This week Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, was confirmed by the Senate to serve as secretary of transportation, a job that will put him in charge of overseeing the entirety of American's infrastructure — and, quietly, make him one of the federal officials best positioned to address climate change. On paper, the fit is an odd one. Buttigieg’s executive experience is limited; as mayor of South Bend, a city of just over 100,000 people, he oversaw a staff of 1,143 employees with an annual budget of $358 million. As transportation secretary, he'll manage 55,000 employees and a budget of $87 billion.
