由两党组成的众议院道德委员会周一发布了一份措辞严厉的报告，结束了对前众议员的长达一年的调查。马特·盖兹，发现“实质性证据”表明他在2017年与一名17岁的女孩发生性关系，违反了佛罗里达州的法定强奸法，并参与了更广泛的付钱给女性进行性交易的模式。
在盖兹拒绝遵守传票并拒绝向委员会提供证据后，该报告还详细说明了非法使用药物、接受不当礼物、给予个人同事特殊照顾和阻挠的证据。
一名妇女向委员会作证说盖兹2017年和她做爱那时她17岁，刚刚完成高中三年级的学业，而盖兹是他在国会的第一年。该女子在报告中只被称为“受害者A”，她告诉调查人员，那天晚上她从当时的国会议员那里收到了400美元现金，“她认为这是性交易的报酬，”根据报告。
“委员会收到了受害者A本人的可信证词，以及多名个人证实了这一指控，”报告称。“受害者A说她没有告诉盖兹议员她当时不满18岁，他也没有问她的年龄。”
虽然委员会报告中的许多指控以前报告过这是第一次该名女子关于Gaetz在她未成年时与她发生性关系的直接证词被公之于众，同时还有来自其他人的确证证词。
调查人员指出，虽然这位前佛罗里达州众议员“暗示对他的指控是捏造的”，并质疑受害者A的可信度，“但委员会认为没有理由怀疑受害者A的可信度。”
该报告详细说明，在2017年至2020年期间，该委员会获得的记录显示，盖兹向12名不同的女性和他曾经的密友乔尔·格林伯格支付了近10万美元认罪包括性交易受害者a。
根据该报告，尽管所有向委员会作证的女性都表示，她们与盖兹的性接触是自愿的，但一名女性表示担心，在聚会和活动中使用毒品可能“损害了她们真正了解情况或完全同意的能力。”另一名妇女告诉委员会，“当我回顾某些时刻时，我觉得受到了侵犯。”
该报告称，盖兹“利用年轻女性的经济脆弱性，引诱她们从事性活动，每次见面后她们平均可获得数百美元。”
报告写道，“这种行为不是‘对前女友的慷慨’，也没有给众议院带来好的影响，”报告引用了这位前国会议员之前的声明，称这些指控是有人“试图将我对前女友的慷慨归类为更不合适的事情。”
“根据上述情况，委员会确定有大量证据表明，众议员盖兹违反了众议院规则和其他行为标准，禁止卖淫、法定强奸、非法药物使用、不允许的礼物、特殊优惠或特权以及妨碍国会，”报告说。
盖兹一再否认有任何不当行为。司法部拒绝指控他去年，在对类似指控进行了长达一年的调查后。
当选总统唐纳德·特朗普上个月任命盖兹为即将上任的政府的司法部长，盖兹不久后辞去了他的国会席位。盖兹随后撤回他的名字他说，他的确认过程“不公平地分散了特朗普/万斯过渡的关键工作。”
特朗普任命盖兹为司法部长时，道德委员会正处于对盖兹调查的最后阶段。如果成员离任，委员会通常会停止对他们的调查，但盖兹的辞职引发了一场争论激烈的辩论在国会山，该小组是否应该公布其报告，以允许参议院履行其审查总统提名的职责。
继上周暗示该委员会将发布其报告后，盖兹在一份声明中对X冗长的帖子他写道，当他单身时，他“经常给约会的女人寄钱”，他“从未和18岁以下的人发生过性接触。”
“这很尴尬，虽然不是犯罪，但我可能参加聚会，玩弄女性，喝酒和抽烟比我早年应该做的还要多。我现在过着不同的生活，”他写道。“我从来没有被指控过。我从未被起诉过。相反，据报道，众议院道德委员会将在网上发布一份报告，作为该机构的前成员，我没有机会进行辩论或反驳。”
该委员会在报告中得出结论，没有找到足够的证据证明Gaetz违反了联邦性交易法，并发现尽管Gaetz“确实导致了以商业色情为目的的跨州妇女运输”，但调查人员没有找到证据“证明这些妇女中有任何人在旅行时不满18岁，委员会也没有找到足够的证据证明这些商业色情行为是由武力、欺诈或胁迫诱导的。”
根据这份报告，该委员会进行了20多次面谈，发出了29张传票，审查了近1.4万份文件，并要求多个政府机构提供信息，作为对指控进行广泛调查的一部分。
报告称，该委员会收到了格林伯格的书面证词，但出于对可信度的担忧，调查人员表示，他们“不会完全依赖格林伯格提供的信息”。
该委员会还指控盖兹无视传票，扣留文件，拒绝回答有关指控的问题，从而阻碍了调查。
“代表盖兹不断寻求转移，阻止，或误导委员会，以防止他的行动被揭露，”报告中写道。“他的行动不仅破坏了他关于他可以提供开脱罪责的信息的说法，也破坏了他关于他打算真诚地与委员会合作的说法。很明显，盖兹代表的断言只不过是企图拖延委员会的调查。”
据消息人士称，该委员会一直在调查有关盖兹参与性行为不端和非法药物使用、在众议院地板上分享不当图像或视频、滥用州身份记录、将竞选资金转为个人使用和/或接受贿赂、不当小费或不允许的礼物的指控。
今年早些时候，该委员会发布了一份声明，称将继续调查，但不再追究盖兹“可能在众议院地板上分享了不适当的图像或视频，滥用州身份记录，将竞选资金转为个人使用，和/或接受贿赂或不适当的小费”的指控。
根据这份报告，虽然几名委员会成员不支持它的发布，但大多数成员在12月10日投票支持它的发布。在报告结束时的一份声明中，众议院道德委员会主席迈克尔·盖斯特代表持异议的议员重申了他反对公布报告的立场，同时承认他和其他议员对报告的调查结果没有异议。
“我们相信并仍然坚定不移的立场是，众议院道德委员会在2024年11月14日从众议院辞职后，失去了向公众发布有关盖兹先生的任何实质性工作成果的管辖权，”Guest写道。
周一早些时候，盖兹对道德委员会提起诉讼，试图阻止该委员会发布其报告。
Gaetz在文件中说:“这一行动挑战了委员会通过威胁发布包含潜在诽谤指控的调查报告对普通公民行使管辖权的违宪和越权行为。”
盖兹在文件中要求法院发布临时限制令和初步禁令，以阻止发布报告或任何调查结果，他说这将导致“对他的声誉和专业地位的损害”，这将是“立即和严重的”。
“国会委员会威胁发布被认为是诽谤性的信息，涉及性行为和其他所谓的道德败坏行为，构成了不可挽回的伤害，无法通过金钱赔偿来弥补，”该文件称。
“在原告从国会辞职后，被告不适当地继续就其调查采取行动，并显然投票公开发布与原告有关的报告和/或调查材料，而没有适当通知或披露给原告，”诉状说。
周一报告发布后，美国地区法官阿米特·梅赫塔(Amit Mehta)要求盖兹在美国东部时间下午5点之前说明，鉴于“鉴于众议院道德委员会对报告的公开披露，此案似乎没有意义”，为什么该诉讼不应因缺乏管辖权而被驳回。
