AG (0:00)

MSW Media. Hello and welcome to the Daily Beans, Part two of two of the audio version of the House Ethics Committee report on Representative Matt Gaetz. It was released Monday, December 23, early in the morning. It was supposed to be released after this session ended and after the votes were done. The votes ended on Friday, so they released it Monday. We have already gone through the first half of the report and now we're going to go through the second half and we are going to start on page 16, which is under section I believe four. Let me scroll to make sure. Yes, section four, factual background. And this is section A with you know, several subsections. And now we're on page 16, section subsection 2, selected interactions. And that's where I'll begin. And then every once in a while I might interject with some commentary. I'll make sure that you know when it's me and when it's the report. So here we go with the report. Selected Interactions Based on the evidentiary record, the Committee identified at least 20 occasions from the beginning of 2017 through the middle of 2020 where there was substantial evidence that Representative Matt Gaetz met with women who were paid for sexual and or drugs. The Committee also received testimony related to multiple additional events, trips or parties where Representative Gates may have paid women for sex and drugs, although the Committee could not determine the specific dates or locations for all of them. To the extent Representative Gates paid money to women in connection with those trips, at least some such transactions are reflected in the chart discussed in the prior section. One of the women that Mr. Greenberg met on seekingarangement.com and introduced to Representative Gates in or around March of 2017 became Representative Gates girlfriend when he was almost 35 and she was 21 years old. Their relationship continued for over two years. The relationship was not exclusive and the committee received evidence that Representative Gates then girlfriends sometimes participated with him in in sexual encounters with other women who were active on the website or otherwise involved in sex for money arrangements. The committee also obtained text messages where she appeared to act as an intermediary between Representative Gates and the women he paid for sex. She herself was paid tens of thousands of dollars by Representative Gates over the course of their two year relationship. She stated, quote, matt always paid for anything for me. However, she invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination in response to several questions including what the purpose of specific payments were, whether Representative Gates ever paid her money for sex, and whether she was aware of Representative Gates paying others for sex. She also invoked her Fifth Amendment privilege when asked to Explain an increase in payments from representative Gates in 2019, whether any of the payments from Representative Gates were related to drugs, and whether payments she received from Mr. Greenberg were related to Representative Gates. The committee obtained messages between Mr. Greenberg and a 20 year old woman he met through seekingarangement.com who noted, quote, I usually do $400 per meet. As shown in the following exchange, Mr. Greenberg and the woman made plans to each bring a friend to their meet. The committee found that the language used by the woman and the amount proposed were consistent with typical pay per meet arrangements made by users of seekingarangement.com at that time. So here in the report are two photos of a text message exchange between Joel Greenberg and a 20 year old female. If you have a friend that is down, perhaps all four of us can meet up later. Do you party at all? Oh, that's perfect. I have a friend who introduced me to the website that I could bring. She's very pretty, great personality. I usually do $400 per meet. Does your friend use the website as well? And yes, I do like to go out sometimes. Greenberg responds, very cool. Yes, he understands the deal. Smiley face. What does your friend look like? $400 is not a problem. Are you both old enough to drink? So what do you have in mind for tonight? She says, Joel Greenberg sends a photo of Matt Gaetz. This is my friend, the woman says. Ooh, my friend thinks he's really cute. Greenberg says, well, he's down here only for the day. We work hard and play hard. Have you ever tried, Molly? That exchange occurred September 22, 2018. Evidence reviewed by the committee shows that on several occasions, Representative Gates met with women who corresponded with Mr. Greenberg in these messages. He continues to follow her on social media and has paid her more than $2,000 since late 2018. The committee received evidence indicating that the 20 year old woman in the above messages joined Mr. Greenberg and representative Gates at a hotel in Florida less than two weeks after her initial encounter with Representative Gates. The committee's records indicate that Representative Gates also invited another woman, who he regularly paid for sex, to meet him at the hotel without disclosing to her that others would be present. The other woman, who was 21 years old, had recently asked the Congressman for his help with her tuition. She recalled that Representative Gates agreed and told her to meet with him at the hotel room where he would provide her with a check, which, according to the woman, quote, was interesting because he had normally sent Venmo payments. When she arrived to pick up the check, she found Mr. Greenberg and the 20 year old woman presented. The 21 year old woman told the committee there was an expectation of a sexual encounter. The four of them had sex and afterwards Representative Gates gave her a $750 check made out to cash with tuition reimbursement in the memo line, which she deposited the next day to help pay her tuition. The 21 year old woman told the committee she believed that encounter could potentially be a form of coercion because I really needed the money. Representative Gates financial records confirmed that he wrote the check and that he was present at the hotel identified by the woman on the date identified by the woman. As another example, the committee obtained text messages that appeared to show Representative Gates messaging a woman he knew through Mr. Greenberg, inviting her to travel on a private plane to key west from 5-19-27 to the 21st of 2017 with quote, two guys, four girls, a very high quality, adventurous group. She initially responded, yeah, I'm in. To