Asked… if Buttigieg would be willing to provide more information about his role at the firm, spokesperson Chris Meagher confirmed that the campaign on at least two occasions has asked McKinsey about ways around the nondisclosure pact.
Buttigieg’s work "is largely covered by a non-disclosure agreement,” Meagher said Friday. "Previously, the campaign had reached out to McKinsey to inquire about what the NDA encompasses, and this week again reached out to McKinsey about the possibility of being released from the NDA."
Now Buttigieg finds himself in a curious and conflicted position, invoking his experience at McKinsey as important for his political development ("I’d describe myself as a Democratic capitalist," he said in April. "I believe in capitalism. I cut my teeth in the business community") while also distancing himself from some of the firm's more controversial practices ("It’s infuriating to see the choices that they’ve made" since he left, Buttigieg said in October.) He's even gone so far as to claim that his time at McKinsey is "not something that I think is essential in my story."But candidates do not get to define what is and is not essential to the public's understanding of them. As Buttigieg has rocketed up in recent polling of Iowa and New Hampshire, everything about him is being scrutinized, from his his Holocaust memorial glamor shots to his terrible campaign dances to his utter lack of support among Black voters. Now that there's a chance—however small—that he could actually win, his fellow candidates and the media need to take him seriously.That means linking him to McKinsey, explaining that McKinsey represents the worst of global neoliberalism, and demanding that he describe his work for the company. He should be forced to make a choice about whether to continue honoring his non-disclosure agreement on live television, and he should be continued to be pressed about his career before politics.The other Democrats in the race should do us all a favor and find out what "economic stabilization," whether in Kabul or South Bend, really means to Mayor Pete.A McKinsey spokesperson declined to comment about Buttigieg’s work there—the firm only would confirm he was hired in June 2007 and left in March 2010. The spokesperson also wouldn’t comment about the likelihood of Buttigieg being released from a confidentiality pact.