Whether it was a political stunt or an honest statement on the hazards of the coronavirus, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., wore a biohazard gas mask on the House floor before voting to approve the $8.3 billion funding package Wednesday.
Gaetz tweeted with a photo:
"Reviewing the coronavirus supplemental appropriation and preparing to go vote."
The move was derided by some as insensitive to the victims, as 11 have now died from the coronavirus in the U.S.
Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., tweeted:
"You won't believe the shoes Matt Gaetz is wearing today. #FloridaMan"
For his part, Gaetz said he has "been in support of closing a good amount of Congress for quite some time."
"Essentially the floor of the Congress is a petri dish," Gaetz said. "We all fly into these dirty airports, we touch and selfie everyone we meet, and then we congregate together."
Gaetz's office issued a statement afterward.
"If there's anybody that's going to get coronavirus, it's going to be the United States Congress," the statement read, according to ABC News. "House rules do not explicitly allow medical headgear even at this time of heightened concern. This is a rule that should be revisited."
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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