Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman announced his support for South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s presidential run.
Ashman tweeted a photo of himself with Buttigieg at a the candidate’s fundraiser in Bethesda on Friday evening.
“Meet my favorite 2020 candidate, Mayor @PeteButtigieg . I hope you’ll take a good look at him too. He’s the real deal & there’s plenty of room on this bandwagon,” Ashman tweeted.
Meet my favorite 2020 candidate, Mayor @PeteButtigieg. I hope you’ll take a good look at him too. He’s the real deal & there’s plenty of room on this bandwagon. 🇺🇸💪 pic.twitter.com/K4i6WEslN0
— Jud Ashman (@judashman) December 14, 2019
What Went Down at Buttigieg’s Bethesda Fundraiser
According to a Fox News pool reporter, Ashman was one of about 130 people to attend Buttigieg’s Bethesda fundraiser on Friday. Tickets to the event ranged from $250 to $2,800.
It took place at the home of Jared and Elaine Genser. Jared Genser, an international human rights layer, manages the law firm Perseus Strategies in Washington, D.C. Elaine Genser is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.
During the fundraiser, Buttigieg gave his stump speech and said he was running for president to address issues in a way that “leaves our divided, polarized country more unified than we were before.”
After Buttigieg’s speech he answered five questions from attendees. According to a pool report, an 11th grade student from Springbrook High School asked Buttigieg about what he planned to do in office to address gun violence.
“We need universal background checks. We need red flag laws, especially when a family member, loved one, can identify that somebody is a risk, whether it’s to others or to themselves, and the kinds of weaponry that I carried and trained on when I was in the military has no business being sold anywhere near your school,” Buttigieg said.
Buttigieg also answered questions about protecting the LGBTQ community, his plans for the holidays, communities that feel under attack, and how his mayor experience prepares him to be president.
“I believe the most important thing is that when you are mayor, you are a walking symbol of what people who live in your city have in common, even if they don’t have much in common, even if they have nothing in common besides the fact that you’re their mayor. You represent a touchstone, even for the people who disagree with you, that you and therefore this city belongs to them so much more so with the presidency.”
