Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg waited 20 days to visit the wreckage of this month's Ohio train derailment and toxic fallout, and he reportedly was left waiting 30 minutes more Thursday.
Buttigieg was in East Palestine, Ohio; but town Mayor Trent Conaway was meeting with former President Donald Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, leaving the transportation secretary waiting in the hall, the Daily Mail reported.
Conaway, appearing with Giuliani, told reporters that anybody was welcome in his town "as long as they're going to help our community," adding "no matter whether they're a Democrat or Republican."
The meetings with Buttigieg and Giuliani came just one day after Trump's visit to the area.
"This is really America right here; we're standing in America," Trump said at a news conference, which aired live on Newsmax. "Unfortunately, as you know, in too many cases, your goodness and perseverance were met with indifference — and betrayal in some cases.
"[President Joe] Biden and FEMA [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] said they would not send federal aid to East Palestine under any circumstance."
Giuliani was the mayor of New York City on 9/11. Buttigieg is a former mayor of South Bend, Indiana.
"I am grateful to Mayor Giuliani for being here to help us," Conaway said, a Giuliani spokesman told the Daily Mail. "My top priority is to ensure the health and safety of the people of this city and our region.
"I will work with anyone who wants to help East Palestine, and their partisan affiliation is irrelevant to me."
Giuliani also reportedly met with Rep. Bill Johnson, R-Ohio, whose district includes the town of East Palestine.
"I've grown concerned about the lack of a response by our federal government to help the people of East Palestine," Giuliani told the Daily Mail. "I wanted to offer my knowledge and experience when dealing with crisis management and most importantly — to help the people here who are our fellow Americans."
Giuliani tweeted photos of his meetings with Johnson and Conaway, and a Daily Mail source said Buttigieg's staff made sure the paths of the transportation secretary and former New York City mayor did not cross.
"Courtney [Miller] lives right next to where the train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio," Giuliani, who met with her, tweeted. "I'm here to offer my experience with crisis management, as I'm concerned by the federal government's slow response. We're going to make sure Courtney — and everyone else here — gets the help they need."
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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