Anti-War GOP Rep Gaetz Joins Forces With Far-Left ‘Squad’

A U.S. Army paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team fires his M4 carbine at insurgents during a firefight June 30, 2012, Ghazni Province, Afghanistan. [Photo Credit: The U.S. ArmySgt. Michael J. MacLeod/Combat Correspondent/Sgt. Michael J. MacLeod, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons]

ANALYSIS – Bad idea. It was just a matter of time before the conservative Republican populists ranting against defending Ukraine and America’s so-called ‘forever wars,’ would join forces with the far-left.

Echoing Donald Trump’s language, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida has said: “I sometimes feel as though I’m waging a forever war against forever wars.”

In this case, Gaetz suggested left-wing Democrats and populist Republicans might join forces in opposing U.S. support for defending Ukraine against Russian conquest and ending U.S. military involvement in securing Somalia from ISIS. (RELATED: How Will The Pentagon Evacuate Americans From War-Torn Sudan?)

But this doesn’t mean just allying with any left-wing congressional Democrats, it means radical members of “the Squad,” partly led by none other than Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), the socialist Democrat from New York.

While his War Powers measure proposed to remove U.S. troops from Somalia was rejected by a 219-vote margin in the House of Representatives on April 27, Gaetz said that he appreciated the contributions of several Democrats who backed his bill, including members of “the Squad.”

It also means befriending Ilhan Abdullahi Omar, the infamous antisemitic Democrat from Minnesota.

As reported by The Daily Caller:

“[W]hile we disagree strongly on a variety of issues, I think there should be greater connectivity between the anti-war right and the anti-war left,” said Gaetz, naming Democratic Reps. Ro Khanna, Jamaal Bowman, and Ilhan Omar as his advisers on his recent measure. “I am grateful for the advice that I’ve gotten from [them on] war powers bills,” he said. He declined to say whether the two camps would unite to form a formal caucus in the House.

The mention of Omar as a confidant on a foreign policy issue comes despite Gaetz’s earlier positions. In February of this year, Gaetz voted “Yea” to remove Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, the chamber’s chief panel on foreign policy issues, for statements that were allegedly antisemitic and trivialized the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, according to the text of the resolution.

It is doubtful Gaetz will win much support for his efforts. His resolutions to remove troops from Syria and Somalia were rejected by consistently large margins (165 GOP members voted against the recent resolution), and he hasn’t introduced any bills in this Congress to reform the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF).

But it’s not just allying on ‘war powers.’ They have already allied elsewhere.

Earlier, Gaetz and AOC co-sponsored a bill to restrict members of Congress from owning or trading stocks. (RELATED: Gaetz Teams Up With AOC To Ban Stock Trading In Congress)

Unlike the military resolutions, this is something I may be able to support.

The New York Post reported: “When Members have access to classified information, we should not be trading in the stock market on it,” said Ocasio-Cortez. “It’s really that simple.”

“Members of Congress are spending their time trading futures instead of securing the future of our fellow Americans,” Gaetz said. “We cannot allow the Swamp to prioritize investing in stocks over investing in our country.”

I generally support restrictions on members of Congress trading stocks. But this bill may go a bit far, not allowing representatives to own any individual stocks.

Prohibiting trading the stocks while in office should be enough.

Still, this unsettling new left-right alliance may signal something else. 

Gaetz, Omar and Ocasio-Cortez are in their 30s and 40s and seemingly want to burnish their reputations as lawmakers who are a new generation of politicians outside the Beltway.

What else might these folks start to agree on? When the young far-left in America starts to join the far-right, what comes next?

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

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Paul Crespo

Paul Crespo is the Managing Editor of American Liberty Defense News. As a Marine Corps officer, he led Marines, served aboard ships in the Pacific and jumped from helicopters and airplanes. He was also a military attaché with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) at U.S. embassies worldwide. He later ran for state and federal office, taught political science, wrote for the editorial board of a major newspaper and had his own radio show. A graduate of Georgetown, London and Cambridge universities, he brings decades of experience and insight to the issues that most threaten our American liberty – at home and from abroad. To read more go to: paulcrespo.com.

4 Comments
    JoeyP

    You DON’T make a deal with the DEVIL, Gaetz! . . . Leave “the squad” A – L – O – N – E.

    Joseph

    Joining with 3 anti-semites is a bad idea. I liked Gaetz until this stupidity.

    Ron C

    Realize that the democrat party keeps us in a state of war for the money 💰 laundering of taxpayers funds that comes right back into their pockets! And this money is not for their campaigns, this kickback scheme goes straight into their pockets!

    Stephen Russell

    Dont trust either of them esp AOC

Comments are closed.

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