which Representative Gates said, fantastic. As is true, with all time you spend with me, it will be fun and very chill. The same woman was photographed with representative Gates on May 19, 2017 in Orlando. The photograph depicts Representative Gates in a casual shirt with his arm around her in a dimly lit bar. She was also photographed in front of a helicopter with three other women associated with Gates around the same time, including his then girlfriend. After the committee obtained copies of the text messages and selfie photo, there was public reporting about the evidence. In response to the reporting, Representative Gates spokesperson released a statement asserting, quote, rep. Gates does not know anything about the woman you're referencing, though he takes thousands of selfies each year. Payment records reviewed by the committee, however, show that representative Gates paid $600 to the woman the same day he was photographed with her. In February 2018, Mr. Greenberg introduced Representative Gates to two women with accounts on Seekingarangement.com they were generally older than the other women that Mr. Greenberg had previously introduced to Gaetz, and they had a slightly different relationship with the two men. They were the only women paid by Representative Gates who denied to the committee that the payments they received from the Congressman were compensation for engaging in sexual activity. One of the women, who was 25 years old when she met Gates, testified she understood herself to be more sophisticated than some other women. On seekingarangement.com in contrast to the women who almost exclusively interact with Representative Gates in hotel rooms or at private parties, this woman attended events as Representative Gates date for which she was paid between $500 and $1,000 per event. She also stated she didn't feel pressured to have sex with Representative Gates and only did so on some occasions. She told the committee that in December 2019, Representative Gates had his Congressional assistant arrange travel for her to DC for one night. According to the woman, she attended a dinner with Gates and a few other individuals. She stayed overnight at a hotel with Gates and had sex with him. Representative Gates sent the woman $1,000 around that time. The woman told the committee she was paid to be his date and the sex was not necessarily an expectation. The other older woman, who was 27 years old when she met Gaetz, was the only woman interviewed by the committee who did not view their relationship as transactional in nature. The first time she met Gates, however, she had sex with him and was paid $1,000 by Joel Greenberg, which she understood to have been at Representative Gates direction. She told the committee that she viewed her relationship with Representative Gates as more or less dating, although it was never anything serious. She said she was not familiar with his then girlfriend and said she was not aware that he was also having sexual relationships with her friend, the 25 year old woman. She frequently commented on his social media and he still follows her on social media. Most of the Sex for Money encounters the committee reviewed occurred in Florida, particularly around Orlando. Several of the women involved were students based in that area. On several occasions, however, Representative Gates did travel with women that he paid for sex. On September 13, 2018, Gates, two other men and six women traveled to the Bahamas. Representative Gates arrived by commercial plane later than the others who arrived on private planes. The group stayed at a vacation rental booked and paid for by one of the male travelers. The attendees stated this was a social trip. They sunbathed, chartered a boat and went to dinners and a casino. As a group, Representative Gates engaged in sexual activity with at least four of the women on the trip. Several of the women recalled that Representative Gates appeared to be under the influence of drugs and that they took ecstasy during the trip. One woman said she witnessed Representative Gates taking ecstasy as well. Most, if not all of the women involved had some history of sexual interactions with Gates for which they had been paid. While there were no specific payments to the women in connection with the Bahamas trip, according to one woman, the trip itself was more so. The payment the group returned to Orlando on September 16, 2018. Representative Gates flew on a private plane with another man and three women. While the remaining individuals flew on another private plane. Representative Gates paid for two women to travel to New York City in January 2019 to meet up with him and his then girlfriend. The committee reviewed text messages in which Representative Gates asked the woman about obtaining drugs in advance of the trip, stating who can help with party favors. In addition to paying for the travel costs, the committee received evidence that Representative Gates sent the women money to compensate them for sexual activities they engaged with him during the trip. While all the women that the committee interviewed stated their sexual activity with Gates was consensual, at least one woman felt that the use of drugs at the parties and events they attended may have impaired their ability to really know what was going on or fully consent. Indeed, nearly every woman that the committee spoke with could not remember the details of at least one or more of the events they attended with Gaetz and attributed that to drug or alcohol consumption. The women also discussed instances where Representative Gates would try to convince them to have sex with him or Mr. Greenberg. Quote, he would make me feel bad about not having sex with him or Joel Greenberg and that he would say, why don't you want to have sex with me? Or Mr. Greenberg? He looks very sad over there. Go make him happy. Another woman said that their relationship at some point was a loving friendship, but over time came to feel like a task. A third woman said, when I look back on certain moments, I feel violated. One woman said, I think about it all the time. I still see him when I turn on the TV and there's nothing anyone can do. It's frustrating to know I lived a reality that he denies. All right, we're going to go on to section three, which is Representative Gates's interactions with the minor he met through Mr. Greenberg. But we have to take a quick break, so stick around. We'll be right back. All right, everybody, welcome back. We're going on to section three and content warning here. This is