Mon. Nov 18th, 2024

House Ethics Committee to meet Wednesday to discuss Matt Gaetz report

By 37ci3 Nov18,2024


WASHINGTON — The House Ethics Committee plans to meet Wednesday to discuss a report from former GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, President Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, confirmed Monday.

The bipartisan Ethics Committee has been investigating Gaetz since 2021, investigating allegations of sexual abuse of a 17-year-old girl, illegal drug use and the acceptance of illegal gifts. But the committee lost jurisdiction over Gaetz after he resigned from the House on Thursday and has issued no public report on its investigation.

A lawyer on Friday he said In his personal testimony before the Ethics Committee, his attorney said he personally witnessed Gaetz having sex with a minor. Gaetz, 42, has denied all charges.

Republican senators who will consider Gaetz’s nomination after it is formalized next year have said they want details of the ethics investigation — whether it includes access to the report itself or the FBI’s background check on Gaetz.

The House Ethics panel was scheduled to discuss the report next Friday, but it was postponed after Gaetz resigned. CNN initially reported that the committee would meet on Wednesday. A spokesman for the ethics panel declined to comment.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., opposes the release of the Gaetz report, telling reporters Friday that Gaetz is now a former member of Congress and that the ethics panel only has jurisdiction over sitting members.

Johnson said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that he “hasn’t spoken one word about his ethics report” to Trump despite spending time with the president-elect in Washington, Mar-a-Lago and in the US in recent days. UFC event at Madison Square Garden.

A number of Republican senators, including some who will have the opportunity to question Gaetz at the Judiciary Committee’s confirmation hearings, have said. they want to see the House report.

Visible NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., said senators “absolutely” should have access to the House report.

“I believe the Senate should have access to this now. … It should definitely be part of our decision-making,” said Mullin, who served with Gaetz in the House and has been an outspoken critic of the Florida Republican’s character.

“Once again, I return to the Second Section of the Second Article of the Constitution. The Senate should give advice and consent to these persons,” the senator added. “In the process, we will give Matt Gaetz the same chances that we give to all of President Trump’s nominees.”





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