House Ethics Committee to convene to discuss potential release of report on Matt Gaetz

The House Ethics Committee is meeting about whether to release a report on their investigation into former Rep. Matt Gaetz, the pick for attorney general by President-elect Donald Trump. The committee, led by Chairman Michael Guest and Rep. Susan Wild, looked into allegations of sexual misconduct, drug use, improper gifts, favoritism, and obstruction of the probe by Gaetz over the past three years. Two women have testified that Gaetz paid them for sex at a party and one woman witnessed him having sex with a 17-year-old friend. Gaetz denies all allegations, which the Trump transition team has called baseless. Despite reservations from Republican senators overseeing Gaetz’s confirmation, Trump is standing by his pick for attorney general. The Ethics Committee may vote to publicly release the report, forward it to the Senate, or take no action. Wild believes the report should be made public and points to previous cases where reports were released after resignations. If the committee chooses not to release the report, any House member can attempt to force a vote to do so. In 1996, House Democrats unsuccessfully tried to release a report on then-Speaker Newt Gingrich. Ultimately, the fate of the Gaetz report remains uncertain as the Ethics Committee meets behind closed doors.

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