rape. This is statutory rape with a minor. So this is Representative Gates's interactions with the minor he met through Mr. Greenberg, and it starts at the top of page 22. Numerous witnesses told the committee that on July 15, 2017, Representative Gates attended a party at Mr. Dorworth's home. The party was also attended by Mr. Greenberg, Representative Gates, then girlfriend, and several others, including victim a, who was 17 years old at the time. The record overwhelmingly suggests that Representative Gates had sex with multiple women at the party, including the then 17 year old for which they were paid. Mr. Dorworth testified that Representative Gates was a frequent guest at his home. To enter the community where Mr. Dorworth lives, non residents are required to present a driver's license before entering, and entry records are maintained. Mr. Dorworth believes that Representative Gates invited people to his home on the evening of July 15, 2017. Likewise, Gates, then girlfriend provided an affidavit in the civil litigation stating that she and Representative Gates attended the July 15, 2017 party at the Dorworth residence. The committee received testimony that Victim A and Gates had sex twice during the party, including at least once in the presence of of other party attendees. Victim a recalled receiving $400 in cash from Gaetz that evening, which she understood to be payment for sex. At the time, she had just completed her junior year of high school. Victim A said that she did not inform Gaetz that she was under 18 at the time, nor did he ask her age. The committee did not receive any evidence indicating that Gates was aware that Victim A was a minor when he had sex with her. Victim A acknowledged that she was under the influence of ecstasy during her sexual encounters with gaetz at the July 15 party and recalled seeing Representative Gates use cocaine at that party. Victim A told the committee she was certain of her sexual encounters with Gates on that night. As discussed further below, Representative Gates generally denied engaging in sexual activity with a minor, but refused to answer specific questions relating to his interactions with Victim A. On August 2, 2024, Representative Gates sent the committee a copy of a social media post from Mr. Dorworth regarding his lawsuit against Victim A in which he had accused her of being part of a conspiracy to defame him. In that post, Mr. Dorworth discussed his recent settlement with Victim A in which no funds were exchanged. He asserted that he had succeeded in proving that Victim A lied about him and and that she didn't just lie about me, she lied about Gaetz as well in a federal criminal investigation that resulted in no charges against the Congressman because our false accuser has no credibility and has no evidence for the crime that didn't occur the same day. Mr. Dorworth revised his post after Victim A's attorney contacted his attorneys to remove his claim that he succeeded in proving Victim A had lied but maintaining his assertion that she falsely accused Representative Gates. Mr. Dorworth testified to the committee that he himself was not present for the July 15, 2017 party at his own home, despite Victim A's assertions to the contrary. After the committee's interview and after he settled his lawsuit against Victim A, Mr. Dorworth was deposed and confronted with cell phone records showing that he was in fact at his residence during the party. Mr. Dorworth stated, I don't have an answer to these questions and I'm not going to opine on cell phone data when I don't know anything about it? I don't know. I don't believe I was there. There could be a million reasons for that. As the questions about his cell phone pinging from a tower less than a mile from his home continued, Mr. Dorworth became irritated, informing the attorney, quote, I'm telling you that I was not at that party. So if you believe those phone records somehow impute that I was or that they make it just undeniable, then that is certainly your belief. The committee requested through counsel that Mr. Dorworth clarify his testimony regarding his whereabouts on the evening of July 15, 2017, but his counsel did not respond. Number four, Representative Gates response to the allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. Representative Gates categorically stated to the committee that the allegations he may have engaged in sexual misconduct, including violations of federal laws relating to sex trafficking and state laws relating to prostitution and statutory rape, were false and that, quote, these allegations were investigated by the Department of Justice and the investigation was completely dropped. He also repeatedly, incorrectly stated that the DOJ investigation exonerated him. Representative Gates did not provide any explanation for his assertion that the allegations of state law violations were false, even though those violations were not within the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice. He also denied the allegations that he used illicit drugs. The committee provided Representative Gates with The names of 15 women who were alleged to have received payments from him or on his behalf relating to sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, as well as the approximate payment amounts in transaction years, but he did not provide any explanation for those payments. Representative Gates responded publicly to allegations that his payments to women were for sex by stating that, quote, someone is trying to recategorize my generosity to ex girlfriends as something more untoward. He also repeatedly denied ever having paid for sex. When given the opportunity to put that assertion in writing in this matter, however, Representative Gates refused to respond, asserting that asking about this sexual history as a single man with an adult woman is a bridge too far. Representative Gates did broadly address the allegation that he engaged in sexual activity with a minor. He asserted in his September 26, 2024 letter to the committee, quote, Your correspondence of September 4th asks whether I've engaged in sexual activity with any individual under 18. The answer to this question is unequivocally no. You can apply this response to every version of this question in every forum. The committee's September 4th letter, however, specifically asked him whether he was present at the July 15, 2017, party at Dorworth's, whether he ever engaged in sexual activity with victim A and when, and whether he gave victim A Money directly or indirectly and if