matt gaetz 2 12%

220

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see trump trans 2 pension oann

troll caucus, skips pow , mofo [node his dishonor] in SNAP

mtg tag maga hard right extreme

merri ok

ufo benny 4 26

see rw violence

threats to quit?

some neglect

sex traffic? --> nuthin? // trump rape?

trust fund baby? pension plan?

https://www.alternet.org/2022/12/joel-greenberg-sentenced-11-years/

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Rep. Matt Gaetz, brother-in-law to Luckey, now stands to be the country’s next attorney general. In a post-election interview with Bloomberg, Luckey shared that he is already advising the Trump transition team and endorses the current candidates for defense secretary. “We did well under Trump, and we did better under Biden,” he said of Anduril. “I think we will do even better now.”

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maj report

4 26 gaetz ufo breeding benny j

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PKO

Kimberly Leonard and Gary Fineout

08/27/2026

JACKSONVILLE, Florida — Democrats are using a leaked grand jury report on Hope Florida as a fresh line of attack against Sunshine State GOP incumbents, seizing on findings that Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration “misappropriated” $10 million in taxpayer funds from a health care settlement intended to help needy children.

The controversy — first uncovered by GOP state lawmakers — has given Democrats an opening to tie two prominent Republicans to a dispute over millions of dollars in taxpayer money that ultimately flowed into a DeSantis-backed political committee.

The long-running scandal involved a charity connected to an initiative spearheaded by Florida first lady Casey DeSantis, called the Hope Florida Foundation, and has entangled GOP Sen. Ashley Moody and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, both of whom were appointed to their current jobs by the governor and are up for elections in November.

On Wednesday, a grand jury report looking into the funds was leaked to CBS Miami. According to the report, jurors concluded that state officials shifted upwards of $10 million as part of a “sophisticated scheme to fund political activities” because the money eventually went to a political committee and the Republican Party of Florida to defeat an amendment that would have broadly legalized marijuana in the state. Some of the money also flowed into a political committee tied to Gov. DeSantis himself, according to the grand jury.

But the report — which was apparently issued in January but has been kept under seal since then — also concluded there wasn’t enough evidence to criminally charge anyone because “nobody will take responsibility” for routing the money to the foundation or “had any memory of who made it.” At the time money was shifted, Moody was state attorney general while Uthmeier was the governor’s chief of staff.

CBS Miami published its story on the grand jury report on Wednesday, the same day state Rep. Angie Nixon, the Democrat running against Moody, launched her campaign kickoff event in Jacksonville. Ahead of her kickoff, Nixon called on Moody to resign and described the funds transfer as “corrupt” and “disrespectful” in an interview with POLITICO. She drew attention to the report in her stump speech before a crowd of around 200 people who gathered for her campaign launch later that night.

“It just came out today,” Nixon said of the news report. “She stole $10 million for medically needy kids in order to defeat two citizen-led ballot initiatives that you all placed on the ballot that would have allowed you all to have healthier lives.”

Asked about this before the revelations in the grand jury report were published, Moody’s campaign pointed to how Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration, which is responsible for setting health policy and planning, negotiated and settled the agreement with health insurer Centene after Centene overbilled Florida’s Medicaid program. The settlement ultimately led to the health insurer paying back the state $57 million, with another $10 million flowing into Hope Florida.

Moody’s Senate office spokesperson, Will O’Grady, said Thursday the leaked report “confirms what we have said all along,” regarding how AHCA negotiated the agreement “and the settlement funds were disbursed according to its terms.”

“Neither the Department of Legal Affairs nor the former attorney general had knowledge of how the settlement money would be spent,” he said. “Attempts to characterize this any other way are disingenuous.” Moody released a similar statement on X, blaming the news on the “political season” where “there may be a tendency to misrepresent the facts.”

But the grand jury report concluded Moody knew about the plans to divert the money to the foundation and “authorized” John Guard — then a top official in her office — to sign the settlement agreement. The report additionally stated Guard worried about the transfer and raised it with Moody, and as a result the settlement was rewritten so that AHCA was directing the funds instead of the attorney general. In her statement, Moody said “multiple agencies” signed the final agreement.

President Donald Trump nominated Guard for a federal judgeship last year but did not renominate him this year. Guard appeared before the grand jury, though Moody and Uthmeier didn’t. Asked about the leaked grand jury report on Thursday, DeSantis said during a press conference in Lake City, Florida, that “the only crime that was apparent” was its leak.

“There was no diversion of any Medicaid funds. It was a private settlement,” he said. The governor also argued that the “whole reason” the investigation came up was to “smear” his wife, though he didn’t raise the fact that the news had reached a fever pitch last year while Casey DeSantis was weighing a run for governor. The first lady is only mentioned in the grand jury report in the context of describing what Hope Florida is, not in regard to any transfer of funds.

Uthmeier was not only the governor’s chief of staff when the money was transferred but was also leading the political committee the governor was pushing to try to convince the public to vote against the pot ballot measure. Asked about the report Thursday, Uthmeier during a press conference in The Villages called it a “politically motivated witch hunt” and “hoax,” and maintained “nobody did anything wrong here.” He accused Democrats of collusion with the press to leak the report, though didn’t offer evidence of how CBS obtained the report, and pointed out how he wasn’t allowed under Florida law to comment on grand jury proceedings.

