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Politicians behaving badly

Well, I guess we know what the topic of conversation will be on cable news tonight

www.independent.co.uk

Matt Gaetz sues Ethics Committee to block report on sex and drugs allegations: Live

Gaetz stands accused of violating Florida’s statutory rape laws, among others, report finds
www.independent.co.uk www.independent.co.uk
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Former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida is suing the House Ethics Committee to block a report that has reportedly found that he paid thousands of dollars to more than a dozen women — including a 17-year-old girl — for sex.

In a federal lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C., the Republican accused the committee of making an “unconstitutional” attempt to “exercise jurisdiction over a private citizen” by releasing a report “containing potentially defamatory allegations.”

He asked for a judge to issue an emergency order to block the report’s release. Drafts had already been published in several news outlets Monday morning.

Publishing the report would mark an “unprecedented overreach that threatens fundamental constitutional rights and established procedural protections,” attorneys for the former congressman wrote.

Gaetz stands accused of buying and using illegal drugs, including from his office on Capitol Hill, according to the report, a draft of which was first obtained by CBS News and CNN.

Gaetz is also accused of violating Florida’s statutory rape laws, among others, the report found.

“The Committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” the report states.
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CNN —
The House Ethics Committee found evidence that former Rep. Matt Gaetz paid tens of thousands of dollars to women for sex or drugs on at least 20 occasions, including paying a 17-year-old girl for sex in 2017, according to a final draft of the panel’s report on the Florida Republican, obtained by CNN.

The committee concluded in its bombshell document that Gaetz violated Florida state laws, including the state’s statutory rape law, as the GOP-led panel chose to take the rare step of releasing a report about a former member who resigned from Congress.

“The Committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” panel investigators wrote.

The panel investigated transactions Gaetz personally made, often using PayPal or Venmo, to more than a dozen women during his time in Congress, according to the report. Investigators also focused on a 2018 trip to the Bahamas – which they said “violated the House gift rule” – during which he “engaged in sexual activity” with multiple women, including one who described the trip itself as “the payment” for sex on the trip. On the same trip, he also took ecstasy, one woman on the trip told the committee.
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Two things I thought interesting were:

www.newsweek.com

Matt Gaetz issues threat to Congress as House ethics report looms

The House Ethics Committee reportedly voted in secret on Wednesday to release a hotly anticipated report on Gaetz.
www.newsweek.com www.newsweek.com
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What's New​

Former Congressman Matt Gaetz is threatening to "expose" the supposed "me too" settlements of his former colleagues after the House Ethics Committee voted to release a report on its investigation of sexual misconduct accusations leveled against the Florida Republican.

Newsweek reached out for comment to the offices of GOP Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries via email on Wednesday.

Why It Matters​

Gaetz resigned from Congress on November 13, just after President-elect Donald Trump nominated him to serve as U.S. attorney general. The former congressman withdrew himself from consideration a week later after facing doubts over his ability to gain Senate confirmation.

The House Ethics Committee report—focused on allegations including a claim that Gaetz had sex with a minor—was initially blocked from release by Gaetz's resignation and likely played a key role in the failure of his nomination to Trump's Cabinet.
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Maybe it's me, but I kind of took that as a confession of sorts. "If you rat me out, I'll rat you out too!"

Second. I'm impressed this didn't make the 'Friday News Dump'. Instead it seems like the committee hates this guy so much they went, "Hee hee! I know how we START the week! Isn't Rachel Maddow only on on Mondays?! Let's goooo!!!"
 
Jay Mysteri0 said:
Well, I guess we know what the topic of conversation will be on cable news tonight







Two things I thought interesting were:




Maybe it's me, but I kind of took that as a confession of sorts. "If you rat me out, I'll rat you out too!"

