The House of Representatives voted down an effort by Democrats to force the chamber to release a report on former Congressman Matt Gaetz from the House Ethics Committee.
The full scope of the report was a mystery, but it is known to have looked into allegations that Matt Gaetz had sex with a minor while serving as a member of Congress. Gaetz has repeatedly denied the accusations he faces, which state that he had repeated sexual encounters with a 17-year-old girl (at the time) at a party he attended in 2017, during his first term.
The vote was largely along party lines, with Republicans eager to turn the page on their former colleague. Gaetz, a former congressman from Florida, resigned from the chamber ahead of a failed bid to become attorney general freed the House GOP majority from answering questions about his antics.
Gaetz is seen now as a likely candidate for governor in Florida as the state’s GOP leader Ron DeSantis is term-limited. He remains a top ally of former President Donald Trump, who selected Pam Bondi in his stead after the congressman withdrew from consideration.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow…
