to talk about policy disagreements respectfully.”
7 Action News reached out to the Michigan Republican Party, but they declined to comment.
