Now in top tier, Buttigieg becomes target of 2020 attacks

INDIANOLA, Iowa — There may be no surer sign that a campaign is gaining traction than when its opponents begin to attack. And the attacks are beginning to come against South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete ButtigiegPete ButtigiegScaled-back Pride Month poses challenges for fundraising, outreach Biden hopes to pick VP by Aug. 1 It’s as if a Trump operative infiltrated the Democratic primary process MORE, until now virtually unchallenged in his improbable rise through the crowded field of Democratic presidential candidates. ADVERTISEMENTPolls show Buttigieg rising into the top tier of candidates, alongside some whose political careers began before he was born. But as his support grows, other candidates still trying to achieve their own breakout moments are beginning to question whether he has the experience to run the nation, or the ability to beat President TrumpDonald John TrumpSenate advances public lands bill in late-night vote Warren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases Esper orders ‘After Action Review’ of National Guard’s role in protests MORE. “We need to nominate a candidate who can appeal to the African American and Latino communities,” former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro told The Hill here on Sunday, after warning his party against nominating “what seems like the safe choice.” The polls that show Buttigieg on the rise also show his support comes almost entirely from white Democrats. He has yet to earn an infusion of support among African American voters, and Castro said Buttigieg’s record is why. “Just look at his track record as mayor. He has a bad track record with African Americans on the issues, and he’s almost acknowledged as much,” Castro said. “It is risky to nominate somebody that cannot appeal to one of our most important constituencies.” Touring Iowa on a campaign bus, Buttigieg acknowledged problems in South Bend. Earlier this year, Buttigieg took several days off the campaign trail to return home after a white police officer shot and killed an unarmed black man. But on Sunday he pushed back hard against Castro. “Look, our city has had a lot of challenges, but the black voters who know me best have returned me to office and supported me more the second time around than the first, and I would be happy to walk him around South Bend and introduce him to folks if he’d like to learn how we tackled these really tough issues,” Buttigieg told a CNN reporter. “We’ve had major challenges, as diverse communities do, around policing and economic inequality, but they’re not going to be made better by being used as a political football. These are community challenges that we’re facing together,” he said. Several candidates were irked earlier this week when Buttigieg said in an interview with Showtime’s “The Circus” that the race for the Democratic nomination was coming down to a choice between himself and Sen. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth WarrenWarren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases OVERNIGHT DEFENSE: Joint Chiefs chairman says he regrets participating in Trump photo-op | GOP senators back Joint Chiefs chairman who voiced regret over Trump photo-op | Senate panel approves 0B defense policy bill Trump on collision course with Congress over bases with Confederate names MORE (D-Mass.).   “It’s naive for him to think that at this point, that the fate of the election has been determined,” Sen. Kamala HarrisKamala Devi HarrisRand Paul introduces bill to end no-knock warrants The Hill’s Campaign Report: Biden campaign goes on offensive against Facebook McEnany says Juneteenth is a very ‘meaningful’ day to Trump MORE (D-Calif.) told “Face the Nation.” “Just look at history. You might need to review to know that what’s happening right now is not necessarily determinative of the outcome.” Buttigieg said Harris was right. “I think we all know that this is a fluid race, that it’s a very competitive race and that anything could happen,” Buttigieg told reporters on his bus Sunday. Buttigieg has shown few qualms about launching his own broadsides in recent weeks, taking particular aim at Warren both on the debate stage and at a major dinner for Democratic activists on Friday in Des Moines. In debates, he has questioned Warren’s “Medicare for All” plan. On Friday, without naming the Massachusetts Democrat, Buttigieg lumped her in with “the political warfare that we have come to accept from Washington, D.C.” “I will never allow us to get so wrapped up in the fight that we start to think the fighting is the point. The point is what’s on the other side of the fight,” Buttigieg said. Half an hour later, Warren jabbed right back, suggesting that Buttigieg and others who offer anything less than her progressive platform would lose to Trump. “Anyone who comes on this stage and doesn’t understand that we are already in a fight is not the person who is going to win that fight. Anyone who comes on this stage and tells you they can make change without a fight is not going to win that fight. And anyone who comes on this stage and tells you to dream small and give up early is not going to lead our party to victory,” Warren said. Democratic strategists said the new focus on Buttigieg will grow proportionate to his standing in the polls. There is no point in taking shots at a low-polling candidate, and others like former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D) in 2004, then-Sen. Barack ObamaBarack Hussein ObamaHarris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk Five ways America would take a hard left under Joe Biden Valerie Jarrett: ‘Democracy depends upon having law enforcement’ MORE (D-Ill.) in 2008 and even Sen. Bernie SandersBernie SandersThe Hill’s 12:30 Report: Milley apologizes for church photo-op Harris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk Biden courts younger voters — who have been a weakness MORE (I-Vt.) in 2016 only attracted attention from their rivals when they began to gain traction. “Mayor Pete has started to take the fight to other candidates and was pretty effective in scoring some points against Bernie and Warren in the last debate,” said Doug Thornell, a longtime Democratic strategist who worked for Dean in 2004. “I think he is seen as a real threat, so the top tier ahead of him are trying protect what they’ve got and the candidates in tier two are trying to keep him in their ring.” Nationally, Buttigieg remains in the second tier, polling just ahead of candidates like Harris or Sen. Amy KlobucharAmy KlobucharHillicon Valley: Biden calls on Facebook to change political speech rules | Dems demand hearings after Georgia election chaos | Microsoft stops selling facial recognition tech to police Democrats demand Republican leaders examine election challenges after Georgia voting chaos Harris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk MORE (D-Minn.). ADVERTISEMENTBut the Democratic nomination is not conducted on a national basis, and in Iowa, home of the critical first-in-the-nation caucuses, Buttigieg is now running close to Warren, Sanders and former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenHillicon Valley: Biden calls on Facebook to change political speech rules | Dems demand hearings after Georgia election chaos | Microsoft stops selling facial recognition tech to police Trump finalizing executive order calling on police to use ‘force with compassion’ The Hill’s Campaign Report: Biden campaign goes on offensive against Facebook MORE. In the last three surveys conducted in Iowa, Buttigieg has polled ahead of Biden in two and ahead of Sanders in two, though behind Warren in all three. Iowa is increasingly becoming must-win territory for a handful of those lower-polling candidates. Campaigning there this weekend, Harris, Sen. Cory BookerCory Anthony BookerRand Paul introduces bill to end no-knock warrants Black lawmakers unveil bill to remove Confederate statues from Capitol Harris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk MORE (D-N.J.) and Castro all said they were basing their hopes on a strong showing in Iowa. But, dangerously for them, Iowa Democratic voters look much more like Buttigieg’s coalition than states like South Carolina, with its heavily African American constituency, or Nevada, which has a strong Hispanic contingent. In a New York Times–Siena poll released over the weekend, Buttigieg’s coalition is better-educated than average; he earns far more support among voters with a bachelor’s degree or more than among those who did not go to college. In a race that is largely becoming about a candidate’s chances of beating President Trump, his deficit among working-class and minority voters is becoming a potent line of attack. “We lost because people sat out the 2016 election,” Castro said. “You have to excite the base of this party, bring new voters into the fold. And if you have a candidate that can’t speak to a range of constituencies among Democrats, then we’re going to lose this election.” Click Here: cd universidad catolica