NATIONAL HARBOR, Maryland — A top House Republican ally of President Trump is seeking to cast himself as a political reformer by announcing he’ll no longer take contributions from political action committees.
Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican, told a Conservative Political Action Conference audience Thursday that government puts itself at the behest of special interest groups as a result of “legal bribes we call campaign donations.”
Taking a shot at Democratic presidential front-runner Bernie Sanders, Gaetz said: “I will never again accept a donation from a federal political action committee — not one red cent. The American people are my one special interest. Honest capitalism is under attack. Not just from Bernie Sanders, antifa, and the radical Left — but by special interests and political action committees in the swamp of Washington, D.C.”
Super PACS are often denounced by Democratic presidential candidates, such as Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, as opposed to conservative Republicans. But Gaetz described himself as “a different kind of Republican” and “the only Republican returning to Congress to make this no-PAC pledge.”
The move adds a new wrinkle to Gaetz’s congressional career. Until now, he’s been best known as a staunch defender of Trump on the Ukraine military aid affair that led to the president’s impeachment and a range of other matters.