在随后的一份文件中，盖兹的律师承认，在报告发布后，他们的诉讼现在“正在讨论”,他们说这一举动给盖兹造成了“不可逆转和不可挽回的伤害”
该文件称，委员会发布报告的决定是“前所未有的，在程序上有缺陷”，并重申了他们的主张，即报告是在没有通知他的情况下发布的。
House Ethics report finds 'substantial evidence' Gaetz violated Florida statutory rape law
The bipartisan House Ethics Committee on Monday released a scathing report concluding its yearslong investigation into former Rep.Matt Gaetz, finding "substantial evidence" that he had sex with a 17-year-old in 2017 in violation of Florida's statutory rape law, and engaged in a broader pattern of paying women for sex.
The report also detailed evidence of illegal drug use, acceptance of improper gifts, granting special favors to personal associates, and obstruction, after Gaetz refused to comply with subpoenas and withheld evidence from the committee.
A woman testified to the committee that Gaetz hadsex with her in 2017, when she was 17 and had just completed her junior year of high school, and Gaetz was in his first year in Congress. Identified only as "Victim A" in the report, the woman told investigators she received $400 in cash from the then-congressman that evening, "which she understood to be payment for sex," according to the report.
"The Committee received credible testimony from Victim A herself, as well as multiple individuals corroborating the allegation," the report says. "Victim A said that she did not inform Representative Gaetz that she was under 18 at the time, nor did he ask her age."
While many of the allegations in the committee's report have beenpreviously reported, this is the first time the woman's direct testimony about Gaetz having sex with her when she was a minor has been made public, along with corroborating testimony from others.
Investigators noted that while the former Florida congressman has "suggested that the allegations against him have been manufactured" and had called into question Victim A's credibility, "the Committee found no reason to doubt the credibility of Victim A."
The report details that between 2017-2020, records obtained by the committee show Gaetz paid nearly $100,000 dollars to 12 different women and to Joel Greenberg, his one-time close friend who in 2021pleaded guiltyto numerous crimes, including sex trafficking Victim A.
While all the women who testified to the committee described their sexual encounters with Gaetz as consensual, according to the report, one woman raised concerns that drug use at the parties and events may have "impair[ed their] ability to really know what was going on or fully consent." Another woman told the committee, "When I look back on certain moments, I feel violated."