Democrat José Javier Rodríguez, who’s running against Uthmeier for Florida attorney general, called on his rival to “resign, come clean and turn himself in.” He pointed out that the report also said that Uthmeier was a key figure in the diversion of the funds and later was among those who’d been blocking the release of the report.

“This report pulls back the veil on the corruption Floridians have been seeing for years,” Javier Rodríguez said. “Enough is enough.”

David Jolly, the Democratic nominee for governor, pledged Thursday to “reopen” an investigation “into the laundering of Medicaid funds” if elected. Jolly, in a statement posted on X, noted that those involved — including Uthmeier and Moody — had been appointed to key posts by DeSantis, which he asserted was designed to “further insulate anyone from accountability and hide the truth from Floridians.” The campaign for Rep. Byron Donalds, the Republican nominee for governor, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Nixon said she wasn’t certain whether her campaign would be able to run ads on the matter — she has raised about $2.5 million since launching her campaign in January, an amount that falls far short of what would be needed to run a statewide ad. She added, however, that she would “hit [Moody] hard on it.”

“Kids are probably going to die because they didn’t get the resources that they needed,” she told POLITICO.

Annette Taddeo, the Democratic candidate for Florida chief financial officer, used the report to criticize current CFO Blaise Ingoglia, another DeSantis appointee, for “ignoring stealing in plain sight” and spending time criticizing local government instead of focusing on issues in state government.

Ingoglia was not in his position at the time the transfer occurred, but Katie Strickland, now a top aide for him, worked in the DeSantis administration at the time and was identified by other witnesses “as a participant in meetings and conversations.” The grand jury found her testimony “not credible” and called her testimony “least informative” because “she could hardly recall any details or information” about the settlement. Strickland did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Meanwhile, state Senate Democrats called on both Moody and Uthmeier to resign.

Democrats aren’t the only ones raising concerns. The initial investigation was started by GOP members of the state House before the grand jury took it up. The GOP state representative leading the investigation, Alex Andrade, had sent his records to the Second Judicial Circuit. GOP Sen. Rick Scott, a two-term former governor, had praised the state House’s work and said the money should be paid back. When asked about the latest report, Scott called it “deeply concerning.”

“Money designated to help poor kids was diverted to political ads,” he said. “Florida families deserve accountability, not more finger pointing in Tallahassee.”

Andrade declined to comment on the leaked report.

Former GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, now a host on One America News Network, praised CBS Miami’s Jim DeFede over X for producing a “great scoop” and later drew attention to the fact that Uthmeier had been leading the political committee against the marijuana amendment.

When Uthmeier celebrated a $1.2 million settlement on X with consulting firm Deloitte over its diversity, equity and inclusion practices, Gaetz taunted with, “What PAC are you sending the settlement money to?”

Kimberly Leonard reported from Jacksonville, and Gary Fineout reported from Tallahassee.

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AN 12 25

Disgraced former congressman mocked for joining Pentagon press pool

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4 26

benny maj rept alien breeding pgm

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AN 3 26

A disgraced MAGA ex-lawmaker used an ableist slur on Thursday during the annual CPAC conference to describe people who disagree with President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda.

“I come from the wing of the Republican Party that is only loyal to one nation, and that is the United States of America,” Gaetz declared. After describing the long delays at airports, he denounced Democrats and their supporters for backing the ongoing partial government shutdown.

“Not paying TSA and our cybersecurity professionals and those protecting America's networks and critical infrastructure — not paying those people and shutting them down — is not legislative strategy,” Gaetz said. “It is re------”

President Donald Trump almost appointed Matt Gaetz as his attorney general; indeed, the former lawmaker resigned as a House member from Florida for that reason. Yet ever since he was disgraced due to sexual misconduct allegations, Gaetz has stopped being a potential Trump administration member and been relegated to the role of booster.

“I stand with President Trump,” Gaetz told CPAC on Thursday. “The Senate should convene immediately, reopen the government, and pass the Save America Act for voter ID and proof of citizenship in every election in this country. Demanding an ID to vote is not racist. Actually, saying that demanding an ID to vote is racist is what's racist.”

He added, “It is so nice to live in the era of free speech again under President Trump and Vice President Vance. It felt like every moment in the Biden years, if we said a true thing about vaccine side effects, or indicated that we supported building a wall, or the rights of gun owners, that somehow we were labeled domestic terrorists — a threat to our nation.” Gaetz then proceeded to praise FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who since being appointed by Trump has threatened to pull people off the air for criticizing Trump and the Iran war, although Gaetz acknowledged his own reservations about the conflict.

“While I may not agree with the likes of Mark Levin, Ben Shapiro, or Mike Huckabee that we have some sort of near-slavish loyalty to a country in a faraway land, I would walk across hot coals arm in arm with those individuals to stop the Democrats from turning America into a more transsexual version of Venezuela,” Gaetz declared.

Although Gaetz managed to move the media spotlight away from his scandal by withdrawing his name from consideration as attorney general, the issue continues to garner attention.

"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," Politico’s Hailey Fuchs wrote earlier this month. "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. These events also obliterated the longstanding presumption of nonpartisanship inside the (Ethics) Committee, which is the only panel evenly split between Democrats and Republicans."

Fuchs added, "(Rep. Michael) Guest called the report's release a 'dangerous departure with potentially catastrophic consequences.' Speaker Mike Johnson had said he did not want the report to be public."

Gaetz was accused of paying multiple women for sex, including at least one minor.