so, for what purpose? Representative Gates didn't answer any of those questions. All right, on to Section B Allegations relating to the House gift rule in 2021 news outlets reported that federal investigators were reviewing the 2018 Bahamas trip. According to those reports, the trip was paid for by an associate of Representative Gates with connections to the medical marijuana industry who allegedly also paid for female escorts to accompany them on the trip. The only other male attendee was also connected to the medical marijuana industry. According to press reports, DOJ was investigating allegations that the trip may have been part of an illegal influence effort on behalf of the medical marijuana. As discussed above, the Bahamas trip took place from September 13th to 16th in 2018 and included Gates, two other men and six women. Gates flew on a commercial airline from D.C. to the Bahamas on September 13th, 2018. Gates Associate paid for a vacation rental for the whole group but told the committee that Representative Gates paid for various expenses in the Bahamas such as meals and that those expenses covered Representative Gates share of the vacation rental. No other individuals recalled whether Representative Gates paid for their meals, vacation rental or other activities on this trip. With the exception of his then girlfriend, no one recalled Representative Gates making cash payments and his bank statements and credit card records show do not show any transactions on those dates occurring in the Bahamas. No large withdrawals of cash during that time or in advance of the trip. On September 16, 2018, representative gates flew on his associates private plane from the Bahamas to Orlando along with three female passengers between 20 and 29 years old. See allegations related to Misuse of Official Resources as discussed above. In early 2018, Representative Gates met a woman through Mr. Greenberg. The same night they met they had sex and Mr. Greenberg sent her money. At that first meeting. The woman also told Gates she needed a new passport for an upcoming trip. She did not initially know Representative Gates was a Congressman, but he connected her with his then Chief of staff who worked with the State Department's Congressional liaison to secure a passport appointment for the woman. Within days of their first meeting, an individual from the Department of State Miami Passport Agency sent the Chief of Staff an email confirming an appointment for your constituent, which the Chief of Staff then forwarded to the woman who lived in Orlando, Florida outside of Gates Congressional district. The woman acknowledged to the committee that the money she received from Mr. Greenberg was sent on behalf of Gates, but denied that the money was compensation for their sexual encounter. Instead, she said the thousand dollars she received from Mr. Greenberg was to assist her with transportation costs to go to the Miami Passport Office from Orlando. The woman spent $195 to obtain her new passport prior to her trip. A standard $60 fee for an in person appointment plus $135 for the passport. She continued to meet up with Representative Gates on other occasions during which they engaged in sexual activity. The Committee reviewed other records relating to passport assistance requests from the Office of Gates. It was unusual for the Chief of Staff to process requests for expedited passports from constituents. Those casework matters were typically handled by district staff. The committee also received evidence that Gates tasked the Chief of Staff with assisting Greenberg on occasion. The Chief of Staff was no longer employed in Representative Gates office at the time of the Committee's review and did not respond to communications from the Committee. Part D Obstruction of the Committee's Investigations and I think we should really hone in on this particular section because this. Again, I'm not. I'm not sure why this wasn't investigated, but I want to get into it after another quick break. So stick around. We'll be right back. Hey everybody. Welcome back to the audio version of the Matt Gaetz House Ethics Committee report. This is Section D, Obstruction of the committee's investigation. On May 23, 2023, the committee informed Representative Gates that it had reauthorized an investigation into several allegations including sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, and sent Representative Gates a narrowly tailored request for information seeking specific documents related to the allegations squarely within the Committee's jurisdiction, namely violations related to the House gift rule or bribery and improper images on the House floor. The request for information also asked for, quote, any other information you believe may be relevant to the matter as a whole. In response, Representative Gates began sending letters to the Chairman and ranking member asserting, among other things, that the Committee's requests for a two week response time and signed declaration under oath, both of which are standard practices for the committee, were unreasonable and that he was being treated differently than other members of Congress. Representative Gates indicated that the Committee's request was overly burdensome and he would need to sort through six years worth of records across various accounts. In these letters, he also began making demands of the committee in exchange for his good faith cooperation, while suggesting the committee was being weaponized against him for various changing reasons. The Chairman and ranking Member granted Gates an extension through August 11, 2023 to respond to the request for information and explained the Committee's standard practices. Representative Gates missed that deadline and stated he would only produce documents in person at his district office. The Chairman and ranking member responded again giving him another extension through September 28, 2023. To comply with the request for information and reiterating the Committee's standard practices, Representative Gates again missed the deadline, ultimately producing three pages that were not fully responsive to the request for information. On October 2, 20, 2023. In his response, Representative Gates produced his boarding passes and itinerary used for the 2018 Bahamas trip, which he also stated he paid for personally. However, the boarding passes and itinerary only show his flights to the Bahamas and not his return. As discussed above, Representative Gates flew out of the Bahamas via private plane. Representative Gates intentionally