Pete Buttigieg says his political life has produced plenty of vitriol, but nothing like this. Per the Washington Post, the former transportation secretary revealed in a Substack essay that child protective services briefly removed his 4-year-old twins from his care after an anonymous caller accused him of horrific abuse—claims that police now say were baseless. Michigan State Police confirmed they investigated and found the report unfounded; the children spent about 24 hours with their grandparents while each sat for an hourlong interview with authorities. Buttigieg called that stretch of time "among the darkest hours of my life."
Buttigieg, seen as a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, called it a case of "swatting" that crossed a line by targeting his kids. The 44-year-old, who lives in Michigan with husband Chasten Buttigieg, noted that the complaint came during Pride Month, and shortly after the couple shared Father's Day photos. He said investigators told him the caller claimed to have met a woman who'd heard Buttigieg confess to "unspeakable violent crimes" at an Alabama conference, in a place Buttigieg says he's never been.
Through his political group, Buttigieg declined interviews, but he vowed to pursue any possible civil or criminal action, arguing that misusing child protective services is "the ugliest thing" he's faced in public life. "I cannot describe the mix of rage and sadness that I feel at the idea that someone brought our children into this," Buttigieg wrote, per the AP. "They are four years old. Four. They do not know or care what a Democrat or a Republican is. ... For God's sake, they are just kids." Read his post in full here.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