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AN 11 25

Wichita Eager Editor Dion Lefler said when he first saw Reckoning Kansas’ December “election integrity” event announcement in his Facebook feed, his first reaction was “This can’t be real. It has to be a fake post from Democrats trying to discredit Kansas Republicans.”

“But I checked around and found that [disgraced Florida Rep. Matt] Gaetz himself is promoting his appearance and there is a website selling tickets — $50 for the main event and $200 for a ‘VIP package’ including ‘Exclusive post-event meet & greet with Matt Gaetz’ and ‘Photos with Matt Gaetz.’”

Lefler cited House Ethics Committee reports finding “substantial evidence” that from at least 2017 to 2020, then-Rep. Gaetz is alleged to have regularly paid women for engaging in sexual activity; that he reportedly engaged in sexual activity with a 17-year-old girl in 2017; that during the period 2017 to 2019, Gaetz allegedly used or possessed illegal drugs including cocaine and ecstasy and that he accepted gifts — including transportation and lodging in connection with a 2018 trip to the Bahamas — in excess of permissible amounts.

The committee also discovered that in 2018, Gaetz arranged for his chief of staff to assist a woman (with whom he engaged in sexual activity) in obtaining a passport, falsely indicating to the U.S. Department of State that she was a constituent. He then “knowingly and willfully” sought to impede and obstruct the Committee’s investigation of his conduct.

With Gaetz’s history, Lefler sarcastically quipped that photo opportunities with him should be a hit.

“It’s not every day you get the opportunity to have your picture taken with the second-most-prominent Republican politician allegedly linked to sexual misconduct with underage girls,” Lefler said. “That’s one you’ll want to frame and hang on your bathroom wall.”

Lefler said he had three immediate questions for Reckoning Kansas event organizers: “1) Who is Matt Gaetz to be advising anybody on integrity of anything? 2) What were you thinking? and 3) What are you smoking, and is it legally available?”

Organizers had not yet returned his calls.

Joining Gaetz for the “orgy of election denial,” said Lefler, are Pastor Lorenzo Sewell of Detroit, a “spiritual advisor” to Trump who spoke at his inauguration and the 2024 Republican National Convention, and Seth Keshel, a retired Army captain “best known for spreading debunked election theories under the nom de guerre ‘Captain K.’”

“If you want to save $50 (or $200), you could skip Reckoning Kansas entirely and just attend a meeting of the Kansas House and Senate Election committees,” said Lefler. “They invite the same sort of fringy flakes spreading the same pseudo-statistical disinformation. And in the Capitol, it’s not just talk; you can watch our legislators actually using that testimony in crafting our election laws. Best of all, the committee hearings are free to attend and probably even more entertaining than listening to Gaetz rant.”

Read the Wichita Eagle column at this link.

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RWW

11/13/2025

Kyle Mantyla

Michael S. Schmidt @ **:{The New York Times: In Matt Gaetz Scandal, Circumstances Left Teen Vulnerable to Exploitation}:

A 17-year-old with a homeless parent wanted money for braces and ended up having sex for money with powerful men. She wants the public to have a fuller understanding of how she was victimized.

Brandy Zadrozny @ MSNBC: The conspiracy crowd’s reaction to the Epstein emails? Yawn.

Far-right conspiracy theorists and influencers are a big reason the Epstein scandal hasn’t died. But the newly released emails about Trump haven’t impressed them.

Jeremy Kohler @ ProPublica: How Trump Has Exploited Pardons and Clemency to Reward Allies and Supporters

In his second term, President Donald Trump has largely used his clemency power to benefit allies, donors and culture-war figures — including Jan. 6 defendants.

Hunter Walker @ Talking Points Memo: JD Vance Received a Dire Warning About the Groyper Takeover of the GOP From a Strange Source

The call warning of a dangerous tide of extremism in Donald Trump’s Washington is coming from inside the house — the vice president’s house.

Tommy Christopher @ Mediaite: Megyn Kelly Spends 2 Solid Minutes On How Maybe Jeffrey Epstein Was Actually ‘Not A Pedophile’

YouTube and Sirius XM host Megyn Kelly took a detour to riff about how deceased sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein might not have been “an actual pedophile.”

Aaron Rupar and Thor Benson @ Public Notice: “It’s 4chan s**t": The govt's deranged social media presence

"You see Trump administration accounts that look like they’re literally run by Groypers," Charlie Warzel tells us.

Will Sommer @ The Bulwark: Kash Patel’s Girlfriend Is Driving MAGA Nuts

She’s litigious. They’re sexist. It’s a miasma of loathing.

David Gilbert @ Wired: Stewart Rhodes Relaunched the Oath Keepers. Even Old Oath Keepers Don’t Care

Militia leader Stewart Rhodes, who was convicted for his role in the January 6 attack, is asking potential new members and supporters to send money. Former allies are unconvinced.

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an 10 25

Matt Gaetz digs his heels in after fundraising PAC blasts his bizarre barcode 'lie'

2 2023

gaetz...introducing a House resolution to end U.S. military and financial aid to Ukraine co-sponsored by 10 other House Republicans.

In the "Ukraine Fatigue Resolution," Gaetz calls for the United States to "end its military and financial aid to Ukraine and urges all combatants to reach a peace agreement."

"President Joe Biden must have forgotten his prediction from March 2022, suggesting that arming Ukraine with military equipment will escalate the conflict to 'World War III,'" Gaetz said in a statement to Newsweek.

