Republican Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz revealed Monday the conversation he had with President Donald Trump and other GOP congressional allies this weekend at Camp David. The discussion focused on funding for the World Health Organization (WHO) and potential future regulations on Chinese technology companies, according to audio obtained by the Daily Caller.
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump met with GOP congressional allies at the country retreat in Maryland, Camp David, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, and Republican Reps. Dan Crenshaw, Matt Gaetz, Devin Nunes, Jim Jordan, Elise Stefanik, and Lee Zeldin, according to Politico. Gaetz revealed in an audio clip for his upcoming Monday podcast episode that the administration discussed more funding cuts for WHO and investigating Chinese technology companies.
Gaetz said that the president may have had some advisors that wanted to restore partial funding for WHO, but based on conversations he’s had with the president, he doesn’t believe that will ultimately happen. Fox News host and Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson broke the news Friday that the administration was close to resuming funding for WHO. (RELATED: ‘Pelosi Basically Lost Me’: White House Says Checks For Illegal Aliens A No-Go For Stimulus Negotiations)
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 23: Flanked by about two dozen House Republicans, U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol October 23, 2019 in Washington, DC. Rep. Gaetz held the press conference to call for transparency in the impeachment inquiry. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“I observed compelling arguments particularly from my congressional colleagues on the fallacy of that relationship with the World Health Organization,” Gaetz recalled. The Florida representative goes on to state that Jim Jordan reiterated a quote from Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert that “resonated” with the president saying, “we don’t have to pay these globalist organizations to hate us, they’ll probably do it for free.”
“It is my expectation that the United States will not be engaging as a funder of the World Health Organization now, at the china level, at any other reduce level — in the absence of major structural changes,” Gaetz stated.
Gaetz also said that he brought up concerns he had regarding dual-use technologies that Chinese companies have adopted from the U.S., specifically mentioning the drone company DJI Technologies. (RELATED: Chinese President Pledges $2 Billion To Fight Coronavirus, Wants WHO To Investigate ‘Global Response’)
“In my conversations with Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows, I am comforted that the administration is aware of the threat posed by DJI, and the duel use drone technology,” Gaetz said. “It is my belief that the administration is currently reviewing potential guidance from the Department of Justice to state and local law enforcement.”
“These times that we are in do not call for a treatment of China with kid gloves,” Gaetz concluded. “We need confrontational leadership, and President Trump is definitely prepared to provide that bold leadership.”