TMZ.com

Pete Buttigieg insists he's not sure about getting back on the campaign trail -- possibly running for POTUS again in 2024 -- but he's not completely shutting the door either.

The former presidential hopeful, and current Sec. of Transportation, joined us Monday on "TMZ Live" and we asked him about the buzz around the Beltway about him making a second run for the White House.

Right now, Buttigieg says he's not feeling like there's anything inspiring him to run, because he's plenty busy trying to make an impact in his current job -- which includes allocating a good chunk of the $1 trillion infrastructure deal.

Pete made a push for the White House in 2020 before Joe Biden won the Democratic nomination and eventually the general election. While some people seem to think Mr. Secretary's gearing up for a second bite of the campaign trail, PB says he doesn't see any need for it. Not now, at least.

Aside from his political plate, Pete's also got his hands full being a parent with husband Chasten, and you can tell he loves being a dad to twins ... a boy and a girl.

The White House is fully decked out for Christmas ... and it goes way beyond the official tree.

The East and West Wings were adorned with Xmas trees, ornaments and various other holiday decorations.

Now, check this out ... there's a photo attached to one of the trees just like an ornament, featuring President Joe and Jill Biden. AND ... there's another pic of Biden's predecessor -- yes, Donald Trump -- on another tree.

The theme -- "Gifts from the heart" ... although the overriding theme seems to be "kindness" ... there are ribbons displaying that message in both Wings.

There was a gingerbread White House front and center in the State Dining Room ... kinda awesome.

As you may know ... The National Xmas Tree was lit last week ... a tree costing $139,000.

Matthew McConaughey is finally speaking clearly about his intentions on Texas politics -- saying he won't be running for Governor after all ... despite him being a favorite to win.

The actor made the announcement Sunday with a video he posted to his social media, starting out by pointing out all the problems he sees with the modern-day political landscape ... and after some philosophizing on his ultimate purpose, he finally says it flat out.

MMC says of political leadership, "It's a humbling and inspiring path to ponder. It is also a path that I am choosing not to take at this moment."

As for what he WILL do ... Matt says he'll keep supporting entrepreneurs, businesses, establishments and orgs he considers leaders and which can better propel people onto the road of righteousness (as he sees it) which starts with building trust among people.

It's pretty interesting ... his stance on things seems to come through loud and clear here, and it sounds like his vision for America (and Texas) is prosperity interlocked with service and community.

Even though McConaughey has led poll after poll when pitted against the incumbent, Greg Abbott, as well as Democrats who are for sure running, like Beto O'Rourke, it sounds like he finally went with what he alluded to in a rambling interview from a few months ago.

At the time, Matt said he was still "measuring" a run -- which really sounded like he wasn't going to run -- and now, it sounds like he's out of tape and came to a decision.

President Biden's first National Christmas Tree Lighting is going to be more lively than Donald Trump's last one ... but bringing back a live audience is gonna cost taxpayers a bundle.

According to federal docs, obtained by TMZ, the National Park Service shelled out $139,000 to a company in Ohio to locate, transport and transplant this year's National Christmas Tree just outside the White House.

The feds got a jump on their holiday shopping, signing the tree contract back in September. BTW, the last pre-pandemic National Tree, in 2019, set us back just over $160k -- so, the government actually can spend less!!! Talk about Christmas miracles.

After a virtual tree lighting ceremony in 2020 during the height of the pandemic, it looks like things are getting back to normal with a live audience this year ... and that means another big bill.

The docs show the National Park Service dropped an additional $171,000 on "event support" for the 2021 National Christmas Tree Lighting Festivities.

The official ceremony and lighting is set for Dec. 2 ... and LL Cool J is hosting, with holiday music from Billy Porter, Chris Stapleton, H.E.R., Juanes, Keb' Mo', Kristin Chenoweth, Maren Morris, and Patti LaBelle.