omitted information relating to his return transportation, indicating in a later correspondence that because of the Committee's requ being for documents related to actual or planned travel to the Bahamas, he shouldn't have to be expected to produce records of his transportation from the Bahamas. When the Committee noted that any documents involving his transportation from the Bahamas were clearly related to the travel at issue, his response made clear that he was not willing to provide a good faith response. He said, does the Committee also have interest in every dollar I spent in the Bahamas on food, refreshments and other travel provisions such as sunscreen? I ask because your request is unclear, unrelated to House Rules, and a bit nosy. I can represent the committee. I can represent to the Committee that no funds of mine were expended in the Bahamas for illicit drug use or sexual misconduct. Despite frequently suggesting he had insufficient opportunities to respond to the allegations against him, Representative Gates sent more than a dozen letters to the Chairman and ranking member throughout the Committee's review. In addition to alleging the Committee's process was being weaponized against him, Gaetz repeatedly alleged that the Committee members and staff were leaking information to the press, that the Committee's nonpartisan staff were actually acting as Democrats, or that the Committee was working on behalf of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. He also demanded to know the sources of the allegations against him and argued that the Committee's investigation should be closed because DOJ had, quote, exonerated him. On May 20, 2024, the committee requested Representative Gates provide availability for an interview to be conducted sometime in the first two weeks of June. The interview would be an opportunity for Representative Gates to answer questions about and respond to the allegations. In that letter, the Committee appended a fulsome list of allegations involving Representative Gates to ensure his awareness of all allegations before the committee. On May 24, 2024, Representative Gates responded to the Committee's letter. He demanded the Committee investigate leaks to the press prior to him submitting for an interview and argued incorrectly that the Committee could not subpoena his testimony unless it empaneled an investigative subcommittee. He also referred to voluminous documentary evidence he produced to the committee that he claimed showed his innocence and categorically denied all the allegations. On June 17, 2024, the committee informed Gates that it would be both expanding and narrowing the scope of its investigation into allegations involving him. The letter also requested evidence that DOJ had exonerated him, any records previously produced to DOJ, and any other documents he believed the Committee should have and should already have received, comprising the voluminous evidence he claimed to have provided. Finally, the letter reiterated the Committee's request that Representative Gates appear for a voluntary interview and reminded him that pursuant to Committee Rule 10A, it would consider whether to use compulsory process to obtain his testimony. Representative Gates responded a week later, June 24, stating he would need additional time to review over 10,000 records he previously submitted to DOJ. He also reiterated his request that the Committee provide him with confidential information about his investigative sources as well as regarding any investigation of disclosure in the press. He then publicly called the Committee's investigation frivolous and said, it was an obvious fact that every investigation into me ends the same way. My exoneration. Representative Gates ultimately produced some additional documents to the Committee through early September, although it's not clear how many of these documents had previously been produced to the doj. The Committee also invited Gates to clarify the relevancy of the records he produced and most of which did not appear to be responsive to the Committee's request, to which he stated only that he was prioritizing the evidence that most clearly proved his innocence. Representative Gates also falsely stated in a letter to the committee, which he shared in a public social media post, that he had voluntarily produced tens of thousands of records to the contrary. Representative Gates provided only a couple hundred records, more than 90% of which was either irrelevant or or publicly available. Despite multiple extensions from the committee to review and produce responsive records from the 10,000 he claims he would review, Representative Gates ultimately declared he would no longer cooperate with the committee. In the public letter, the Committee also reviewed allegations that Representative Gates may have sought to tamper with witness testimony in connection with its investigation or the DOJ's investigation, DOJ refused to provide a copy of an audio recording in which Representative Gates discussed the DOJ's inquiry with one of the women he paid for sex. While the Committee did not find documentary evidence that Representative Gates directly acted to prevent any women from testifying before the Department of Justice or the Committee, some women cited a fear of retaliation from the congressman who, when declining to speak on the record with the committee. All right, let's go to section five, which are the findings, and then we'll have the dissent. So we should be able to finish the reading of this report. Section 5 findings. The committee found Representative Gates violated state laws related to sexual misconduct. Subsection 1. The committee did not find that Representative Gates violated federal sex trafficking laws. The Committee did not obtain substantial evidence that Representative Gates violated federal sex trafficking laws. The transportation of an individual for purposes of commercial sex could violate such laws if the individual was a minor or if the sexual activity occurred through force, fraud, or coercion. Representative Gates was alleged in news reports to have paid a minor to engage in sexual activity and travel with him on a trip to the Bahamas in September 2018. However, the youngest person who traveled with him and his associates was 18 years old at the time. Further, she and the other women who attended the Bahamas trip did not recall being paid for sexual activity on that occasion. One woman testified she was not paid for sex on the trip, although she did have sex with Gates because, quote, the