Chaffetz says relationship with President Trump is good after once rebuking him

WASHINGTON D.C. – June 30 is the last day in office for Utah’s Third District Representative Jason Chaffetz.  Before leaving, he has some high praise for the man he once rebuked in a very public way.

To say that the relationship between Chaffetz and President Donald Trump has had its ups and downs would be an understatement.

“He’s been generous with his time.  He’s inquisitive on the issues and knowledgeable on what we’re talking about,” Chaffetz said recently.

Compare that to last October, when Chaffetz told CNN, “I’m out.  I can no longer endorse Donald Trump for president.”

This happened after the now infamous tape of Donald Trump and Billy Bush from Access Hollywood was released, with the President speaking about kissing and groping women.

“We’ve got a 15 year-old daughter.  You think I can look her in the eye and tell her that I endorsed Donald Trump for president, when he acts like this?”

Less than a month later, Chaffetz told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that he and his wife were voting for Donald Trump, since, in his opinion, voting for Hillary Clinton would have been much worse.

Chaffetz says there has been a massive difference in his interactions with President Trump compared to President Obama.  He calls Barack Obama an engaging person who didn’t want to discuss issues with Utah’s Republican representatives.

“I appreciate {President Trump’s] ability to interact with us and talk about things like Bears Ears.  President Obama would refuse to meet with us.  All six of us in the Utah delegation asked to meet with Barack Obama, and the president would not sit down and talk with us about it.”