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I have written more column inches about Matt Gaetz and his tempest of transgressions than I would have thought possible. After he pulled his name from consideration for attorney general, I believed we could all move on. Alas, no. This is something you need to see. A 37-page report by congressional investigators released today says they found “substantial evidence” that Gaetz “regularly paid women for engaging in sexual activity with him.” One of those he paid, the report says, was underage.
From the report:
Former Congressman Gaetz “… violated House Rules, state and federal laws, and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, acceptance of impermissible gifts, the provision of special favors and privileges, and obstruction of Congress.”
Members of the House Ethics Committee have known of these allegations for months, if not years. They were an open secret in Washington, as media reports have long detailed the alleged wrongdoing. But what is truly disheartening, even sickening, is that Donald Trump still decided Gaetz was the best person to lead the Justice Department, to be the top law enforcement official in the country. It’s hard to believe the president-elect wasn’t aware of all things Gaetz.
Why was the report released now? Earlier this month, the House Ethics Committee secretly voted to release its report on its yearslong investigation into serious allegations against the former Florida Republican congressman.
The secret vote didn’t stay secret long. According to Axios, two centrist Republicans on the committee voted in favor of releasing the damning report, along with all five Democrats.
One can imagine those two Republicans, Representatives Dave Joyce of Ohio and Andrew Garbarino of New York, will now be punished by MAGA and face well-funded primary opponents — retribution against those who defy Trump.
When Gaetz resigned from Congress in November, after Donald Trump hastily tapped him to be attorney general, many thought the excruciatingly long-awaited ethics report would quietly go away. Because Gaetz had retired from the chamber, it no longer had jurisdiction over his actions, and therefore releasing the report would be moot — or so Republicans hoped.
While senators on both sides of the aisle insisted that the report be released ahead of Gaetz’s confirmation hearings, House Speaker Mike Johnson strongly disagreed, saying it would be “a terrible breach of protocol.” Actually no, Mr. Speaker. In 1987 and 2006, ethics reports were released after members resigned, and the sky did not fall.
It isn’t surprising that Gaetz tried to stop what is likely his worst nightmare from coming true. Early today, he filed a lawsuit against the ethics committee and sought a restraining order. That legal maneuver didn’t work.
In releasing the report, the ethics committee “determined that it was in the public interest to release its findings even after a Member’s resignation from Congress,” though they did “not do so lightly.”
The House investigation took a meandering route to today’s final release. It began in 2021 but paused for almost three years for the Justice Department to conduct its own investigation into allegations of sex trafficking, among other things. Last February the DOJ decided not to press charges, and the committee was able to resume its probe. By the time it had finished nine months later, the committee had issued 29 subpoenas, interviewed 12 witnesses, and reviewed more than 14,000 documents.
From all of that evidence the ethics committee concluded that Gaetz, then 35, had sex with a 17-year-old-girl who had just finished her junior year in high school and then paid her $400. He claims he did not know her age, though legally that is not a defense. From 2017 to 2019 he paid 12 women a total of $90,000 for sex, according to the report. “Representative Gaetz took advantage of the economic vulnerability of young women to lure them into sexual activity for which they received an average of a few hundred dollars after each encounter.”
Gaetz took to social media to combat the charges. He posted on X, “NEVER had sexual contact with someone under 18. ... My 30’s were an era of working very hard — and playing hard too.” Gaetz is only 42, so this isn’t exactly ancient history. Gaetz has long denied all the allegations.
As recently as Sunday, there was chatter that Gaetz could be tapped to replace Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who will likely be the next secretary of state, or run for governor of Florida in 2026. After today, a snowball in hell has a better chance of political survival.
Never fear, Gaetz won’t go hungry. In January he will start a new job spouting MAGA rhetoric and cozying up to his almost boss as an anchor at the far-right One America News Network.
But none of us should have any illusions: That a person with this man’s record could be nominated for attorney general of these United States serves as a clear warning of what our country is in danger of becoming.
Now, hopefully I have written my last words about this guy.
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Stay Steady,
Dan
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