Pete Buttigieg has said Donald Trump "wouldn't last five minutes" as an air traffic control employee.
The president hit out at air traffic controllers in a post to Truth Social on Monday, warning those who didn't return to work would have their pay "substantially docked." Buttigieg, the former secretary of transportation, responded to Trump's statement with a post of his own to X.
"The President wouldn't last five minutes as an air traffic controller, and after everything they've been through - and the way this administration has treated them from Day One - he has no business s----ing on them now," Buttigieg said.
Trump's statement on air traffic controllers came with a warning that those who did not return to work would not only be docked of their pay, but replaced by "true patriots."
"For those that did nothing but complain, and took time off, even though everyone knew they would be paid, IN FULL, shortly into the future, I am NOT HAPPY WITH YOU," Trump railed. "You didn't step up to help the U.S.A. against the FAKE DEMOCRAT ATTACK that was only meant to hurt our Country. You will have a negative mark, at least in my mind, against your record.
"If you want to leave service in the near future, please do not hesitate to do so, with NO payment or severance of any kind! You will be quickly replaced by true Patriots, who will do a better job on the Brand New State of the Art Equipment, the best in the World, that we are in the process of ordering."
A call from Trump for air traffic controllers to return to work comes as a potential Senate vote could end the government shutdown. The Senate was expected to reconvene on Monday to end the longest government shutdown in history.
Travel delays were expected by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy if the shutdown continued. Duffy told CNN that flights could have been reduced "to a trickle" because of the shutdown.
He added, "Many of them are not going to be able to get on an airplane, because there are not going to be that many flights that fly if this thing doesn't open back up."