Second. I'm impressed this didn't make the 'Friday News Dump'. Instead it seems like the committee hates this guy so much they went, "Hee hee! I know how we START the week! Isn't Rachel Maddow only on on Mondays?! Let's goooo!!!"
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They have officially released the report, and one can read it here.

www.cbsnews.com

Read the Matt Gaetz ethics report on findings from House committee investigation

The House Ethics Committee has released its long-awaited report on allegations of misconduct by former Rep. Matt Gaetz. Read the full report here.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com
 
I think one interesting take I heard was from Rachel Maddow who pointed out that super religious guy Mike Johnson was the one who led the charge on hiding the Gaetz report.

apnews.com

Speaker Johnson says Gaetz ethics report should not be released, rebuffing senators

House Speaker Mike Johnson says that he will “strongly request” that the House Ethics Committee not release the results of its investigation into ex-Rep. Matt Gaetz.
apnews.com apnews.com
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WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday that he will “strongly request” that the House Ethics Committee not release the results of its investigation into ex-Rep. Matt Gaetz, rebuffing senators who are demanding access now that Gaetz is President-elect Donald Trump ‘s nominee for attorney general.

Johnson’s intervention is highly unusual, as the Ethics panel has traditionally operated independently. His move seems certain to add the growing furor on Capitol Hill over Gaetz’s nomination to become the nation’s top law enforcement officer.

“I’m going to strongly request that the Ethics Committee not issue the report, because that is not the way we do things in the House,” Johnson told reporters at the U.S. Capitol. “And I think that would be a terrible precedent to set.”

Ethics reports have previously been released after a member’s resignation, though it is extremely rare.

Johnson’s comments were a reversal from Wednesday, when he suggested a hands-off approach to the Gaetz report. The “Speaker of the House is not involved in that and can’t be involved in that,” he previously said of the Ethics committee.
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Seems one's "strongly held religious views" can be very flexible when needed.

www.cbsnews.com

Matt Gaetz ethics report says his drug use and sex with a minor violated state laws

A report by the House Ethics Committee found former Rep. Matt Gaetz paid multiple women, including a 17-year-old girl, for sex.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com
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Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican who briefly stood to become President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to be attorney general, was found by congressional ethics investigators to have paid numerous women — including a 17-year-old girl — for sex, and to have purchased and used illegal drugs, including from his Capitol Hill office.

Those are among the findings of the long-running investigation by the House Ethics Committee into Gaetz, which concluded the former Florida congressman violated multiple state laws related to sexual misconduct while in office. The full report was released by the committee Monday.

"The Committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress," the 37-page report concludes.
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Ewww.
 
Here’s a reminder of the favorable treatment Gaetz received when he broke the law in the past. He’s been given a pass for a decade, and even now it seems like there won’t be any criminal charges. Must be nice to be a well-connected politician.

www.tampabay.com

Matt Gaetz’s talk of mug shot raises questions about DUI arrest

TALLAHASSEE — Rep. Matt Gaetz recently held himself out as a man who accepts responsibility for his mistakes.
www.tampabay.com www.tampabay.com

TALLAHASSEE — Rep. Matt Gaetz recently held himself out as a man who accepts responsibility for his mistakes.

He brought up his 2008 DUI arrest during a meeting last week of the House criminal justice committee, which he chairs. The topic: a bill that would keep mug shots of people who are charged with crimes off the Internet until they are convicted.
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But as it turns out, notoriety is about the worst consequence Gaetz, now 31, has faced from the DUI arrest.

He didn't have his license suspended for a year when he refused the breath test — as Florida law dictates. And he didn't have that refusal used against him in a criminal proceeding. Charges against Gaetz were dismissed after events that included, among other things, the forced resignation of the arresting officer.
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More than a week after Anglin quit, the prosecutor asked to be taken off the case, because his stepson was friends with Gaetz. Then-Gov. Charlie Crist's office assigned the case to Steve Meadows, the state attorney for the neighboring circuit.

Less than a week later, Gaetz had his driver's license reinstated. A field officer for the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles declared there was no evidence that Gaetz refused a breath test. Yet the refusal was clearly documented in Anglin's affidavit and arrest report.

It even was documented in Pinkerton's Dec. 18 motion to dismiss charges against Gaetz.
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Hurricanes, humidity, sinkholes, DeSantis, and now potentially Gaetz as governor. God must hate Florida.
 
