Pete for America
For Immediate Release: December 5, 2019
Contact: Chris Meagher

Pete Buttigieg Picks Up Endorsements from Key Obama Administration Officials

SOUTH BEND, IN — Today, Pete for America announced the endorsements of three former Obama administration officials, who cited the power of Pete’s message and his ability to unite the country around our shared values ahead of the 2020 election.

The three endorsers are: Reggie Love, former Special Assistant to President Obama, Austan Goolsbee, former Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, and Linda Douglass, former Director of Communications for the White House Office of Health Reform.

“I am supporting Pete Buttigieg because I believe that he has the character, the will, and the experience to fight for equality, justice, and opportunity for all Americans,” Love said. “With the average age of the U.S. House at 57, and the average age of Senate at 62, the younger generation needs to take a more active participation in the leadership and the direction of this country. Pete can galvanize a new electoral body that is a more accurate representation of what America actually is. A lot of what is said about Pete echoes what critics said about presidential candidate Barack Obama – too young, too different, maybe another time – but I believe there is never a better time to fight for change than right now.”

“Mayor Pete has good ideas. That’s why I support him,” Goolsbee said. “Elections are about the future. I think he can help us get somewhere better than we are right now and help improve the lives of ordinary Americans. It has been awhile since I have seen the kind of excitement on the ground in Iowa that Mayor Pete has generated. And the last time worked out pretty well.”

“I met Pete a few years ago and admire his intelligence, wisdom and extraordinary ability to communicate clearly and powerfully about the challenges we face today,” Douglass said. “He is passionate about public service and about improving the lives of Americans in every part of the country. I am excited by the prospect of a leader who comes from a new generation and who represents that generation’s unique understanding of what the future may hold. That is why I am proud to support Pete Buttigieg for President at this critical moment in our history.”


Reggie Love, former Special Assistant to President Barack Obama

Love first joined Barack Obama’s Senate office as the deputy political director. During Obama’s first presidential run and in the White House, Love served as President Obama’s special assistant and personal aide before leaving the White House to earn his MBA at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business.


Austan Goolsbee, former Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers

Goolsbee is the Robert P. Gwinn Professor of Economics at the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago. He previously served as a member of President Obama’s cabinet and on the Panel of Economic Advisors to the Congressional Budget Office.


Linda Douglass, former Director of Communications for the White House Office of Health Reform

During Obama’s 2008 campaign, Douglass was a senior advisor and traveling spokesperson for then-Senator Obama. In the Obama administration, Douglass served as the primary spokesperson leading up to the passage of the Affordable Care Act.


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