The report alleges that Gaetz "took advantage of the economic vulnerability of young women to lure them into sexual activity for which they received an average of a few hundred dollars after each encounter."
"Such behavior is not 'generosity to ex-girlfriends,' and it does not reflect creditably upon the House," the report reads, referencing the former congressman's previous statement dismissing the allegations as someone "trying to recategorize my generosity to ex-girlfriends as something more untoward."
"Based on the above, 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 says.
Gaetz has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. The Justice Departmentdeclined to charge himlast year after a yearslong investigation into similar allegations.
President-elect Donald Trump last month tapped Gaetz to serve as attorney general in the incoming administration, and Gaetz resigned his congressional seat shortly after. Gaetz subsequentlywithdrew his namefrom consideration for AG, saying his confirmation process was "unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition."
The Ethics Committee was in the final stages of its probe into Gaetz when Trump tapped him for attorney general. The committee generally drops investigations of members if they leave office, but Gaetz's resignation prompted afiery debateon Capitol Hill over whether the panel should release its report to allow the Senate to perform its role of vetting presidential nominations.
Following indications last week that the committee would release its report, Gaetz took to X in alengthy post, writing in part that when he was single he "often sent funds to women" he dated and that he "never had sexual contact with someone under 18."
"It's embarrassing, though not criminal, that I probably partied, womanized, drank and smoked more than I should have earlier in life. I live a different life now," he posted. "I've never been charged. I've never been sued. Instead, House Ethics will reportedly post a report online that I have no opportunity to debate or rebut as a former member of the body."
In its report, the committee concluded that it did not find substantial evidence that Gaetz violated federal sex trafficking laws, finding that while Gaetz "did cause the transportation of women across state lines for purposes of commercial sex," investigators did not find evidence "that any of those women were under 18 at the time of travel, nor did the Committee find sufficient evidence to conclude that the commercial sex acts were induced by force, fraud, or coercion."
According to the report, the committee conducted over two dozen interviews, issued 29 subpoenas, reviewed nearly 14,000 documents, and requested information from multiple government agencies as part of its extensive investigation into the allegations.
The committee received written testimony from Greenberg but, due to credibility concerns, investigators said they would "not rely exclusively on information provided by Mr. Greenberg," according to the report.
The committee also accused Gaetz of obstructing its investigation by ignoring subpoenas, withholding documents, and declining to answer questions about the allegations.
"Representative Gaetz continuously sought to deflect, deter, or mislead the Committee in order to prevent his actions from being exposed," the report reads. "His actions undermine not only his claims that he had exculpatory information to provide, but also his claims that he intended to cooperate with the Committee in good faith. It is apparent that Representative Gaetz's assertions were nothing more than attempts to delay the Committee's investigation."
The committee had been investigating allegations that Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift, according to sources.
Earlier this year, the committee released a statement that it would continue its probe but would no longer pursue allegations that Gaetz "may have shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe or improper gratuity."
According to the report, while several committee members did not support its release, a majority of its members voted in favor of its release on Dec. 10. In a statement at the conclusion of the report, House Ethics Chairman Michael Guest reiterated his stance against the release of the report on behalf of the dissenting members while acknowledging that he and other members do not dispute the report's findings.
"We believe and remain steadfast in the position that the House Committee on Ethics lost jurisdiction to release to the public any substantive work product regarding Mr. Gaetz after his resignation from the House on November 14, 2024," Guest wrote.
Earlier Monday Gaetz filed a lawsuit against the Ethics Committee in an effort to stop the committee from releasing its report.
"This action challenges the Committee's unconstitutional and ultra vires attempt to exercise jurisdiction over a private citizen through the threatened release of an investigative report containing potentially defamatory allegations," the filing from Gaetz said.
Gaetz in the filing asked the court to issue a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction to block the release of the report or any findings, which he says would cause "damage to his reputation and professional standing" that would be "immediate and severe."
"The threatened release of information believed to be defamatory by a Congressional committee concerning matters of sexual propriety and other acts of alleged moral turpitude constitutes irreparable harm that cannot be adequately remedied through monetary damages," the filing stated.
"After Plaintiff's resignation from Congress, Defendants improperly continued to act on its investigation, and apparently voted to publicly release reports and/or investigative materials related to Plaintiff without proper notice or disclosure to Plaintiff," the complaint said.
Following the report's release Monday, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta gave Gaetz until 5 p.m. ET to show why the suit shouldn't be dismissed with prejudice for lack of jurisdiction, given "this case appears to be moot in light of the House Ethics Committee's public disclosure of the report."
In a subsequent filing, attorneys for Gaetz acknowledged that their lawsuit is now "mooted" following the release of the report -- a move they said has caused Gaetz "irreversible and irreparable harm."
The filing said the committee's decision to release the report was "unprecedented and procedurally defective," and reiterated their claim that it was released without notifying him.
