EXCLUSIVE — Rep. Matt Gaetz (R‑FL) is set to announce the creation of a bipartisan Congressional El Salvador Caucus.
Gaetz traveled to El Salvador last month to attend the second inauguration of President Nayib Bukele, alongside Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D‑TX) and other members of Congress. Gonzalez will be the inaugural co-chairman of the caucus.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R‑FL) speaks to reporters in the spin room after a presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in Atlanta, Thursday, June 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
In a press release from Gaetz’s office, the new caucus was described as aiming to better promote understanding of the relationship between El Salvador and the United States, strengthen bilateral relations, and promote understanding of the country among members of Congress and their constituents.
Gaetz has given high praise to Bukele both before and after his trip, holding him up as a model for American conservatives to follow.
Recently, Gaetz introduced legislation that would require the Internal Revenue Service to accept bitcoin as payment for federal income taxes. His move was credited to his trip to El Salvador, where he met with Bukele. One of Bukele’s first efforts was adopting bitcoin as legal tender in the country, an embrace that Gaetz wants to recreate in the U.S.
Bukele’s approach to governance has also earned him some critics in the U.S., however. The Salvadoran president’s strongman approach to gangs has earned him criticism from some U.S. Democrats, such as Rep. Ilhan Omar (D‑MN), who has voiced concerns about his human rights record. Gaetz was one of the first to defend Bukele from Omar’s criticism in January.
Bukele won the 2019 election on an anti-establishmen …