GOP Rep. Collins blasts Buttigieg for Ohio response, says impeachment not off the table

FIRST ON FOX: A Georgia congressman blasted Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg for his consequence to nan Ohio train derailment and toxic chemic spill, saying impeachment is not disconnected nan table.

Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., a freshman Republican who ascended to Congress successful nan 2022 midterm elections, weighed successful connected nan Transportation Department’s consequence to nan toxic chemic spill successful East Palestine, Ohio.

MY FAMILY HAS RUN OUR TRUCKING COMPANY FOR 30 YEARS. BUTTIGIEG IS A TRANSPORTATION DISASTER AND MUST RESIGN

Rep. Mike Collins weighed successful connected nan Transportation Department’s consequence to nan toxic chemic spill successful East Palestine, Ohio. (Rep. Mike Collins/Fox News Digital)

Collins said, "They should person shown up immediately" and that "any clip we person a problem, arsenic acold arsenic mini businesses are concerned, you get correct to nan segment and spot precisely what's going on, truthful you tin measure nan problem" and "figure retired what nan solution is."

"Yeah, they sent group up there, but… this point was a awesome catastrophe and thing for illustration that garners nan caput of nan section showing up," Collins said.

"And, you know, he conscionable was bent connected not going," nan congressman continued. "And there's reasons why he did that."

"That’s conscionable another, successful my opinion, different clear illustration of this agency and nan truth that they person sewage their sights group connected worldly different than trying to amended nan infrastructure of this country," Collins said. "And that’s nan woke civilization that this feline is promoting."

Collins said that whether it’s a train derailment, "planes almost landing connected apical of each other," aliases "some personification deleting a record that shuts down a full industry, there's thing other that is going connected too what you see," calling them "results of an management that is pushing a woke culture."

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg traveled to East Palestine, Ohio, past week to position nan derailment. Critics blasted Buttigieg for his prime of dress boots for surveying nan toxic chemic spill. (AP)

The Georgia Republican besides noted nan CEO of nan obstruction institution astatine nan halfway of nan toxic chemic spill, Norfolk Southern, precocious notified shareholders of nan firm’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) push for "cultivating a safe, inclusive culture."

"They're much worried astir appeasing an management and gender pronouns than they are putting grease connected instrumentality bearings," Collins said, adding aerial postulation controllers are leaving nan Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) "because of nan culture."

Collins, whose family runs a three-decade-old trucking business, said Buttigieg was an "identity politics" prime for his position that only knows "how to push" nan ideology. He besides said nan proscription caput "knows thing astir nan infrastructure and proscription problems successful this country."

"If we identified nan problem, that’s nan problem," Collins said. "We’re much successful tune pinch trying to hole civilization problems and beryllium woke than we are fixing proscription infrastructure problems."

"The solution is… you get free of Pete Buttigieg and get personification successful location that knows what they’re doing and what they’re talking about," nan Georgia Republican continued. "We spent complete $1 trillion connected nan infrastructure measure and nan rails aren’t safer, roads aren’t immoderate better, and nan airports and nan runways aren’t immoderate safer."

Collins said Americans are "already seeing" nan dangers of woke civilization taking guidelines successful government, noting that "congestion is crazy" and "not being addressed," and that a personification "can’t get from constituent A to constituent B."

White House officials, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, are calling for higher fines for railroad information violations pursuing their sojourn to nan Norfolk Southern clang tract successful East Palestine, Ohio. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

BUTTIGIEG MOCKED FOR APPEARING TO WEAR DRESS BOOTS WHILE ON THE GROUND IN EAST PALESTINE, OHIO

"We're hardly addressing nan potholes, nan bridges that request to beryllium replaced.… That's wherever we request to person our focus. They didn't moreover put successful capable money successful that infrastructure measure anyhow to alleviate congestion, but you're going to spot much of that owed to nan truth that they're much worried astir who we telephone aliases what we telephone aliases making judge that we person nan correct diversity."

The Georgia Republican said he does not "think thing is disconnected nan table" erstwhile it comes to impeaching Buttigieg, should he not measurement down.

Collins besides said that, if he were a personification surviving successful East Palestine, Ohio, he would deliberation Buttigieg’s hold of recreation to study nan obstruction disaster shows "he doesn’t moreover care" and that they are "not important enough."

An undated aerial position of nan train derailment successful East Palestine, Ohio. (NTSB)

"Pete Buttigieg needs to springiness you nan existent logic why he wasn’t there," Collins said. "But erstwhile thing important for illustration that happens, a section caput ought to beryllium there. He ought to beryllium correct there, connected nan ground."

"In my backstage sector, we make our surviving retired connected nan nationalist roads," nan congressman besides said. "We don’t person an agency building that we spell to and we’re pinch nan motoring nationalist each day. And it’s important that we support these roads safe."

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"And successful bid to do that, you request competent group and a Department of Transportation caput guiding that ship," Collins added. "And that's what you don't have."

Buttigieg traveled to East Palestine, Ohio, past week to position nan derailment. Critics blasted Buttigieg for his prime of dress boots for surveying nan toxic chemic spill.

A Transportation Department spokesperson pointed FOX News Digital to a tweet by Buttigieg erstwhile asked for comment.

"Beginning successful nan first hours erstwhile USDOT arrived on-site, and continuing for arsenic agelong arsenic it takes, our section is moving alongside our administraiton partners to guarantee that nan residents successful East Palestine are made full and Norfolk Southern is held accountable," Buttigieg wrote.