WASHINGTON — The House committee investigating sexual misconduct allegations against former Rep. Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general, obtained records detailing $10,000 in payments the former Florida congresswoman made to two women who were later witnesses in the panel’s probe, according to multiple media reports.
Documents under review by the House Ethics Committee, first reported by ABC News and later the Washington Post, outline 27 payments Gaetz made through Venmo and Paypal between July 2017 and January 2019 totaling $10,224 to the two witnesses. Both women were over the age of 18 years old at the time of the payments, ABC reported.
An attorney for the two women has said Gaetz paid the two women for sex and that one of his clients witnessed Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old girl at a party.
The bipartisan ethics commission declined to release its report into Gaetz’s conduct during a closed-door meeting Wednesday, with Democrats on the panel voting to publicize it and Republicans voting against doing so, according to lawmakers present.
The investigation is centered on Gaetz’s conduct during alleged drug-fueled sex parties he participated in between 2017 and 2020.
The New York Times on Wednesday reported federal investigators traced Gaetz’s payments by creating a convoluted, web-like diagram featuring thumbnail photos of Gaetz and several men and women to show how he transferred payments through intermediaries to the women.
Gaetz was previously under investigation by the Justice Department for allegations that he had sex with a 17-year-old girl and paid for her to travel with him. The DOJ ended the investigation in February 2023 and did not bring charges against Gaetz. Nevertheless, the Ethics Commission obtained a copy of the chart for its own probe, according to the Times.
Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing.
House Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson, have argued the Gaetz report should not be publicized, pointing to a policy to end investigations of members of Congress when they leave the body. Gaetz announced his resignation shortly after Trump nominated him as AG last week − just two days before the ethics committee was scheduled to vote on the report’s release.
The Senate Judiciary Committee, which will take up Gaetz’s nomination, has the power to subpoena the Gaetz report. Some Senate Republicans have said they want to see the report and predicted the details will come out.
Trump has said he’s not backing down from his nomination of Gaetz even as his confirmation is in jeopardy. “No,” Trump told reporters Tuesday when asked whether he’s reconsidering the nomination.
Trump’s nomination of Gaetz, a hardline MAGA warrior, sent shockwaves through Washington, stunning Democrats and Republicans alike. Although a commercial litigation attorney, Gaetz has no experience as a prosecutor. Gaetz has been a vocal critic of the Justice Department from his seat on the House Judiciary Committee, accusing Attorney General Merrick Garland of “weaponizing” the department by prosecuting Trump.
Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., introduced a resolution Wednesday that, if passed, would force the House Ethics Committee to release the report. The House has two legislative days to act on the resolution, so it will vote on it on Thursday or after the Thanksgiving holiday.
“Our hope is that the Ethics Committee does their job and releases the report before then so we don’t need to deal with this when we get back,” Casten said.
Vice President-elect JD Vance has been shepherding Gaetz around the Senate this week to meet with members of the Judiciary Committee. Gaetz has also been personally calling senators as he seeks confirmation.
The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment by USA TODAY.
Alex Pfeiffer, a Trump transition spokesman, told ABC News: “The Justice Department received access to roughly every financial transaction Matt Gaetz ever undertook and came to the conclusion that he committed no crime. These leaks are meant to undermine the mandate from the people to reform the Justice Department.”
By Joey Garrison, USA TODAY