On a smaller scale, the White House also spent $41k on holiday decorations for the Eisenhower building and Jackson Place.

Posters have been plastered on buildings and bus stops in Europe, showing images of some very famous women who appear brutalized ... in an effort to grab people by the collar so they better understand domestic violence.

Artist AleXsandro Palombo has doctored images of Vice President Kamala Harris, along with British Dutchess Kate Middleton, Queen Letizia of Spain, French politician Christine Lagarde and others ... making them appear to be D.V. victims in her series, "She reported him, but she was killed anyway."

The caption under the battered faces reads, "She reported him -- But nobody believed her - But she was left alone -- But she was not protected - But he was not arrested - But she was killed anyway."

The posters have been seen in Milan and Spain, and presumably beyond.

The artist says his end game is to "draw attention to the poor responses from politics regarding the problem of gender-based violence and highlights the ineffectiveness of the support and protection system to the victims."

Kyle Rittenhouse is making the rounds in right-wing circles -- and his latest stop was with none other than Donald Trump ... who's fully in his corner in the wake of his trial and acquittal.

DT was on Sean Hannity's show when he revealed he got some face time with Rittenhouse, who'd apparently just left "a little while ago" from his Florida resort home, Mar-a-Lago. It's unclear exactly when this meeting took place -- Hannity said he interviewed DT Monday.

Anyway, Trump wasn't shy to let the FOX News audience know how he felt about the whole case -- telling Hannity that Rittenhouse never should've been put through the wringer... calling the whole thing "prosecutorial misconduct."

DT also made it clear he's a fan of Rittenhouse, and seems to think he's a fine young man -- whom he says is a supporter of his, unlike "the other guy" ... whoever that may be.

The 2 of them posed for a couple shots in what looks to be Trump's office -- where there were tons of photos of the former President shaking hands with world leaders ... including a clear photo of Trump meeting Kim Jong-un.

As we reported ... Rittenhouse was acquitted on all charges, with a verdict finding him not guilty of murder -- or any wrongdoing, as the jury felt he was acting in self-defense when he shot and killed 2 people and injured a third.

Matthew McConaughey could win the Texas governorship if the election were held today -- according to a new poll -- and he hasn't even said he wants the gig.

So, here's the breakdown ...

Governor Greg Abbott vs. Matt -- Abbott 35%, Matt 43%

Beto O'Rourke vs. Matt -- Beto 27%, Matt 49%

Now weirdly, in a 3-way race, Abbott wins with 37%, versus Matt at 27% and Beto at 26%.  Thing is, there won't be a 3-way race, because Abbott's a Republican and Beto's a Democrat.

So, here's the thing ... Matt has been cagey/sly about running. He's hinted he might, but so far he hasn't pulled the trigger. And, not only has he kept his views on just about everything secret, no one even knows his party affiliation.

Bill Maher's seasonal swan song did not disappoint Friday night ... although this is a wrap for this season of "Real Time," he left us with future headlines that his crack staff claims are pre-ordained.

He has an ominous prediction for Britney Spears ... sort of Britney meets "Tiger King." And, there's news about a new FNC show, along with a name change for President Biden.

Maybe the most ominous and, dare we say hilarious, is the conflagration of Karens who come together for a fatal confrontation with each other.

And, then there's another "Jeopardy!" host who gets the ax for something said in years past ... many years past!

Oh, check out the headline about Meghan Markle that clearly perplexed the writer, and then there's a Putin prognostication that guest panelist Chris Christie is not dismissing out of hand.

And, finally ... the intersection between Sarah Palin's daughter and Kyle Rittenhouse.

VP Kamala Harris is making history by getting a little taste of POTUS power, courtesy of President Joe Biden getting his colon checked out.

Remember the date ... Nov. 19, 2021 now marks the first time a woman's had Presidential power in the United States.

The Prez waved to reporters as he headed to Walter Reed Medical Center Friday morning for a routine checkup, which included a colonoscopy and required him to be under anesthesia.

