Gaetz on Impeachment: Democrats Would Be ‘Punished for It a Lot in 2020’

WASHINGTON – Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) predicted that the Democratic Party would be “punished” at the ballot box in 2020 if the Democratic-controlled House pursues impeachment of President Trump.

“The president is focused on the issues that matter to the American people – renegotiating trade deals, ending wars, cutting taxes and reducing regulations. If Democrats want to focus on impeaching the president rather than on the stuff that impacts quality of life for the American people, I think they will be punished for it a lot in 2020,” Gaetz told PJM during an interview at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

“The last time a president was impeached, I don’t know that history would go back and view that as a tremendously politically rewarding experience for those who were engaged in the exercise and probably today it’s not much different,” he added.

During the interview, Gaetz addressed former Gov. Bill Weld (R-Mass.) running for president as a Republican and Gov. Larry Hogan (R-Md.) considering entering the race.

“Bill Weld ran last time as a libertarian, so I think he’s running out of parties, but when it comes to this president, he is the most popular Republican among Republicans in the history of Republicans and so I don’t think he’s really doubting his success in the primaries, so we’re going to go out and make the case that people are doing better,” he said. “We’ve got GDP growth right now that is twice the expectations from the Obama economy and I think that is the high water that raises all boats for regular Americans.”