Pete Buttigieg says in hindsight he waited too long to visit the site of the 2023 Ohio train derailment, a misstep he says let misinformation take over the story.

• Buttigieg says he followed normal protocol of staying away from a crash site to avoid interfering with safety investigators, but now believes he should have gone sooner.
• He says the delay let online accounts, some tied to Russia, flood the information gap with competing and sometimes fake narratives about the chemical spill and burn.
• He pushed back on the idea that Democrats are especially prone to showing up late to crises, pointing out that J.D. Vance also waited about ten days to visit as Ohio's senator.
• A bipartisan railway safety bill written after the derailment still has not passed, which he blames on railroad industry lobbying rather than lack of political support.
• He criticized Kamala Harris's past comments about not visiting the border, saying some Democratic messaging has hurt the party's image.

Outlook: The railway safety legislation remains stalled, and Buttigieg expects industry lobbying to keep blocking it unless political pressure increases.