Lobbyist Knives Out for Matt Gaetz
D.C. lobbyists and dark money groups tied to Silicon Valley are seeking to avenge the ouster of Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., the leader of the rebellion that ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy this week, has long enraged the Beltway establishment.
Gaetz has blazed an unusual path, frequently partnering with House Democrats against powerful special interest groups. He backed regulation to weaken the power of Silicon Valley technology giants and fought to restrict weapons transfers to Ukraine and Saudi Arabia.
In a message posted earlier today, Gaetz floated a sweeping ethics reform package as a key demand moving forward. He offered to partner with Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., on legislation to ban congressional stock trading, institute a twelve-year term limit for lawmakers, and ban lobbyist and PAC donations, in exchange for his support to increase the threshold for removing the Speaker of the House. The motion to vacate change has been demanded by GOP officials concerned about future political volatility.
But industry insiders are pushing back.
Cesar Conda, a former aide to Dick Cheney, whose defense industry lobbying firm Navigators Global helps the Ukrainian government secure American funds, scorned Gaetz as an “arsonist” and endorsed a call to expel the Florida lawmaker from the Republican conference.
Americans for Tax Reform, a dark money group funded in part by Amazon, Google, and Meta, the parent company of Facebook, unveiled a radio and digital advertising campaign against Gaetz yesterday, accusing him of spending "too much time chasing TV cameras."