Former US President Barack Obama claimed in 2019 that 2020 Democratic presidential contender Pete Buttigieg would be unable to win the race due to his young age, short stature, and sexual orientation, according to a new book by two mainstream journalists.
The tome by Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes titled "Lucky: How Joe Biden Barely Won the Presidency" was released last week.
"He [Buttigieg]'s 38, but he looks 30. He's the mayor of a small town. He's gay, and he's short", the ex-POTUS reportedly said during a private meeting with black Democratic donors in Manhattan in October 2019.
Buttigieg grabbed global headlines after he became the first-ever LGBTQ presidential contender in a major party primary ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
Early last month, the Senate confirmed Buttigieg as Secretary of Transportation with a final vote of 86-13.
Separately, the book focused on how Obama threw his support behind Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren and his Vice President Joe Biden.
"His support for Biden was tepid at best. At that point, it didn't matter what he said about Biden. His silence spoke for him", the authors of the book quoted an unnamed executive who attended the October 2019 meeting as saying.