Who is Matt Gaetz and why is he criticising US funding for Malaysian M2M health?

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Matt Gaetz is a controversial Republican politician who is attacking US funding for a Malaysian harm-reduction app for men who have sex with men.

Matt Gaetz is an American politician and a prominent figure on the far-right wing of the Republican Party. He is a strong supporter of US president-elect Donald Trump, and he recently withdrew after Trump nominated him for the role of US attorney general. He is now criticising the Biden administration over funding for a Malaysian programme linked to men who have sex with men, or M2M, because he says American homosexuals engaging in chemsex should be outraged by it.
He posted the attack on X and tied it to chemsex
Gaetz wrote on Elon Musk’s social media platform X that “American homosexuals engaging in chemsex should be outraged” that the US was funding this in Malaysia. Chemsex means sexual acts carried out while under the influence of drugs such as methamphetamine or GHB, and it is usually associated with gay and bisexual men.
His criticism was backed by a conservative outlet’s report
To support his claim, Gaetz attached a report from Daily Caller, a conservative-leaning news and opinion site co-founded by Tucker Carlson. That report misrepresented a July 2024 UConn Today story about Prof Roman Shrestha and a US$3.4 million, or RM15.2 million, grant.
The grant was for a smartphone app called JomCare
The grant, backed by the US government-funded National Institutes of Health, was awarded to develop JomCare. The app is meant to improve access to HIV- and substance use-related harm reduction services for Malaysian M2M who engage in chemsex. It is also described as a tool to reduce risks linked to HIV, sexually transmitted infections, addiction, violence, and suicide or suicidal ideation.
Gaetz’s own background has made him a controversial figure
Gaetz has been under investigation over allegations that he had sex with an underage 17-year-old girl and used illicit drugs. That backdrop, along with his role in Trump’s political circle, has kept him in the spotlight while he attacks a health programme in Malaysia.

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Who is Matt Gaetz and why is he criticising US funding for Malaysian M2M health?

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