The House Ethics Committee report on former Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz found “substantial evidence” that he paid for sex with a minor, in addition to other serious violations of state law and congressional rules.
The investigation concluded that GaetzTrump’s first choice for attorney general, paid women a total of thousands of dollars for sex and drugs on at least 20 separate occasions. The report also said that in 2017, Gaetz paid a 17-year-old girl for sex when she was 35, which would constitute statutory rape under Florida law.
The Republican-led panel wrote, “The Committee determined that there was substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated the prohibitions on prostitution, statutory rape, illegal drug use, unacceptable gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress.” Violated the rules and other standards of conduct of the House.” Test.
The committee said it did not find sufficient evidence to conclude that Gaetz violated federal sex trafficking laws. It said there was evidence that he paid women to travel across state lines to New York and Washington, D.C., for commercial sex, but that the women were over the age of 18 and, while in the relationship There was an “exploitative power imbalance”, the committee did not do so. There is reason to believe that Gaetz used force, fraud, or coercion.
According to the report, Gaetz used payment apps, including Venmo and PayPal, to transfer money directly to more than a dozen women during his tenure in Congress.
The committee determined that Gaetz regularly used illegal drugs, including cocaine and ecstasy, between 2017-2020, and it appears that he used his money to purchase marijuana, in violation of both state laws and House ethics rules. Set up a pseudonymous email account from the House office.
The committee believes that Gaetz “deliberately and knowingly” attempted to obstruct the investigation, including failing to comply with subpoenas, concealing evidence, providing misleading responses, and suppressing “massive amounts of documentary evidence.” Including making false public statements about things that he never actually made.
Investigators also highlighted a 2018 trip to the Bahamas where Gaetz allegedly “engaged in sexual activity” with multiple women. One woman told the committee that the trip itself served as “payment” for sexual services. The same witness reported that Gaetz received ecstasy during a trip to the Bahamas, which investigators considered a violation of House gift rules.
Gaetz’s legal team fought hard to prevent the report from coming out, arguing in a new lawsuit Monday morning: “If publicly released, Plaintiffs’ standing and reputation in the community would be significantly harmed.” This would be “immediate, serious and irreversible”. Gaetz has long maintained his innocence.
The report comes after more than three years of investigation and represents a reversal following a previous committee vote not to release the results of an investigation that began in the spring of 2021, when Gaetz was the subject of an FBI investigation.
Its leak came after about a month Gaetz withdrew his nomination Trump’s appointment as attorney general came amid intense backlash, partly driven by speculation about what the report might contain.
The House investigation – initiated after the Justice Department launched a separate criminal investigation into Gaetz, which was later dropped without charges – was launched to look at a wide range of allegations.
These include allegations of engaging in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, sharing inappropriate photos in the House, misusing state identification records, diverting campaign funds to personal use, and accepting gifts in violation of House rules.
Gaetz, who has denied all allegations, actually blocked the release of the report by abruptly resigning from Congress last month after Trump nominated him as his attorney general in a decision that drew fierce bipartisan condemnation. Was.
However, its contents became the subject of intense speculation as both Republican and Democratic senators expressed serious doubts about Gaetz’s suitability to preside over America’s vast federal judicial and law enforcement structure.
Some critics accused Gaetz, the far-right representative of Florida, of resigning prematurely – long before the Senate had a chance to confirm or reject his nomination – on purpose to prevent publication of the report, knowing that Its contents were likely to be harmful.
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The Ethics Committee originally voted along party lines against releasing the document, while some senators demanded to see it before Senate confirmation hearings early next year. Republican Speaker Mike Johnson – a close Trump ally – vocally opposed the release of the report.
The change of heart is notable because Gaetz later said he would do not try to return Joined Congress after withdrawing his nomination.
Gaetz angrily condemns committee’s revised decision – first reported cnn — in a scathing social media post on Wednesday, pointing out that he was never criminally charged.
“The Biden/Garland DOJ spent years reviewing allegations that I committed various crimes,” he said wrote,
“I was not charged: completely acquitted. Not even campaign finance violations. And the people who examined me hated me.
“Then, the ‘witnesses’ the DOJ deemed not credible were assembled by House Ethics to repeat their claims without any cross-examination or challenge from me or my lawyers. I never got any chance to confront any of my accusers. I was never accused. I was never prosecuted.
“Instead, House Ethics will allegedly post a report online that as a former member of the body I have no opportunity to debate or refute.”
He described his 30s – his age range when the alleged misconduct occurred – as a time of “working very hard – and working harder”.
“It’s embarrassing, though not criminal, that I probably partied more than ever before in my life, behaved like a woman, drank and smoked.”
But in a sharp attack on the House’s existing objections to the continuing resolution (CR) bill on public expenditure aimed at keeping the government open, he concluded: “At least I did not vote for the CR which dominates the country!”