"America is in a state of managed decline, and it will exacerbate if we continue to hemorrhage taxpayer dollars toward a foreign war," he continued. "We must suspend all foreign aid for the War in Ukraine and demand that all combatants in this conflict reach a peace agreement immediately."

Matt Gaetz Resolution to End Aid toUkraine

Above, Rep. Lauren Boebert (L) and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R) sit together as President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union address during a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on February... More Win McNamee/Getty Images

These are the 10 House Republican co-sponsors of the bill:

Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona

Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado

Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida

Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky

Rep. Mary Miller of Illinois

Rep. Barry Moore of Alabama

Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina

Rep. Matt Rosendale of Montana

Many of these Republican lawmakers have been publicly against U.S. funding for Ukraine since the invasion began.

Massie, Gosar and Rosendale were the three Republicans who voted against a March 2022 resolution passed in the House supporting the people of Ukraine. Biggs, Gosar, Greene and Massie were also among the House Republicans who voted against investigating Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian war crimes last April.

Throughout times of high inflation, soaring gas prices and a baby formula shortage last year, they also called out the Biden administration for sending billions to Ukraine while Americans were struggling at home. They have also urged Biden to spend less on Ukraine and more funding to protect the southern U.S. border.

Greene, Boebert, Gaetz and other Republicans were seen remaining seated when President Joe Biden spoke about Ukraine during his State of the Union address on Tuesday, even when other GOP lawmakers were on their feet applauding.

Rosendale remarked after the speech that he wished Biden showed "the same passion for protecting America as he does for protecting Ukraine."

Back in October, he tweeted that the United States' increased involvement in the conflict is a "threat to our national security" and "sets us on a collision course with another nuclear power."

Biggs has decried the "blank checks" to Ukraine, saying it should not be the "number one priority" for the U.S. as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said in December.

Late last month, Greene called on the Biden administration to stop sending aid to Ukraine and "put America first."

"America is depleting our own military arsenal, giving weapons and now tanks to Ukraine, while China is building its military at the fastest pace in world history," she tweeted on January 26, adding in a second tweet that continuing to fund Ukraine means supporting "a corrupt slush fund."

In September, Boebert called for a "full accounting" of money sent to Ukraine, writing on Twitter: "A 'bipartisan agreement' has been reached in Congress to send yet another $12 billion to Ukraine. I've said it before and I'll say it again - we need a full accounting of every dollar that has been sent there. We have no clue what our taxpayer money is actually being spent on."

Massie called continued support to Ukraine "obscene" in December and said American taxpayers are "on the hook" for government assistance. "That's right, we're paying the salaries and expenses of Ukrainian politicians & bureaucrats," he tweeted at the time.

In the Ukraine Fatigue Resolution, Gaetz outlined all of the military equipment the United States has sent to Ukraine since Russia began its invasion almost one year ago.

The list includes HIMARS, air defense capabilities, ammunition, Javelin anti-armor systems, and Stinger anti-aircraft systems as well as the promised M1 Abrams tanks. In total, Gaetz said the U.S. has appropriated more than $110,000,000,000 of military, financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, including more than $27.4 billion in security assistance.

Gaetz also said providing assistance to Ukraine "is inadvertently contributing to civilian casualties." He said about 40,000 civilians have died and 7.8 million Ukrainian refugees have fled across Europe as a result of the conflict.

House Republicans Must Fix America's Ukraine PolicyRead moreHouse Republicans Must Fix America's Ukraine Policy

The U.S. aid to Ukraine "far exceeds" that from other countries, Gaetz wrote in the resolution. As of November 2022, the U.S. aid totals $47.9 billion, compared to $30 billion from the European Union, $7.1 billion from the United Kingdom, $5.46 billion from Germany and $3.9 billion from Canada.

He also noted that the Pentagon reported last August that U.S. munition donated to Ukraine has "severely depleted" U.S. stockpiles, "weakening United States readiness in the event of conflict."

The Pentagon recently announced it will provide air defense systems, armored infantry vehicles and long-range rockets, as well as a $425 million presidential drawdown of security assistance and $1.75 billion in Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative funds.

The U.S. has committed more than $32 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since 2014, including $29.3 billion since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, according to the Pentagon.

newsweek

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PARROT TRUMP BS

MMA

### Matt Gaetz says the same “playbook” is being used against Jair Bolsonaro as was used against Trump

02/19/25

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mma

### Matt Gaetz says the First Amendment was “harmed gravely” by January 6 prosecutions

01/23/25

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mma

January 22, 2025, edition of OANN's The Matt Gaetz Show

MATT GAETZ (HOST): The Proud Boys. You've probably heard the media describe this organization as militants, insurrectionists, and dangerous. I've met a few Proud Boys, and they mostly seem like a lonely group of young men who sought association with fellow misfits and rejected social mores. Not all, but most. Every group of humans that reaches a certain size probably has some bad people, among them, even Congress or the Catholic Church. More on both of those organizations later in the show. The Proud Boys, though. They even took center stage in a presidential debate.

===

ethics comm swing vote to release gaetz report? just payback for mccarthy coup?

newsweek

representative Tom McClintock of California was the sole Republican voting in favor of releasing the House Ethics Committee report on former Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz, joining 197 Democrats.

The House voted 206-198 to block the release of the ethics report. Gaetz has denied all the allegations investigated by the House Ethics Committee, which included illicit drug use and sexual misconduct with a 17-year-old girlwhile in office. Gaetz, who resigned from Congress in November, withdrew from consideration as President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general, stating that the matter was "unfairly becoming a distraction" for the transition team.