The White House confirmed Biden did temporarily transfer power to the Veep while he underwent the procedure. To be clear, she wasn't sworn in as Prez ... she just had the legal right to make all decisions in place of POTUS.

Yeah, it's only for like 30 to 40 minutes, but still kind of a cool moment in history. Keep it in mind ... you'll win a trivia contest someday.

As for what VP Harris did with all that power? Not much, as far as we can tell -- she was NOT out and about Friday morning. Thursday she did host meetings with Canadian PM Justin Trudeau and Mexican Prez Lopez Obrador ... after they'd met with Biden.

President Biden got behind the wheel of General Motors' new all-electric Hummer, putting the pedal to the metal ... and he says it's even faster than his Corvette Stingray.

POTUS hit up the automaker's ZERO electric vehicle assembly plant Wednesday in Detroit, Michigan where GM's new Hummer is being built, and test-driven ... at least by the Prez.

Biden burned out and zipped down the track before slamming on the brakes ... then circled back to make some jokes for the media.

This time, Biden didn't miss the mark quite as badly as he did during a similar test drive on Ford's new electric truck back in May, when he joked about a hit-and-run on a reporter.

Still, Biden jokingly asked if any reporters wanted to climb in the back, or on the roof ... so, baby steps in the joke department.

The new Hummer looks and sounds pretty fast, at least with Biden in the driver's seat ... and it seems he's got a need for speed.

Biden's a big car guy ... back in 2016, when he was Barack Obama's VP, he did a burnout in his 1976 Corvette Stingray on Jay Leno's show.

Bernie Sanders reiterated his demand for the top 1% to pay more taxes -- and Elon Musk slammed him ... saying the Senator may as well be 6 feet under as far as he's concerned.

The saucy exchange went down between Saturday and Sunday -- with Senator Sanders tweeting something he usually does ... saying, "We must demand that the extremely wealthy pay their fair share. Period." Nothing crazy there -- typical Bernie rhetoric.

What's wild is what EM tweeted in response, writing ... "I keep forgetting that you’re still alive." Oof -- definitely a harsh dig ... both at BS's age, it seems, and perhaps his gradual retreat from the spotlight since running for President in 2020.

There's more, though ... Elon added, "Want me to sell more stock, Bernie? Just say the word …" That's interesting ... he appears to be touching on what he alluded to (and executed on) last week.

You'll recall -- the Tesla chief held a Twitter poll, asking followers of his if he should sell 10% of his company holdings so he could be taxed appropriately ... and in the end, the internet said yes. While it was unclear if Elon would follow through, he eventually did ... well, sorta.

Elon siphoned off about $5 billion worth of Tesla stock -- and because of that, he'll be taxed on the capital gains from that dough ... so a fair amount, no doubt. It doesn't seem to be anywhere near the full 10% he promised though ... so more stock sales may be forthcoming.

It's a weird tactic he's undertaking -- embracing calls/dares from the public (including politicians, apparently) to subject himself to being taxed more than he normally would.

Queen Elizabeth continues to struggle with medical woes ... this time it's a sprained back that has sidelined her from a big event.

The Queen was MIA from the Remembrance Sunday service ... which honors Britain's war dead.

The Palace said it was "with great regret" the Queen couldn't show for the service. It would have been her first public appearance since her mysterious hospitalization a few weeks back.

As for Remembrance Sunday ... it's especially meaningful to Q.E. because she served in WWII as an army driver.

It's unclear if the Queen has fully recovered from whatever landed her in the hospital. She had canceled her appearance at the U.N. Climate Summit ... instead appearing via video.

There's nothing foul about President Biden using the word "negro" when referring to the old baseball league ... at least according to the steward of the league, who's defending and applauding him for saying the word.

