Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz gave conservatives a chuckle Tuesday when he made quip about New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez’ corruption indictment to make a point about what’s happening to the U.S. dollar.
The subject at hand was the national debt.
“Our record in this country right now is $33 trillion in debt, facing $2 trillion annual deficits,” Gaetz told his fellow legislators in Washington, D.C.
“We’re in so much debt — we’re driving up deficits so fast, we are devaluing American money so rapidly — that in America today, you can’t even bribe Democrat senators with cash alone. You need to bring gold bars to get the job done — just so that the bribes hold value!”
Menendez was indicted last week on bribery charges after FBI investigators found $100,000 in gold bars and almost $500,000 in cash at the senator’s home, according to The Hill.
“Matt Gaetz on fire,” the Citizen Free Press commented on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Matt Gaetz on fire:
“We’re in so much debt, we are driving up deficits so fast, we are devaluing American money so rapidly that in America today you can’t even bribe Democrat senators in cash alone, you need gold bars just so the money can hold value!” pic.twitter.com/SYTYQeNvNv
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) September 27, 2023
Gaetz went on to make it clear that the situation is no laughing matter and to again urge his fellow representatives to pass legislation requiring them to approve spending bills one at a time, rather than lumping them all together.
He suggested putting four bills on the floor to fund Defense, Homeland Security, Agriculture and State and Foreign Operations, which would cover 75 percent of the discretionary budget, according to News Nation.
“My friends, I am extremely in favor of this rule because this rule moves us onto single-subject spending bills. And this is the only way to liberate this House and this country from the scourge of governing by continuing resolution and omnibus legislation,” Gaetz said.
“It is an insult to our governing authority to have the Senate lash Ukraine funding to the reauthorization of the FAA — and, by the way, every other thing in government.”
Gaetz pointed out that state legislatures work to balance their budgets and then allocate those funds to government agencies based on those budget figures.
“The fact that we don’t do that is not a bug of the system, it’s a feature of the system,” he complained.
Gaetz went on to reiterate a point he’s been repeating with great frequency in recent weeks, taking a jab at the leadership of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
“One thing I’d agree with my Democrat colleagues on is that for the last eight months, this House has been poorly led,” he told the lawmakers.
“We own that, and we have to do something about it,” he said.
“Gaetz has repeatedly threatened to oust McCarthy from his Speakership role if he does not cave to a series of conservative demands on spending and legislation,” The Hill reported.
“The Florida Republican has insisted he is serious about following through on his threat, though he has not yet introduced a motion to do so.”
McCarthy responded to Gaetz’ comments by portraying their mutual animosity as a personality conflict.
“Look, people have got to get over personal differences,” McCarthy said, according to The Hill. “I’m focused on America.”
The speaker was asked whether Gaetz’ remarks bothered him.
“Does it look like it bothers me?” McCarthy asked.
“No, it doesn’t.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
