Buttigieg takes aim at Biden with more than 200 foreign policy endorsements

More than 200 foreign policy and national security professionals on Monday announced they were endorsing South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D) in his bid for the White House, providing him some ammunition to go after former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic front-runner, on the campaign trail.

The joint endorsement letter was signed by more than 200 professionals, including dozens of Obama administration veterans. 

The move comes after Biden rolled out rolled out endorsements from more than 125 former foreign policy officials last month. Biden often touts his experience in foreign policy as one of his top attributes for the Democratic nomination.

The signatories of Buttigieg’s endorsement also included a number of names who served in the Obama administration along with Biden.

The officials write that Buttigieg’s “intelligence, steadiness, demeanor and understanding of the forces now shaping the world resonate profoundly with us,” according to a copy of the letter shared by the Buttigieg campaign. 

“We applaud the application of his long-term approach to the generational consequences of near-term decisions. He sees the big picture and plays the long game: essential traits for implementing consistent and effective national security and foreign policies,” the letter continues. 

The endorsement was first reported by USA Today. 

Obama administration officials who signed the endorsement include former Secretary of the Army Eric Fanning, former Deputy CIA Director David Cohen, former Assistant Secretary of State Philip Gordon, former Under Secretary of Commerce Francisco Sanchez, former State Department adviser Vali Nasr and former White House associate counsel Tess Bridgeman.

Buttigieg and Biden are in the top tier of Democrats left in the crowded presidential primary field.