No doubt you've seen the clip of the Prez speaking on Veterans Day at Arlington National Cemetery and flubbing in a big way ... saying he'd "adopted the attitude of the great negro at the time." Cringeworthy, for sure, but to be fair Biden misspoke, and eventually cleared it up intending to call out the great Negro League player Satchel Paige.

Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, tells TMZ ... not only was it crystal clear to him what Mr. Biden meant to say, but it would have been "harmful" if he'd used any other word.

Bob says he was surprised at the online fallout -- people ticked off POTUS used such a dated term -- because he says there's a reason the word is still on walls of his museum. As Bob put it, they still use "Negro" to preserve the league's nearly 30-year history -- from 1920 to 1947. He compares it to the NAACP, which also hasn't changed its name, despite the fact (almost) no one uses the "C" word nowadays.

Further, he says "It was an honor that the President made a point to honor Satchel Paige, who happened to be one of the greatest pitchers" in the history of ANY baseball league.

Donald Trump seemingly defended the Capitol insurrectionists who were out to hang then Vice President Mike Pence, claiming they were understandably angry.

Trump did an interview with ABC's Jonathan Karl, who asked 45 whether he was worried for the Veep's safety back on January 6th. Trump poo-pooed the notion Pence was in danger, saying "I thought he was well-protected and I had heard he was in good shape."

That didn't satisfy Karl, who noted how terrible the rioter's conduct was, to which Trump said, "well, the people were very angry." Karl shot back, "They were saying, 'hang Mike Pence.'"

Trump then launched into the defense of the crowd, saying, "Because it's common sense, Jon. How can you -- if you know a vote is fraudulent, right? How can you pass on a fraudulent vote to Congress? How can you do that?"

So, Trump is in essence saying Pence deserved the ire of the crowd, because he wouldn't block certification of the election.

Gene Simmons is going scorched earth on anyone who's still not vaccinated against COVID-19, and says he's sick of people using politics -- on the left AND the right -- as their rationale for remaining unvaccinated.

The KISS icon went on Talkshoplive's Rock 'N' Roll Channel Wednesday and went off about the lingering pandemic. Keep in mind, both Gene and KISS frontman Paul Stanley caught COVID earlier this year ... and one of the band's touring crew members died from it.

That's most likely why Gene has no patience for non-believers. He directly targeted folks who think "people died because they were fat or died because they smoked. No bitch, they died because they got COVID!!!"

And, in case anyone thought Simmons was getting political, he added, "The far left and the far right, they are both evil. They both spread all kinds of nonsense. Politics are the enemy."

Gene lamented the fact a lot of their European fans were unable to join the band for a recent KISS cruise vacation, but said those are the breaks when people don't wanna get the shot.

Dr. Oz might be hanging up his TV stethoscope and picking up a seat on Capitol Hill -- the legendary daytime talk show host is mulling over a run for U.S. Senate ... TMZ has confirmed.

Sources connected to DO tell us ... while it's still early in the going and nothing is official just yet, the Doc is indeed seriously considering jumping into the race for next year's midterms -- and he has his home state of Pennsylvania in his sights.

BTW, these aren't just fanciful political musings ... we're told Oz is quite serious about this, and exploring what an endeavor of this nature would require in launching a campaign. We're told if he runs he'll do so as a Republican.

It sure sounds like something that could become a reality, which, if it did ... that'd seriously shake up the U.S. Senate elections going down next November, especially in P.A.

The two current incumbents serving the Keystone State right now -- Republican Patrick Toomey and Democrat Robert Casey Jr. ... the former of whom will not seek reelection, and whose seat is up for grabs.

There are already a number of announced candidates for the GOP who've thrown their hat in the ring -- and of course, there are several Dem contenders too who are in it to win it.

IF Dr. Oz enters the fray ... that'd add to the already packed field -- but considering he'd by and far be the most famous (and perhaps well-liked), he'd stand a chance to win. On the flip side, if Oz got into politics ... there's no question his show would come to an end.