During this week’s broadcast of FNC’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) argued so-called shutdown politics played to the favor of those hoping to sway House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
Gaetz claimed the brinksmanship centralized power, which benefited McCarthy’s political contributors.
“Are there Freedom Caucus members also out of compliance?” FNC host Maria Bartiromo said. “They were also on the Appropriations Committee. Where is the responsibility for them? Are they also out of compliance?”
“No, I’m not a member of the Freedom Caucus,” Gaetz replied. “So, I will let them speak for themselves. But take, for example, the border, this issue you think is — has great primacy, and I would agree with you. The Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill was passed out of the Appropriations Committee in June, and yet Kevin McCarthy hasn’t put it on the floor in more than 100 days.”
“That is not serious,” he continued. “And you know why Kevin McCarthy didn’t move our border appropriations bill? Because the lobbyists and the special interests who own Kevin McCarthy want to put us in this position, where we’re backed up against the wall, facing shutdown politics. And what that does is it centralizes power to the people that they buy off with PAC donations and lobbyist donations. And then the membership doesn’t get to make real contributions to that process. I’m trying to democratize it.”
Poster comment: Matt Gaetz for Speaker of the House