House ethics panel votes to release Gaetz probe, according to reports

Skyler Swisher, Orlando Sentinel on Dec 18, 2024

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The House Ethics Committee secretly voted earlier this month to release an investigative report into allegations of sexual misconduct against former North Florida U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, according to multiple media reports.

The vote paved the way for the report to be disclosed as Congress leaves Washington for its holiday break, potentially shedding more light on a political scandal with deep ties to Central Florida. Lawmakers face a Friday deadline to approve government funding to avoid a shutdown and head home for the holidays.

Calls intensified for the findings to be made public after President-elect Donald Trump named Gaetz as his nominee for U.S. attorney general. Facing mounting pressure, Gaetz, a firebrand Republican, withdrew his name from consideration, and Trump picked former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as a replacement.

Gaetz’s resignation from Congress prompted House Republicans to argue the report should be kept secret since the House no longer had jurisdiction. Such a move is unusual but not without precedent.

For two years, the U.S. Department of Justice investigated allegations that Gaetz had sex with a 17-year-old girl and paid for sex. Charges were never brought, and Gaetz has repeatedly denied wrongdoing. Justice Department officials didn’t explain their decision.

Though the criminal investigation ended, the House Ethics Committee continued with its probe, which started in the spring of 2021.

In a statement posted on X, Gaetz emphasized that he was never criminally charged and said he “NEVER had sexual contact with someone under 18.” He wrote he often sent funds to women he dated, as well as some women he didn’t date but asked.

“My 30’s were an era of working very hard – and playing hard too,” Gaetz wrote, following reports that the ethics probe would be released. “It’s embarrassing, though not criminal, that I probably partied, womanized, drank and smoked more than I should have earlier in life. I live a different life now.”

The panel’s vote, first reported by CNN, reversed a previous decision to keep the report secret.

Gaetz has a checkered history in Central Florida. He was friends with former Seminole County tax collector Joel Greenberg, who pleaded guilty to sex-trafficking and other charges and is serving an 11-year federal prison sentence. Gaetz’s name emerged during the Greenberg probe, prompting the justice department investigation that did not result in any charges against him.

Gaetz hasn’t announced his political plans for the future, but he’ll host a show on the pro-Trump One America News Network.

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