In a statement to CNN, McClintock said: "The late [Supreme Court Justice] Louis Brandeis said it best: 'Sunlight is the best of disinfectants.' This is a public report, prepared with public funds concerning the public conduct of a public official. Of course, the public has a right to see it."

Democratic Representative Sean Casten of Illinois introduced a motion Tuesday to hold a House vote to force the release of the report. The House Ethics Committee met Thursday to discuss the report but did not make a decision on its release.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has previously said the report should not be made public, told CNN after the vote that the debate was a "moot point" since Gaetz is no longer a member of Congress. "I'll leave it up to the committee to do their business there," Johnson added.

Newsweek has contacted McClintock's office, Johnson's office and a spokesperson for Gaetz for further comment via email

Representative Tom McClintock speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol on February 6, 2024 in Washington, D.C. McClintock was the sole GOP House member to vote for the release of an ethics report on former... More Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Casten criticized the outcome of the vote, saying a majority of the House of Representatives "took the easy way out" by blocking his resolution.

"They could have ensured a vote on whether or not former members should be held accountable when they face serious and credible allegations of sexual misconduct, including having sex with minors," Casten said in a statement.

"Instead, the House voted to sweep these allegations under the rug and set an unfortunate precedent that resigning from Congress can make such problems disappear. I retain options to continue to pursue the release of the Gaetz report."

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Casten urged people to stop calling on the House Ethics Committee to leak the report.

"It is my understanding that women testified with the expectation of privacy. Our resolution today expressly required appropriate redactions to formally protect them in ways that an informal leak may not," Casten wrote.

Since Gaetz is no longer in office, the House technically no longer has jurisdiction over him. The release of an ethics reports after a resignation has occurred in the past, but this is extremely rare.

Republican senator calls on House to share Matt Gaetz ethics report

1 day agoWASHINGTON, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Republican U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin called on the House of Representatives on Sunday to share an unreleased ethics report into alleged sexual misconduct ...

thehill.com

https://thehill.com › homenews › senate › 4995289-gop-sen-markwayne-mullin-matt-gae

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an 11 24

'Damaging': Unredacted sealed sworn testimony in Gaetz case accessed by alleged hacker

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Newsmax's Greg Kelly: “Matt Gaetz flattered us with his services here at Newsmax”

11/14/24 mma

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lever $ 11 24

Trump’s pick of Congressman Matt Gaetz for attorney general has rocked Washington. Gaetz’s controversial history, including a Justice Department investigation into alleged sex trafficking, makes him an absurd choice. But in a special Lever Time Premium episode exclusively for paid subscribers, political analyst and Lever contributor Matt Stoller points out that Gaetz has a surprising record on antitrust and issues of corporate power, raising questions about his potential impact on corporate regulation if he manages to be confirmed.

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ginni

matt Gaetz Is Not Qualified To Be U.S. Attorney General

Nov 14, 2024

Matt Gaetz is neither morally nor professionally qualified to become the United States Attorney General. This is the highest law enforcement position in the country. America deserves much better.

Professionally, Matt Gaetz graduated from law school in 2007, and briefly worked for a law firm in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida before being elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2010. He served in that role until 2016, and was then elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2017. Gaetz has three years or less experience in the practice of law, hardly enough to serve as the nation’s chief law enforcement officer.

Morally, Gaetz has been under a cloud of sex and drug allegations. On Wednesday, as soon as he was tapped by President-elect Donald Trump, Gaetz immediately resigned from Congress, thus ending the Ethics probe into his sex parties that includes allegations of paying an underage girl for sex. Gaetz will face tough questions during any confirmation hearing and will likely not be confirmed. His immediate resignation raises serious questions as it occurred just two days before the U.S. House Ethics Committee was scheduled to vote to release what is expected to be a damaging report.

Numerous news articles have catalogued the serious allegations involving Gaetz, including using Venmo to pay women for sex, text messages, attending sex parties, and paying a minor for sex. Witnesses have testified that they have seen Gaetz at these sex parties taking drugs. And his close association with former Seminole Country Tax Collector, Joel Greenburg, adds to these serious allegations. Greenburg is now serving time in prison for using his position for illegal gain and arranging sex parties for his friends, including Gaetz.

During a speech Gaetz delivered to a group of conservative leaders, mostly Christian, on three occasions he dropped “jokes” laced with sexual innuendo. The jokes were shocking to those in attendance and were met with silence. He later admitted his sexual jokes fell flat. This is not the character of the nation’s highest law enforcement officer who is entrusted to uphold the rule of law and prosecute sex traffickers and sex crimes.

When Gaetz served in the Florida House he was a regular opponent of pro-family leaders and policies. He formed an alliance with LGBTQ activists and spearheaded the removal of Florida’s law prohibiting same sex adoptions, which left faith-based adoption agencies exposed to legal challenges.

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver stated, “President-elect Donald Trump has quickly named many good choices to serve in his cabinet. But Matt Gaetz is not one of them. The nomination of Matt Gaetz as Attorney General is shocking and disappointing to those who have followed this man and the lurid scandals and serious allegations of sex parties and drugs during his tenure in the U.S. Congress. The resignation of Gaetz immediately after his name surfaced for Attorney General is inexplicable except for the fact this resignation now ends the U.S. House Ethics probe. Obviously, Gaetz does not want America to know the result of the Ethics investigation. Matt Gaetz has neither the experience nor the moral character to serve as the highest law enforcement officer of the United States of America. Gaetz should do President Trump and all of America a favor and withdraw his name from consideration. This will save him considerable embarrassment. America deserves better.”