trip itself was more so the payment. As discussed above, there is evidence that Representative Gates paid women to travel to New York and D.C. for commercial sex at that time. Each of the women were over the age of 18. While Representative Gates relationship with these women involved an exploitative power imbalance, the Committee does not have reason to believe that he used force, fraud or coercion as those terms apply under the applicable laws. So I'll interject here. This is probably the reason there were no Department of Justice charges brought in this case. They should have been state charges. However, I will say he about the fact that the DOJ refused to provide copy of an audio recording in which Gates discussed the DOJ's inquiry with one of the women he paid for sex. That tells me that the Department of Justice did actually investigate obstruction of justice and declined to bring charges and never told us about it. Unless that was just part of the original investigation, I'm not sure. The problem is we don't know. Right. That's the problem. All right. Subsection 2. The committee found that Representative Gates engaged in commercial sex. There is substantial evidence that Representative Gates paid women for sex and had others pay women for sex on his behalf. The Committee heard testimony from over half a dozen witnesses who attended parties, events and trips with representative gates from 2017 to 2020. Nearly every young woman that the committee interviewed confirmed that she was paid for sex by or on behalf of Gates. A few of the women characterized their relationship differently, describing a date for hire arrangement that may not necessarily implicate state prostitution laws. Even assuming the payments to those particular women would not violate prostitution laws. The Committee found evidence that Gaetz spent tens of thousands of dollars on other women with whom he had shared an understanding that they would be compensated for sexual activity with him. There were potentially additional amounts spent on commercial sex that could not be specifically identified, either because payments were made in cash or through intermediaries. The Committee's records thus indicates that Representative Gates enticed and procured women to engage in sexual activity for hire and purchase the services of women engaging in sexual activity for hire in violation of Florida state law. Representative Gates refused to answer the Committee's questions about his payments to women despite opportunities to do so in sworn testimony or in writing. While he has been unwilling to address the allegations under oath, Representative Gates has made several public statements regarding the allegations under the committee's review, including that his generosity to ex girlfriends is being misconstrued and that he has never, ever paid for sex. The committee found this to be untrue. Members are required to uphold the laws of the United States and all governments therein and never be a party to their evasion. Through his violations of state prostitution laws, Representative Gates acted contrary to his ethical obligation. Representative Gates 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, quote, not generosity to ex girlfriends, unquote, and does not reflect creditably upon the House. The Committee thus found Representative Gates to be in violation of House Rule 23, Clause 1. All right, we're going to take one last quick break. We're going to get to the findings that he violated Florida's statutory rape law. And we'll have a content warning for that as well as the illicit drug use and then a dissent from one of the members. So stick around. We'll be right back. All right, everybody, welcome back. We are in the middle of the findings section at the end of the House committee report. The House Ethics Committee report on Matt Gaetz. This is the section about how the Committee found that Representative Gates violated Florida's statutory rape law. So content warning for statutory rape. There is substantial evidence that Representative Gates engaged in sexual activity with a 17 year old girl. The committee received credible testimony from victim A herself, as well as multiple individuals corroborating the allegations. Several of those witnesses have also testified under oath before a federal grand jury and in civil litigation. Representative Gates denied the allegations but refused to testify under oath. He has publicly stated that Victim A doesn't exist and that he has not had sex with a 17 year old since I was 17. The committee found that to be untrue and determined that there is substantial evidence that Gaetz had sex with Victim A in July of 2017 when she was 17 years old and he was 35. Representative Gates actions were in violation of Florida's statutory rape law. Representative Gates has suggested that the allegations against him had been manufactured and that Mr. Greenberg and victim A are not credible. The Committee has acknowledged that Mr. Greenberg's credibility is in doubt. The committee received additional evidence from Mr. Greenberg that is not included in this report, much of it salacious but unverifiable. Although consistent with the nature of the conduct that the committee learned from other witnesses, the committee found no reason to doubt the credibility of Victim A. Representative Gates has suggested the fact that she has, through her attorneys, expressed an intention to seek civil redress against him for raping her means that she has financial motives. That undermines the veracity of her claims. The Committee reviewed a letter from counsel to Victim A to counsel for Gaetz, which stated she intends to pursue claims against Gaetz, including child sex trafficking and statutory rape, regardless whether Victim A has a pecuniary motive in sending such a communication. She cooperated with DOJ's investigation for years and was let down by the justice system when reports circulated that DOJ would be unlikely to pursue charges against Representative Gates. Victor Mae is entitled to all of the protections and remedies available to her under civil laws, and her intention to pursue claims against Gates and others do not negate her credibility. Moreover, as discussed above, the committee obtained testimony and documentary evidence from other witnesses corroborating the allegations. Representative Gates statutory rape of Victim A was a violation of Florida law, the Code of Official Conduct, and the Code of Ethics for Government Service. The Committee received evidence that Gates did not learn