(The Center Square) – U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Arizona, spent more on taxpayer-funded travel than anyone else in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2021.
Gosar spent $188,099.54 in taxpayer money on travel last year, according to the Moonlight Foundation. That beat out non-voting delegate members from U.S. territories, including Guam.
The Moonlight foundation points out that between Oct. 3 and Oct. 5, 2021, Gosar’s office expensed $6,048.98 as a single charge for “lodging.” That adds up to more than $2,000 per night.
Additionally, between Oct. 3-6, Leslie Foti, a staffer of Rep. Gosar staffer, also expensed $2,378.73 in “lodging” and $1,636.80 in “airfare commercial transportation.”
Earlier in the year, Gosar also had a large expense. On Jan. 7, 2021, one day after the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot, Gosar’s office spent $1,787.20 on commercial transportation.
The report found that Gosar had the 11th-highest expenses of any member of the U.S. House of Representatives ($1,473,765.69); he ranked third among House Republicans in spending.
Additionally, in Feb. 2021, Gosar and his chief of staff, Tom Van Flein, expensed nearly $3,500 in the same stretch when they visited Orlando, Florida for a pair of events: the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) and the far-right America First Political Action Conference (AFPAC). Gosar also had about $1,000 in lodging expenses footed by taxpayers in that timeframe.
Politically, Gosar has been a supporter of reduced government spending.
“Our citizens expect and deserve a lean, efficient federal government that only funds effective and necessary programs,” Gosar’s congressional office website says. “This year, I will continue the fight to eliminate as much waste as possible through any and all means necessary.
“We, both Democrats and Republicans, must chart a responsible budget course. I will continue to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse wherever I can. The American people and hard-working taxpayers deserve nothing less.”
A spokesperson for Gosar’s office could not be reached for comment.