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an 11 24

Trump chief of staff 'apparently unaware' of Boris Epshteyn effort to lobby on behalf of Gaetz: report

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doj did not indict bc witness a criminal, girl almost 18

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an 9 24 no lnx

Matt Gaetz's 'dangerous' new rumor shot down by Intelligence Committee Democrat

U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz speaking with attendees at the 2023 Turning Point Action Conference at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. Image via Gage Skidmore/Flickr.

Sarah Burris and Raw StorySeptember 30, 2024

WASHINGTON — Elected officials are quickly responding to Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) after he spread rumors that there are five "assassination teams" working throughout the United States with the aim of taking out former President Donald Trump.

Gaetz claimed in a press release Monday that he has a "whistleblower" who is a senior Homeland Security Department official sounding the alarm about the "teams" that aim to take out Trump. Three of the five are from foreign governments, Gaetz told controversial former Associated Press reporter John Solomon.

“… this individual was coming to me, concerned that the force protection around President Trump, even prior to that second assassination attempt, was not sufficient for what it needed to be, and the coordination at that level, at the dignitary protection level is like the bare minimum that we have to do to keep our presidents, our presidential candidates, safe while they’re on the trail,” the Florida congressman said.

Read Also: GOP 'sociopaths' live among us — and it's 'contagious': neuroscientist

But Gaetz's colleagues don't buy it.

Speaking to Raw Story on Wednesday while walking through the House tunnel, Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) said, "It's just garbage."

After a potential shooter was spotted outside of Mar-a-Lago complaining about Trump's position on Ukraine, Gaetz claimed that the man, Ryan Wesley Routh, was caught at the border returning to the U.S. from Ukraine. The only news sites willing to publish Gaetz's claims have been right-wing websites. There are no reports of Routh being "at the border." After international travel, he would have gone through Customs and Border Protection at the airport. That has been used to claim that one of the international teams is from Ukraine.

Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), similarly said that she's never heard of any accusations about such claims.

"Well, there's a lot of crazy stuff being said these days, you know, about people eating pets and other things," Lofgren told Raw Story while on her way to vote on legislation.

"I've never heard of anything like that, and I don't believe it's correct," Lofgren said.

Gaetz isn't on the House Intelligence Committee, which has access to official intelligence gathered from the U.S. and international community about such matters. Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) is, however, on the committee.

"I have not heard anything like that," Bera told Raw Story while walking through the Capitol. "He might have an active imagination, I don't know."

He suggested that Gaetz "ask for Congress to have a classified briefing or come into the Intelligence Committee," to hear accurate information.

"It's what we've come to expect from Matt Gaetz," Bera said. "It is dangerous."

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), the vice-chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, refused to comment on the matter when asked. He confirmed only public information that Iran had potential assassins in the U.S. eager to take out Trump.

He was asked multiple times about whether Gaetz's comments were "dangerous" but refused to comment.

Long-time Democratic lawmaker Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) simply laughed.

"I didn't hear that," the former House Majority Leader said. "So let me look into it."

Raw Story pointed out that Gaetz put the information on his official government website.

"I don't check that much," Hoyer confessed.

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https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/dhs-knew-5-assassination-teams-after-trump-2nd-attempt-gaetz

rep . Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., said Thursday that a senior Homeland Security Department official approached him as a whistleblower shortly before the second assassination attempt on Donald Trump's life and alleged U.S. officials are aware that five different "assassination teams" are pursuing the former president.

Gaetz told Just the NewsEditor in Chief John Solomon during an interview on the Human Events Daily television show on Real America's Voice network that he believes three of the teams are foreign inspired and two are domestic based.

Trump was the subject of a second assassination attempt over the weekend while golfing at his Palm Beach course. Secret Service engaged with an armed suspect after one agent noticed the barrel of an AK-47 protruding from the bushes where he was hiding. The suspect fled and was later apprehended. Authorities have arrested Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, and charged him with firearms violations in connection with the incident.

"I had a senior official from the Department of Homeland Security in my office before the second assassination attempt, saying that what he has assessed is that there are five known assassination teams in the United States, three inspired by other governments, two that are here, that are known domestic assassination teams," Gaetz said on "Human Events Daily."

"And with that, this individual was coming to me, concerned that the force protection around President Trump, even prior to that second assassination attempt, was not sufficient for what it needed to be, and the coordination at that level, at the dignitary protection level is like the bare minimum that we have to do to keep our presidents, our presidential candidates, safe while they're on the trail," he went on.

"Five teams that we know are targeting Trump," he clarified. "And so that raises real questions about why certain teams were being pulled off of the Trump deal detail and put on, for example, the Jill Biden detail."

"Now we don't want anything bad to happen to Jill Biden, but at the same time, the threat envelope for her was substantially different than the threat envelope around President Trump, and it would not have necessitated pulling assets away from the Trump detail for the Joe Biden detail or the John Bolton detail or any other details that were beefed up at the same time, the requests from the Trump detail and from the Trump campaign for more security, were going unanswered, frankly," he concluded.

U.S. authorities have charged a Pakistani man, Asif Merchant, with working with Iran to attempt to hire a gunman to kill Trump before Merchant was arrested on July 12, one day before the first assassination attempt against Trump in Butler, Pa. They have not disclosed any other plots publicly involving the former president.