that Victim A was 17 years old until more than a month after the first sexual encounter. However, statutory rape is a strict liability crime. After he learned that Victor May was a minor, he maintained contact and less than six months after she turned 18, he met up with her again for commercial sex. When Mr. Greenberg was prosecuted for sex trafficking, the same individual, Representative Gates, denied that she existed. Existed. His conduct reflects discreditably upon the House Section B. The Committee found Representative Gates used illegal drugs. There is substantial evidence that Representative Gates used cocaine, ecstasy, and marijuana. At least two women saw Representative Gates using cocaine and ecstasy at different events. Even more women understood him to be regularly using ecstasy. There is also ample evidence that Representative Gates purchased and used marijuana. He appears to have set up an anonymous email account from his House office in the Capitol Complex for the purposes of purchasing marijuana. Representative Gates denied using illicit drugs in written correspondence to the Committee. Members of Congress are not required to undergo the same background check process as other government officials who obtain security clearance. That process includes answering questions about the use of illegal drugs in the seven preceding years. Representative Gates used illegal drugs on numerous occasions between 2017 and 2020 in violation of state laws. The Committee also received evidence that Representative Gates and his associates provided drugs to women to facilitate the sexual misconduct described above. Gaetz's conduct violated paragraph 2 of the Code of Ethics for Government Service and clause 1 of the Code of Official Conduct, Section C. The Committee found that Representative Gates violated the House Gift Rule. There is substantial evidence that Gates received impermissible gifts in connection with his travel to the Bahamas in September 2018. Specifically, Gates accepted travel via a private plane and other travel costs. Contrary to Gates claims that he provided substantial evidence to the Committee demonstrating his innocence of this allegation, he provided no evidence showing how he paid for any travel costs other than his flight to the Bahamas despite being given multiple opportunities to do so. As discussed above, Gates associate provided the lodging and returned flight via private plane. Gates accepted this gift without first seeking approval from the Committee. The Gift Rule requires members to apply for the Committee for a waiver to accept gifts of personal friendship with a fair market value over a threshold amount for travel via private plane. The Committee has provided extensive guidance. Less than a year after Representative Gates flight from the Bahamas trip, the Committee circulated a reminder about the guidance to the House community noting that quote, practically any flight on a non commercial aircraft that will exceed $250 and hence will require Committee approval. The flight, lodging, meal and entertainment expenses of the Bahamas trip that were incurred but not paid by Representative Gates were well in excess of the personal friendship threshold. The Committee also found evidence that Representative Gates impermissibly accepted private plane travel on other occasions. Representative Gates failed to disclose the Bahamas travel gift as well as other private flights he's taken on associates private planes on his financial disclosure forms. Accordingly, the Committee found Representative Gates violated House Rule 25, Clause 5 by accepting impermissible gifts. Consistent with the Committee's long standing precedent, Gates would be required to repay the value of those gifts and amend his financial disclosure statements to disclose receipt of the gifts. Section D. The Committee found Gaetz dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship. The Committee found substantial evidence that Gates used the power of his office to assist a woman with whom he was engaged in a sexual relationship in obtaining an expedited passport. The woman was not his constituent and the case was not handled in the same manner as similar Passport Assistant cases. Accordingly, the Committee found Representative Gates violated House regulations and laws requiring the use of official government resources for representational purposes and paragraph 5 of the Code of Ethics for Government Service, which prohibits the dispensing of special favors and privileges. Section E the Committee found Gaetz sought to obstruct its investigation of his conduct. The Committee found substantial evidence that Representative Gates engaged in obstructive conduct with respect to the Committee's investigation. Representative Gates pointed to evidence that would exonerate him, yet failed to produce any such materials. Representative Gates continuously sought to deflect, deter, or mislead the Committee in order to prevent his actions from being exposed. This was most notable with respect to the Committee's specific request regarding the Bahamas trip. As discussed above, Gates intentionally withheld information relating to his return trip via private plane. Gates clearly understood that had he acted contrary to House rules by accepting private plane travel, but chose to try to cover up his actions rather than comply with the Committee's request. Despite asserting he wanted an opportunity to address the allegations against him, Gates declined to provide testimony voluntarily and did not appear when subpoenaed. Representative Gates was also provided ample time to review and produce documents requested at various points in the Committee's investigation, yet he produced only a handful of non public documents to the Committee. These documents were largely irrelevant, corresponding to time periods after most of the relevant conduct occurred. Likewise, Representative Gates informed the Committee that he would welcome the opportunity to respond to written questions, and the committee then sent 16 questions after requesting an extension to respond, which was granted. It appears that Representative Gates used that time to craft a public letter mischaracterizing the Committee's request and asserting that he would no longer cooperate. Despite his uncooperative approach throughout the review, his actions undermined 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 Gates assertions were nothing more than attempts to delay the Committee's investigation. Representative Gates routinely ignored or significantly