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Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida ranted about Robert Mueller, George Soros, Pfizer and a series of other conservative boogeymen during the first subcommittee hearing on supposed “weaponisation” of the federal government.
Mr Gaetz’s questioning came during the inaugural hearing of the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, which Republicans largely launched in response to probes into former president Donald Trump.
The Florida congressman asked Elliot Williams, a principal at the Raben Group who worked for the Justice Department during the Obama administration, if Americans would not feel the government was against them if there wasn’t a revolving door of lobbyists and government.
“I don’t quite often, the premise of your question, sir,” Mr Williams.
“It’s pretty easy, there’s a revolving door between senior officials at the DOJ and the lobbying profession,” Mr Gaetz responded.
“There are rules governing what employment and this is based on my understanding, I’ve been in government for 15 years, what post-government employment can and can’t be, what one’s actions can be once they’re employed elsewhere” Mr Williams said in response.
Mr Gaetz in turn responded by saying that lobbying is “influence peddling.” The right-wing congressman cited Mr Williams’s employment at the Raben Group, a lobbying firm, and pointed how Pfizer is a client of his organisation.
But Mr Williams said that he did not represent Pfizer.
“Not just Pfizer, but Google as well,” Mr Gaetz said. The congressman also cited Elon Musk’s Twitter Files, which were private communications within the company before Mr Musk’s ownership of the company.
“Does it surprise you that at the Raben Group’s website, Pfizer and Google are clients,” he said.
“It does not surprise me, sir,” Mr Williams said. Mr Gaetz continued to cite the fact that the Raben Group also represented the Open Society Foundation, which financier George Soros funded. Mr Soros has become a right-wing enemy for his support of liberal causes.
“I want to assure you both we come not to trash the FBI, but to rescue the FBI from political capture. And it seems as though that political capture was really enhanced when Robert Mueller took a lot of the authority and power away from the field offices all over our country and centralize that power,” Mr Gaetz said in reference to the former FBI director who led the special counsel investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Mr Mueller was one of many Republican foes who Republicans referenced in their hearing
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