Thomas Veil said:
Hurricanes, humidity, sinkholes, DeSantis, and now potentially Gaetz as governor. God must hate Florida.
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red tides (a term I learned this week).

oceanservice.noaa.gov

What is a red tide?

A red tide is one type of harmful algal bloom. Blooms occur when colonies of algae--simple ocean plants that live in the sea--grow out of control while producing toxic or harmful effects on people, fish, shellfish, marine mammals and birds.
oceanservice.noaa.gov

(ironically it's clearly a consequence of climate change + fertilizers making it into the ocean)
 
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SouprMatt said:
They are going to approve this Nazi for sure. We are seriously f-ed.
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Yeah. Ernst sounded like a convert. Sigh. The no votes won't add up.

So to Plan B... he doesn't last long?

I try to think of him as red meat for the base. Eminently replaceable when public opinion registers "Uh..."

Problem is who really wants to serve this incoming Commander in Chief and can take the oath meaning to serve the Constitution, while having a political record and level of visible personal loyalty to the naked emperor that is apparently required. It's a problem. Military leaders are trained to come off as apolitical. Not WH lap dogs.

A bigger problem is that the USA's actual enemies are watching.

Laughable: Hegseth leading a Pentagon audit. The contractors are high fiving already. Champagne in C-suites.

I'm going to end up following cat, bird and flower posters on social media for five years or lose my mind.
 
lizkat said:
Yeah. Ernst sounded like a convert. Sigh. The no votes won't add up.

So to Plan B... he doesn't last long?

I try to think of him as red meat for the base. Eminently replaceable when public opinion registers "Uh..."

Problem is who really wants to serve this incoming Commander in Chief and can take the oath meaning to serve the Constitution, while having a political record and level of visible personal loyalty to the naked emperor that is apparently required. It's a problem. Military leaders are trained to come off as apolitical. Not WH lap dogs.

A bigger problem is that the USA's actual enemies are watching.

Laughable: Hegseth leading a Pentagon audit. The contractors are high fiving already. Champagne in C-suites.

I'm going to end up following cat, bird and flower posters on social media for five years or lose my mind.
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His answers are so pathetic. Even if all the accusations were false, he should be disqualified based on how he answers these questions. For every accusation he just says “smear campaign” “anonymous accusations” etc. And when Senators point out they are NOT anonymous, he switches back to “smear campaign” or just ignores it. The Secretary of Defense should have WAY more composure and professionalism than this,

Somebody told him he has the votes no matter what, so it appears this hearing is a total farce. Maybe they can bring in his accuser and hire the woman from the Kavanaugh hearing to ask her questions. That should make it seem like they care before appointing a rapist to SECDEF. Nope, they aren’t even gonna put in THAT much effort this time. Just rubber stamp a drunk racist Nazi because Emperor Trump said so.
 
Take away all of Pete Hegseth’s drunkenness and misogyny, and you’re left with…



An incompetent nincompoop. He should be great in negotiations with our partners in SE Asia. Right?
 
SouprMatt said:
Take away all of Pete Hegseth’s drunkenness and misogyny, and you’re left with…



An incompetent nincompoop. He should be great in negotiations with our partners in SE Asia. Right?
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Well now we'll get to find out. Only good thing about Hegseth's confirmation is that McConnell finally stepped up to join Collins and Murkowski by voting NO and thus made Vance own it as a tie-breaker.

I had hoped Mitch would vote no, but also hoped he'd be able to persuade Tillis to go along with him. That was too much of a long shot I guess.
 
lizkat said:
Well now we'll get to find out. Only good thing about Hegseth's confirmation is that McConnell finally stepped up to join Collins and Murkowski by voting NO and thus made Vance own it as a tie-breaker.

I had hoped Mitch would vote no, but also hoped he'd be able to persuade Tillis to go along with him. That was too much of a long shot I guess.
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Mitch only did that because he is approaching the end of his life and wants to get a slightly cooler spot in hell.
 
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