Virtually all of President Trump's cabinet picks have caused seizures on the left, but none have been more controversial than former Florida congressman Matt Gaetz, who, if confirmed by the Senate, will replace Merrick Garland as attorney general. There is no one who caused it.
In addition to being unapologetically brash and outspoken against the establishment, Gates has also faced some serious accusations, the most notable of which are sex trafficking accusations. , upset.
However, no charges have been filed since then. That means either the scandal was deliberately covered up, the accusations are false, and the entire ordeal is a smear campaign.
Liz Wheeler leans toward the latter.
“We're going to find out exactly who is behind the accusations against Matt Gaetz,” she says. “When you hear the whole story written with a timeline of what happened and when, it's a pretty amazing story.”
“anytime [Gaetz] “For example, he is constantly mentioned in the mainstream media as being under ethics review by the U.S. House of Representatives or facing sex trafficking allegations,” she points out.
It's important to establish that “people in Washington, DC don't like Matt Gaetz.” Partly because “he was some kind of playboy,” partly because “he was a bit of an unpleasant person,” but most importantly because he was “a Trump fighter.” She explains that since 2016, Gates began clashing with establishment Republicans shortly after he was elected to Congress.
“In Washington, D.C., what happens when the establishment hates you is that you become a target,” Liz explains.
And that seems to be exactly what happened to him.
In 2020, the FBI suddenly began investigating Matt Gaetz for allegedly having a relationship with a minor (a 17-year-old girl) and paying her to travel across state lines.
“If these allegations are true, that is the definition of sex trafficking,” Liz says. “That's where the sex trafficking allegations come into play.”
But the person who alerted the FBI to Gaetz's alleged crimes is a scandal in itself.
The accuser is Joel Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector who was charged with 33 crimes, including sex trafficking, theft, stalking, and virtual currency fraud. Greenberg claimed to have been friends with Matt Gaetz.
Following Mr. Greenberg's accusations, the Justice Department launched a two-year investigation into Mr. Gaetz.
While the investigation was ongoing, “Gaetz stated that he and his father were either victims or targets of extortion.”
And he was right. A businessman named Stephen Alford tried to extort $25 million from Don Gates in exchange for “dropping” the investigation against his son.
“Gates and his father instead cooperated with the local FBI office, which resulted in Alford's arrest and his pleading guilty to extortion,” Liz says.
Fast forward to late 2022, and Biden's Justice Department announced it would not indict Matt Gaetz at all. The investigation was closed when both Greenberg and Gaetz, the 17-year-old girl who was allegedly trafficked, were found to be “untrustworthy.”
“In other words, they were such bad liars that even the Biden Justice Department thought, 'There's no way we can trust these two,'” Liz says. “this is, biden Department of Justice — A Biden Justice Department that invents things to target political opponents. …There was so little in these allegations that even the Biden Justice Department dropped them. ”
But there is another layer to this story.
Back in 2021, an ethics investigation was launched against Matt Gaetz, but it was quickly halted as the Justice Department began investigating sex trafficking allegations.
And before former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is elected in 2022, some Republicans are demanding “a series of reforms,” one of which is that “any member of the House can make a motion to vacate the speaker's seat. ” was.
“Well, Matt Gates led that fight,” Liz says. Kevin McCarthy, who was fired in 2023 and replaced by Mike Johnson as a result of the policies Gaetz supported, “hates Matt Gaetz.”
Prior to his removal, “the McCarthy-led House of Representatives reinstated an ethics investigation.”
“In October 2023, Matt Gaetz moved to vacate the chairmanship, making McCarthy the first chairman in U.S. history to be ousted,” Riz said.
“Kevin McCarthy claims Matt Gaetz did this to kill the ethics investigation against him. Gaetz claims it's because McCarthy didn't keep his word, and now we're in 2024. “Matt Gaetz has been nominated by President-elect Trump to be Attorney General of the United States Department of Justice,” Liz explains.
The nomination resulted in Gaetz's resignation from Congress, making it impossible for the Ethics Committee to investigate. Additionally, any reports the company may have are “not available for public release” at this time.
Liz calls the scandal surrounding Gaetz “a personal and petty political grievance.” “Character assassination of the worst kind.” and a “smear campaign from the depths of hell.”
To hear more from her, watch the episode above.
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