Fallout from a sex scandal investigation that crashed former Rep. Matt Gaetz’s effort to become attorney general and ended his time in Congress is putting future House probes at risk, according to a report.
Politico reported the House Ethics Committee is struggling to recover after it broke from precedent and released its findings as Gaetz was nominated to become President Donald Trump’s attorney general.
It’s extremely unusual for conclusions of such probes to be made public after a congress member resigns.
Now, the committee that assigns members the mission of digging into allegations of wrongdoing against their colleagues is struggling to find people willing to sit on it, Politico reported.
“Nobody ever wants to sit on the committee,” one lawmaker told Politico.
And former members said the already unpopular posting is now even more toxic.
“The Gaetz episode has contributed to conditions from which the Ethics Committee could struggle to fully recover, former members said in interviews,” according to the Politico report.
“It could plunge the panel into further dysfunction as the committee prepares in the coming weeks to ramp up after a monthslong delay and a pileup of potential cases.”
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Former Rep. Mike Conaway (R-TX), who served as the committee’s chair between 2013 and 2015, said the body is now subject to accusations of leaks and subterfuge after the Gaetz episode.
“It is a monster cloud,” he said.
Gaetz was investigated after allegations of sexual misconduct, drug use and obstruction of justice. The House Ethics Committee found substantial evidence that Gaetz violated federal and state laws, including those related to prostitution and statutory rape. The DOJ investigated Gaetz but ultimately declined to file charges. Gaetz continues to deny the allegations against him.
The congressman resigned before the committee’s findings were released — which prompted many, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, arguing that the investigation’s findings should not be made public — as is protocol.
“Paramount to the committee’s integrity on all matters is its strict code of confidentiality: Members agree never to speak in any capacity about its pending business, on or off the record,” Politico reported.
“After the events surrounding Gaetz, however, it’s not clear that confidentiality is still guaranteed.
“A flurry of news reports late last year revealed how members of the Ethics Committee were fighting over how to handle the Gaetz situation — insider information that spilled out into the public domain. Finger-pointing abounded as to who was leaking the private details, including the fact that there was a split secret vote on whether to release the Gaetz report.”