A video of Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., telling a man on Capitol Hill who identified himself as a recently fired Health and Human Services employee that he “probably deserved it” because “you seem like a clown” has gone viral.
The man engaged with Banks in the video is identified as Mack Schroeder.
ABC has not independently confirmed that Schroeder is a fired federal employee, but Schroeder told CNN on Wednesday he wasn’t at the Capitol to “get his job back” but wanted to ask lawmakers what they were going to do to ensure residents were “getting the services that they’re entitled to.”
“As we cut workers who are really ensuring that grants are going out the door to programs,” Schroeder said on CNN. He said that he had worked on programs that support people with disabilities and older adults.
Senate Armed Services Committee member Sen. Jim Banks questions retired Air Force Lt. Gen. John Caine during his confirmation hearing to be promoted to general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, April 1, 2025, in Washington, D.C.
Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
“So, I was hoping he would have, you know, some sort of plan to say, this is why we’re cutting workers. This is how we’re going to continue supporting residents in Indiana. But he just responded, as you saw,” Schroeder said.
Schroeder told USA Today he was among a small group of other fired federal workers protesting on Tuesday when he recorded the interaction with Banks, telling him, “Hi, I was a worker at HHS. I was fired illegally on February 14. There are many people who are not getting social service programs, especially people with disabilities. Are you going to do anything to stop what’s happening?”
That’s when Banks told Schroeder he probably deserved to be fired.
Schroeder told CNN he was shocked by Banks’ sharp reaction.
“First of all, I didn’t ask him what is he doing to help me get reinstated in my position? I wasn’t asking, ‘Why did I get fired? What are you going to do to make sure me and other employees get their jobs?’ I was just asking, ‘What are you doing about the social services that are being cut specifically for people with disabilities?'” Schroeder told CNN.
“He didn’t even answer my question … I still have not heard a response about what the plan is, as many of these staff get cut and the programs are potentially defunded,” he added.
Shortly after Schroeder’s appearance, Banks appeared on CNN and referred to Schroeder as an “instigator” who is “in the hallways of the Senate office buildings every day chasing down Republicans like me and cheering for Democrats who walk through the hallways.”
“It doesn’t take a whole lot here to deduce from that he is a left-wing activist and what I have no tolerance for is anyone who believes they are entitled to a taxpayer-funded job.”
He stood by his interaction with Schroeder and said he was glad Trump was eliminating wasteful jobs in the government.
“I’m not going to shy away or back down or apologize for what I had to say [Tuesday]. This was a calculated instigator activist in the hallways of the Senate and I don’t have a lot of tolerance for it.”
Asked by CNN if he had similar views about every employee who was laid off, Banks said, “Of course not. My comments were directed at this fellow who, again, can’t even explain what he does. It was a woke job that wasted taxpayer dollars and I’m thankful that President Trump eliminated that job to save tax dollars.”
Banks is fully embracing the blowback he’s getting.
First, he reposted the video of his exchange on X, in which he’s seen calling the man a “clown,” adding, “Hard truth.”
Former NFL star wide receiver Antonio Brown dubbed Banks the “Cracker of the Day,” and Banks replied, “Thanks, AB. I’m honored!”
He’s also changed his profile picture on X to his smiling face through the crack of the elevator door, and another video post where he declares, “I won’t apologize for speaking the truth. I 100% support President Trump and DOGE’s mission to cut woke spending and government waste.”
And yet another post on X: “I have no sympathy for left-wing activists who have been let go from overpaid positions that should never have existed. I do have sympathy for the hardworking Hoosiers whose tax dollars have been wasted on bankrolling these positions.”