Republican Sen. Jim Banks told a former Health and Human Services employee that he “probably deserved” to lose his job in a viral video on Tuesday, April 1.
The brief interaction between the U.S. senator from Indiana and Mack Schroeder was caught on video and shared by multiple outlets, including NBC News’ TikTok account.
In the video, Schroeder, who does not appear on camera, follows and questions Banks as he is escorted to an elevator.
“Hi, I was a worker at HHS. I was fired illegally on Feb. 14,” he said, referring to recent, mass layoffs and firings under the Trump administration. “There are many people who are not getting social service programs, especially people with disabilities. Are you gonna do anything to stop what’s happening?”
“You probably deserved it,” Banks said once inside the elevator.
The former HHS employee and a woman…