delayed producing relevant information requested by the Committee. His failure to respond required the Committee to issue subpoenas to financial institutions for Gates financial records related to alleged transactions. Those records show Gates bought and sold stocks and cryptocurrencies from a trading account he opened In March of 2021, some of the trades were below the $1,000 reporting threshold, but others were not. Representative Gates not only failed to file the required periodic transaction reports, but he also failed to disclose the transaction in his annual financial disclosure statement. The Committee's long standing practice is not to take enforcement action where a failure to file required disclosures is inadvertent. But because of his lack of cooperation, the Committee was unable to determine the reasons those transactions were not disclosed. The Committee reminded Gates of his duty of diligence and candor to the Committee. Representative Gates response was to suggest the Committee had a duty and candor to him and must reveal the confidential sources supporting the allegations against him. The Committee's rules prevent such disclosures. Moreover, the Committee has serious concerns that Gaetz might retaliate against individuals who cooperated with this committee. In 2020, the committee admonished Gaetz for his conduct toward a witness in a Congressional proceeding, finding that he acted in violation of the Code of Official Conduct for Public Statements that was perceived by some as a threat toward a witness. In that matter, the Committee did not find sufficient evidence to conclude that Gaetz had the requisite criminal intent and noted that he expressed regret for his conduct. In contrast, in the current matter, there is sufficient evidence of Representative Gates intent to derail the investigation. The Committee determined that Representative Gates attempts to mislead and deter the Committee from investigating his implicated federal criminal laws relating to false statements and obstruction of Congress. Even if Representative Gates obstructive conduct in this investigation did not rise to the level of criminal violations, it was certainly inconsistent with the requirement that Members act in a manner that reflects credibly upon the House in violation of House Rule 23, Clause 1. So in conclusion, based on the above, the Committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gates 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 Committee made no special oversight findings in this report. No budget statement is submitted, no funding is authorized by any measure in this report. So it's very interesting to me about his candor and diligence and all of that. He's apparently sold stocks and cryptocurrencies that he failed to report, declined to give testimony under oath. I mean, there's a lot here. So I'm very glad we got this report. A little late, though. Would have been good to get any of this much earlier. But I don't understand how Florida didn't file charges. I kind of do, but it's speculation. All Right. The final page here is the Section 8 views of Chairman Michael Guest on behalf of the dissenting committee members. I write on behalf of members of the Committee who did not support the release of the report regarding Matt Gaetz. 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. Gates after his resignation from the House on November 14, 2024. While we do not challenge the Committee's findings, we take great exception that the majority deviated from the Committee's well established standards and voted to release the report on an individual no longer in the Committee's jurisdiction, an action the Committee has not taken since 2006. House rules give the Committee jurisdiction over current members, officers and employees of the House. Consistent with these rules, when a member who is under investigation by the Committee leaves the House, the Committee's standard practice is to close its investigation and make no further statement on the findings. We do not believe the rules authorize the Committee to continue or expand its jurisdiction as it sees fit. Any precedent to the contrary is extremely rare, inconsistent with the rules, and outweighed by the vast majority of matters too numerous to list in which the Committee took no material action after losing jurisdiction. And I'm going to interject here, they're not too numerous to list. List a couple, just list a few. Because any precedent to the contrary, though extremely rare, is not unusual in matters of great public interest. So to say that you're in, it's outweighed by the vast majority of matters, none of which we will list here. But there are so many, we can't list even one, that just. That just reeks of. You have no case. Anyway, back to the report. Representative Gates resigned from Congress, withdrew from consideration to serve in the next administration, and declared he would not seek to be seated in the 119th Congress. The decision to publish the report after his resignation breaks from the Committee's long standing practice, opens the Committee to undue criticism, and will be viewed by some as an attempt to weaponize the Committee's process. We believe that operating outside the jurisdictional bounds set forth by the House rules and Committee standards, especially when making public disclosures, is a dangerous departure with potentially catastrophic consequences. Finally, we join the views of the Committee as expressed in its December 23, 2024 public statement addressing the significant and unusual amount of public reporting on the Committee's review of this matter as expressed by the Committee. Quote, to the extent that any of the public reporting on this matter came from unauthorized disclosures of confidential Committee information. We strongly condemn such authorized disclosures which are damaging and harmful to the Committee's work. And that is the end of the Matt Gaetz Report. We were able to do it in two audio episodes. Thank you for listening. I hope you continue to enjoy the Daily Beans this holiday week. We've got a lot of great interviews and Dana and I will be back in your ears on Monday. I have put some thoughts together on a brief thread on the Blue sky social media platform. Follow me there at mullershirote. Thank you for listening and have a happy holidays everybody. Until we meet again, please take care of yourselves, take care of each other, take care of the planet, take care of your mental health, and take care of your family. I'm AG and them's the beans. MSW Media.