Some Republicans might actually support a House resolution to release the Ethics report on Matt Gaetz’s alleged sexual misconduct.
After the House Ethics Committee did not agree to release the report Wednesday, Democratic Representatives Steve Cohen and Sean Casten both introduced motions to force a House vote on releasing the report.
It seems that some Republicans actually are in favor of releasing the report, which details a yearslong investigation into Gaetz for alleged sexual misconduct, even though doing so could sink his nomination to be the next attorney general and possibly go against Donald Trump’s wishes.
CNN’s Manu Raju asked Wisconsin Representative Derrick Van Orden, a Republican, whether he would vote to release the report.
“I think it’s very important that everybody has as much knowledge as possible so they can make an informed decision,” Van Orden said.
“That sounds like yes,” Raju responded.
“That’s a yes,” Van Orden said. “So if the rumors are true about Gaetz’s conduct then there should be referrals to other agencies. And if they’re not true then there’s a whole lotta people who owe him an apology.”
Nebraska Representative Don Bacon, also a Republican, said he thought the report should at the very least be passed on to the Senate, even if the House Ethics Committee did not vote to release it.
“The Senate deserves to have it, so they can make a good decision,” he told Politico.
The House will have to vote on the motions within two days of their being introduced.
Republican senators are once again falling in line to support a man they’ve publicly and privately disavowed. But instead of Donald Trump, this time it’s Matt Gaetz.
Gaetz was on Capitol Hill with Senator JD Vance today trying to corral congressional support for his jeopardized attorney general nomination. The former Florida representative and MAGA Republican is surrounded by ongoing investigations from the House Ethics Committee and the Justice Department regarding allegations that he trafficked and had sex with a minor at a sex party in 2017. Gaetz attempted to end the probe by resigning from Congress right before the House Ethics Committee was set to release its finding. The House Ethics Committee voted on Wednesday to complete the investigation but has not decided whether to release it.
It has also been reported that the House Ethics Committee has proof of Gaetz paying over $10,000 to two women between July 2017 and January 2019—women who later served as witnesses in the House and Justice Department probes against Gaetz.
Now Republicans are bending over backward to get ahead of the release, making incredibly flimsy excuses to defend the embattled representative.
“I just don’t think you can deal with allegations in the past as though they’re fact,” Senator Kevin Cramer told Politico in a striking quote. Cramer has also called similar past allegations against Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh “absurd.” He also noted that Donald Trump was a “victim of lawfare” and was tried “unjustly” like Gaetz is being now.
“I support all of Trump’s Cabinet picks. That’s a whole part of the process—there’ll be a Senate confirmation, public hearings,” said Representative Nancy Mace, who is currently leading hateful efforts to stop the single transgender congressional representative from using the bathroom. “The DOJ decided not to pursue charges against our colleague. And so, there’s the media—you guys want to make him guilty, hook, line, and sinker, or be judged during an execution of a guy who’s never been charged with a crime.”
Gaetz is one of three Trump nominees to be accused directly of or accused of enabling sexual assault. And the president-elect himself has been accused of it countless times over decades, with a jury in a civil suit finding that he did in fact sexually assault E. Jean Carroll. It’s abundantly clear that this is no longer a morally disqualifying act for Republicans.
Donald Trump has nominated a Christian nationalist with ties to Project 2025 to lead the Office of Management and Budget. CBS News reported Wednesday that Trump has chosen Russ Vought to lead the office for a second time. During Trump’s first term, Vought also served as OMB director. Since then, Vought was part of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 team, writing a chapter about the “Executive Office of the President.”
It’s yet another reminder that Trump is extensively involved with the conservative manifesto, despite his repeated denials during the 2024 campaign. Vought bragged on camera to two undercover climate journalists over the summer about his ties to Trump and his love of “Christian nation-ism.”
Vought told the journalists that his organization, the Center for Renewing America, was already drafting executive orders and policy memos for Trump to use immediately after taking office, making the wild claim that the group planned to to create “shadow” agencies to solidify the “Judeo-Christian worldview value system.”
If Vought is confirmed, he’ll be tasked with putting together the president’s proposed government budget, giving him extensive influence to carry out his far-right agenda. Vought was rumored to be considered for a Cabinet position, having already gone through the Trump team’s (very flawed) vetting system. His appointment follows fellow Project 2025 alumnus Brandon Carr’s nomination as chair of the Federal Communications Commission.
The Project 2025 manifesto was frequently attacked by Democrats and other Trump opponents during the 2024 campaign, leading to Trump saying he had........