Congressman Tim Burchett, Republican of Tennessee, shared with Fox News on Monday his outrage over the release of the long-awaited Matt Gaetz investigative report from the House Ethics Committee.
“I think it’s vindictive in nature,” Burchett said. “I just don’t see the point in all this is, a couple of old timers are going to cackle about it, and again, it’s not been proven, this is just a report,” stressing that it is “not a court of law.”
The allegations against Gaetz, of which Burchett doesn’t think the public should be made aware, include paying multiple women—including a minor—for sex and purchasing and using illegal drugs while serving in office.
“The Committee concluded there was substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules, state and federal laws, and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, acceptance of impermissible gifts, the provision of special favors and privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” the report concluded.
The context for the release of the report is twofold: One, Gaetz served as a member of Congress from 2017 until last month, a time during which he had a say in the creation of laws affecting millions of Americans. And two, Donald Trump nominated Gaetz as attorney general—a role in which he would have massive power in determining the application of federal law.
At the time, Trump wrote that Gaetz “distinguished himself in Congress through his focus on achieving desperately needed reform at the Department of Justice.”
Before the release of the damning report, Gaetz sought a restraining order to keep it sealed. He has denied the allegations in the report.
Just a few weeks ago, the Republican-led House Ethics Committee was on the same side of the issue as Gaetz and voted to block the document’s release. It was only after a series of reports on the allegations against Gaetz and Trump’s decision to pull his name from consideration for attorney general that the committee reversed course.
Gaetz is set to join the pro-Trump One America News Network as the host of “The Matt Gaetz Show,” which will be a part of the unpopular network’s primetime lineup. At the time of this story, the report on Gaetz had not been acknowledged on the One America News website or social media accounts.
