Former Congressman Mick Mulvaney finally admitted the truth about Washington: Pay to Play.
The three term congressman from South Carolina now serves as the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and delivered the remark while speaking to the American Bankers Association on Tuesday.
Mulvaney was attempting to coach the bankers on how to influence Washington when he told the room, “If you were a lobbyist who never gave us money, I didn’t talk to you. If you were a lobbyist who gave us money, I might talk to you.”
The former congressman backtracked his comments by adding, “If you came from back home and sat in my lobby, I would talk to you without exception, regardless of financial contributions.”
The audience’s take away from the speech was undeniable, “If you want favors from politicians, pay up.”
But don’t hate Mulvaney for his honesty as his candor is noted throughout his Washington career.
Mulvaney told Politico last year, “I don’t think anyone in this administration is more of a right-wing conservative than I am.”
Mulvaney, who keeps a copy of Atlas Shrugged in his office, has even referred to himself as a “right-wing nutjob” and was elected during the TEA Party wave of 2010.
When discussing cuts to funding Meals on Wheels, Mulvaney argued that the government shouldn’t fund the service to diabetics as they choose to “eat poorly.”
The South Carolinians plain honesty forces other politicians to keep a polite distance. Fellow South Carolina Congressman Trey Gowdy jokingly accusing Mulvaney as being from North Carolina.
As President Trump’s head of the CFPB, Mulvaney has recommended any cuts to programs that Trump will accept.
When the President balks at cuts to programs within Social Security or Medicaid, Mulvaney adds, “but it’s welfare” and regains Trump’s attention.
On the campaign trail, Trump promised no cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security.
During Mulvaney’s heated confirmation hearings, the former congressman caught the ire of John McCain over Mulvaney’s opposition to massive defense budgets.
Others attacked Mulvaney over his desire to raise the retirement age to 70 in order to bring Social Security closer to solvency.
Mulvaney has had his victories during his short term, most noteably holding the increase to defense spending to $54 billion despite Steve Bannon’s fight to bloat the budget to a another $100 billion. That held the military budget to $639 billion – more than the combined budgets of China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, India, France, the UK, Japan and Germany.
While American voters may not appreciate Mulvaney’s honest talk, at least he’s honest.
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