Several Senate and House members who have been briefed on the two assassination attempts against Trump told Just the News on Thursday afternoon they have not been told during their briefings about five teams or plots but they are aware there are multiple Iran-inspired plots targeting multiple U.S. officials.

One senior federal law enforcement officials and one intelligence official, both speaking on condition of anonymity confirmed to Just the News that U.S. authorities have been aware of multiple plots tied to Iran or other terrorists seeking to assassinate current or former U.S. officials.

The intelligence spans several years and has led to significantly enhanced protections for figures like Trump, former President George W. Bush, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and former national security advisers John Bolton and Robert O'Brien, the officials said. Most, the sources said, involve retribution for the assassination of a former top Iranian general during the Trump years.

In addition to the Merchant charges, Shihab Ahmed Shihab Shihab was arrested by federal agents in 2022 and later pleaded guilty to charges of exchanging money as part of an attempt to illegally smuggle Iraqi foreign nationals via the Mexican border into the U.S. to assassinate Bush, America's 43rd president.

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AN 9 24

U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz has not issued any public response to overnight bombshell reporting citing sworn court testimony alleging the Florida Republican lawmaker in 2017 attended a “drug-fueled sex party” that had at least one underaged minor present. Nor has any Republican in the House or Senate called for his resignation.

The damning report from NOTUS‘s investigative reporter Jose Pagliery reveals prosecutors have “geolocated cell phone records” that show the owner of the Florida home where the party was held “communicated constantly with the congressman that day.”

“The defense’s court filings show a hired digital forensic examiner identified Gaetz’s number, which has a Florida panhandle 850 area code and texted back and forth 30 times that day and then called Dorworth twice in the hours before the evening revelry.”

“The minor, who was a junior in high school at the time, arrived in her mother’s car for a July 15, 2017, party at the Florida home of Chris Dorworth, a lobbyist and friend of Gaetz’s, according to a court filing written by defense attorneys who interviewed witnesses as part of an ongoing civil lawsuit Dorworth brought in 2023,” NOTUS reports.

Democratic strategist and pollster Matt McDermott remarked, “Last night we learned that Rep. Matt Gaetz was at a drug-fueled sex party in the summer of 2017 with a 17-year-old high school junior. As of this morning, not a single national Republican has called for his resignation.”

Gaetz is not in hiding — he has been tweeting from his personal account Friday morning, casually promoting what he calls “the transformation happening in El Salvador,” and attacking a fellow Republican, the junior U.S. Senator from Oklahoma, for an alleged stock purchase.

“This should be illegal,” Gaetz wrote.

Meanwhile, experts are demanding answers from the U.S. Dept. of Justice, which closed the books on its investigation into Gaetz.

“We really need to know why the DOJ decided not to criminally charge Matt Gaetz despite reports suggesting an abundance of evidence that he likely violated sex-trafficking laws,” wrote Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Government (CREW). “We’re suing for records.”

Former Lincoln Project executive director Fred Wellman asked, “I want to know why this useless DOJ isn’t pursuing crimes against Gaetz? Why does Garland consistently give Republicans a pass?”

Olga Lautman, a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) and researcher of organized crime and intelligence operations in Russia and Ukraine demanded to know: “Why was the Gaetz investigation dropped?”

That question floats amid another damning report. Congressman Gaetz reportedly had asked then-President Donald Trump for a pardon related to the DOJ’s investigation.

“An aide to former President Donald Trump testified to the House Select Committee investigating January 6 that GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida sought a preemptive presidential pardon relating to a Justice Department investigation examining whether Gaetz violated federal sex trafficking laws,” CNN reported in September of 2022, citing “a source familiar with the aide’s testimony.”

Also dropped was the first of two investigations into Gaetz’s behavior, including allegations that while on the House floor, he repeatedly showed fellow members of Congress photos and videos of nude women he said he had had sex with, CNN reported in 2021.

The Ethics Committee re-opened its investigation into Gaetz last year, and currently is looking into, as Vanity Fair reported in June, “allegations that the Florida congressman ‘engaged in…illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.’”

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an 7 24

One of Rep. Matt Gaetz's (R-Florida) colleagues in Congress just publicly slammed him after his speech at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

On Wednesday night, the Florida Republican spoke to RNC delegates and made his case for former President Donald Trump to return to the White House. But the actual content of his speech was overshadowed by his appearance, with Newsweek reporting that the MAGA congressman's face prompted a flood of mockery and memes.

"Gaetz looked strikingly different just a day earlier, when he attended the convention but did not address the crowds," Newsweek's Katherine Fung observed. "On Tuesday, his face looked less full and lines could be seen on his forehead as the congressman got animated or expressive while speaking."

"Matt Gaetz looks like he's about to open a white tiger-themed magic show on the Las Vegas strip," journalist Emily Zanotti tweeted. Former Republican lawyer Ron Filipkowski opined that Gaetz "got a little carried away with the Botox before his big speech." And comedian Rohita Kadambi made a dig at Gaetz's opposition to LGBTQ+ rights by telling the Florida congressman: "Using this much botox/filler is gender affirming care."

But the mockery wasn't limited to journalists and commentators. In a tweet of his own, Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wisconsin) referred to Gaetz as an "AI powered inflatable sex doll" with a photo of his face at the RNC lectern. His tweet angered some GOP-aligned followers who urged him to help his party unite during its quadrennial convention.

