The Democratic presidential candidate will spend Monday and Tuesday campaigning across South Carolina

Pete Buttigieg speaks at Greenville Chamber of Commerce breakfast

Kirk Brown | Greenville News

This story has been updated after originally incorrectly stating that Pete Buttigieg is the first openly gay man to run for president.

Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg kicked off a two-day campaign swing through South Carolina with a speech Monday morning to the Upstate Chamber Coalition in Greenville.

Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, spoke to about 100 people at the Crowne Plaza Hotel during the first installment of the Upstate Chamber Coalition's 2020 Presidential Series. The coalition represents 12 chambers of commerce throughout the Upstate.

Here are key takeaways from the event:

Buttigieg says assault weapons 'do not belong in American neighborhoods'

Responding to a teen's question about school safety, Buttigieg voiced his support for universal background checks for gun purchases, "red flag" laws that can lead to the seizure of firearms from people who are deemed a threat and a ban on the sale of high-capacity magazines and assault weapons.

"I trained on these things in the military. I know what they are, and they do not belong in American neighborhoods," said Buttigieg, who served in Afghanistan for seven months in 2014 as a naval intelligence officer and driver.

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Charles Poe, the 14-year-old who asked Buttigieg about school safety, said he was impressed with the candidate's answer.

"He certainly seems to, more than most candidates, understand the perils of gun violence," said Poe, who attends Brashier Middle College Charter High School.

Buttigieg talks about security and faith

Without referring to him by name, Buttigieg jabbed at President Donald Trump's efforts to stem illegal immigration by building a wall on the Mexican border.

“We're not going to be able to deliver 21st-century security with a 17th-century security technology like putting up a wall," he said.

Buttigieg, who is gay, also spoke about the tenets of his Christian faith.

“Salvation has to do with whether we feed the hungry and clothe the naked and heal the sick and welcome the stranger," he said, adding that the term "stranger" can apply to immigrants.

Pete Buttigieg sees potential for 'generational alignment'

Buttigieg, 37, said young people are leading the charge for keeping schools safe and combating climate change.

"I've seen young people often at the forefront, and then I see their parents and their grandparents at their side cheering them on," he said. "And it's a really inspiring thing to see. Because that's what we've got to do."

He said building a sense of national unity could make "this next half-century a really enlightened period."

"But this could be our last chance."

JOSH MORGAN/Staff

Buttigieg's busy schedule

Buttigieg's speech in Greenville was the first of his seven campaign events scheduled for Monday. Those events include a town hall at Wofford College and two other stops in Spartanburg on Monday morning. He was to spend the afternoon in Columbia and Hopkins.

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Buttigieg was to join three other Democratic presidential candidates — former Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio — Monday evening at the Galivants Ferry Stump, a longtime traditional campaign event in South Carolina. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders said he has pulled out of the event to rest his sore throat.

Now in its 143rd year, "The Stump" has been hosted biennially in rural Galivants Ferry in the Pee Dee since 1876, when General Wade Hampton arrived on horseback to initiate his gubernatorial campaign.

JOSH MORGAN/Staff

Despite lagging poll numbers, Buttigieg campaign staffing up in South Carolina

Buttigieg's visit comes as his campaign is increasing its presence in South Carolina, which will hold the South's first presidential primary on Feb. 29. He is opening a campaign office in Columbia on Monday and another office in Florence on Tuesday.

He recently hired Jarvis Houston to oversee his campaign staff in South Carolina, which has grown to 33.

"We are putting our resources into action and organizing on the ground to engage supporters across the state ahead of February's primary," said Tess Whittlesey, the deputy national press secretary for Buttigieg's campaign.

Recent national and state polls show that Buttigieg is mired in the second tier of Democratic presidential candidates, well behind Biden, Sanders and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren.