Fiscal responsibility? ‘Nobody cares’ and Senator Bob Corker is totally ‘over it’

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Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) speaks during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington, D.C.

Bob Corker, the man who, according to President Trump, “couldn’t get elected dog catcher in Tennessee,” was asked by a reporter if he’s just given up on his push for fiscal responsibility from the federal government.

His answer caused a bit of a stir.

‘Yeah, I’m over it... it’s just not going to happen. The American people today are not interested in it.’

Corker estimated that, if polled, only 6% of the people in this country would say they care about such fiscal issues.

“It’s just a fact,” the Tennessee senator said. “Nobody cares.”

Corker also said he’s lost hope that Trump will be up to the task. “You’ve got a president that’s certainly not going to deal with it. [He] made it clear in the campaign that he’s not going to deal with the major driver.”

Watch the exchange, which took place in Chattanooga on Friday:

Corker’s jab at the president doesn’t come as a shock, of course, considering just last month he called out the government as “one of the most fiscally irresponsible administrations and Congresses we’ve ever had.”

A recent report by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projects $1 trillion annual deficits for the foreseeable future. The annual deficit is projected to stay around 5% of gross domestic product, which is well above its 2.9% average. Total debt held by the public is expected to rise from 76.5% of GDP in 2017 to 96.2% in 2028.

Corker warned at the event that a crisis will eventually have to be dealt with, “or we’ll have a president who will campaign on it,” according to WTVC

“We’re in a world of populism right now,” he added. “And in a world of populism, you never deal with the tough issues.”