30 congressional leaders caught in Scotland — using taxpayer money amid shutdown
TMZ caught 30 members of Congress touring Scotland courtesy of taxpayer funding amid the ongoing partial government shutdown.
The large group was captured on camera at Edinburgh Castle, a major tourist location, all while government workers have gone unpaid, according to a report on Wednesday. The image featured Rep. John McGuire (R-VA), Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI), Rep. David Rouzer (R-NC), Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY), and Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO) all taking a guided tour at the historic location.
"Congress is not supposed to take taxpayer-funded trips like this during a government shutdown — or so we thought — but it sounds like they're getting around it because this is a partial shutdown. The way we see it, a shutdown is a shutdown," TMZ reported.
TMZ has been closely tracking politicians on vacation during the stalemate, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) at Disney World, Sen. Ted Cruz on a flight from D.C. to Texas and arriving in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Sen. John Thune (R-SD) fleeing D.C., and Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) was spotted at a casino in Las Vegas.
The outlet reached out to representatives for the traveling lawmakers.
A spokesperson for Van Orden said the following:
"DVO is joining more than 30 other members of Congress on a delegation that was pre-approved by the House Ethics Committee months ago. The trip focuses on economic development, foreign partnerships, and business engagement, including meetings with members of Parliament and other international officials," according to the statement.
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