"Why TF is a Republican congressman tweeting this during the RNC?!" X user @Jason_The_Texan tweeted. "WTF is this?"

"Is there a Member of Congress more hated than Gaetz?" Another user wrote, describing Gaetz as a "lecherous buffoon."

Of course, Van Orden is not without baggage of his own. The Wisconsin Republican made headlines last year for telling teenaged Senate pages to "get the f— up" when he saw them laying on the floor to take photos of the Capitol dome, and called them "lazy s—s."

"I have long said our nation's Capitol is a symbol of the sacrifice our servicemen and women have made for this country and should never be treated like a frat house common room," he said at the time. "Threatening a congressman with bad press to excuse poor behavior is a reminder of everything that’s wrong with Washington. Luckily, bad press has never bothered me and if it's the price I pay to stand up for what's right, then so be it."

The Republican lawmaker may have been under the influence of alcohol, as Punchbowl News reporter Max Cohen posted a photo of multiple bottles of liquor on the congressman's desk before the incident.

"Van Orden and staff were heard partying loudly before he cursed out a group of teenage Senate pages," he tweeted.

mcc feud retaliation g 8 trolled km interview?

'He looks unhinged': Kevin McCarthy suggests Matt Gaetz was on drugs at RNC

an 6 24

U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) sex trafficking investigation of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) ended without any type of indictment of the far-right MAGA congressman, who has vehemently denied doing anything illegal.

However, the House Ethics Committee has recently been probing allegations against Gaetz and has, according to ABC News' Will Steakin, interviewed "numerous women who were witnesses" in the DOJ probe.

"In the interviews, which have previously not been reported, some witnesses have been shown Venmo payments they allegedly received from Gaetz and asked if those payments were for sexual activities, sources said," Steakin reports in an article published on June 19. "Some of the witnesses have been subpoenaed by the Committee while others have agreed to cooperate, according to the sources."

Steakin adds, "One woman, who ABC News is not identifying, told the (House Ethics) Committee that a payment from Gaetz was for sex, while others have said they were paid to attend parties that Gaetz also attended and that featured drugs and sex, multiple sources told ABC News.

Steakin notes that Florida-based Joel Leppard confirmed that Gaetz has been cooperating with the Ethics Committee but declined to comment beyond that.

"On Tuesday, (June 18)," according to Steakin, "the House Ethics Committee provided an update on its investigation into Gaetz, detailing in a new statement on Tuesday that after speaking with over a dozen witnesses, issuing 25 subpoenas, and reviewing thousands of documents, the bipartisan panel will continue to review allegations, including that the Florida congressman 'engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use' and that he 'sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.'"

The ABC News journalist adds, "The (Ethics) Committee also detailed that it will 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.'"

*Read ABC News' full report at this link

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alternet no lnx

New plans? How Trump loyalists are out for Biden family blood more than ever

Matt LasloandRaw Story June 15, 2024

WASHINGTON — House Republicans’ impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden all but unraveled, but you wouldn’t know that from talking to House Republicans this week.

They’re out for Biden family blood more than ever.

The GOP’s cheering of a damning verdict for presidential son Hunter Biden — found guilty of lying on a federal firearm form and illegally owning a gun — have proven short-lived.

On Capitol Hill, the mood amongst Republicans is mostly anger as the party overflows with complaints about “a two-tiered” system of justice — even after the president’s son was successfully prosecuted by the same Department of Justice they decry for its pursuit of former President Donald Trump.

“No one's taking it seriously, because the Department of Justice, if they were actually a real justice system, they would have charged him for FARA [Foreign Agents Registration Act]. They would be charging him for human sex trafficking,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) told Raw Story while walking to the Capitol to vote Wednesday.

MTG’s far from alone.

On Wednesday, three powerful Republican committee chairs sent the Department of Justice criminal referrals for Hunter and James Biden, the president’s brother.

The two Bidens made false statements to their committees that "implicate Joe Biden’s knowledge and role in his family’s influence peddling schemes and appear to be a calculated effort to shield Joe Biden from the impeachment inquiry," wrote Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY), Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-MO).

Those criminal referrals were sent to Special Counsel David Weiss and Attorney General Merrick Garland on the same day House Republicans voted to hold Garland in contempt for turning over a transcript of President Biden’s interview with the special prosecutor while withholding audio of it.

In the wake of the Hunter Biden guilty verdict, Republicans now say Department of Justice lawyers are complicit in a cover up.

“I think it's just an attempt to try to say, ‘Oh, we're not a two-tier justice system,’” Greene said. “And they [don’t] want to prosecute BLM rioters, Antifa and all these other people that caused $2 billion in damage.”

It’s more than just a different system of justice: the “deep state” is now in the driver’s seat at the DOJ, according to many in the GOP.

“The Hunter Biden trial was a veneer. There wasn't a sincere prosecution,” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) told Raw Story.

While House Republicans voted along party lines to launch a formal impeachment inquiry into President Biden at the end of last year, the effort has gone nowhere in the GOP-controlled House.

That’s in part because their star witness, retired Russian figure skater Alexander Smirnov, went from being an FBI informant to being charged with lying and creating false documents about President Joe Biden and his son Hunter.

While on a private fundraising call last year, Gaetz dismissed the Biden impeachment effort — “I don’t believe that we are endeavoring upon a legitimate impeachment of Joe Biden” — since then he’s been raising alarms about bribes the Oversight Committee has failed to link to the president.

ALSO READ: ‘MIA MTG’: Why Marjorie Taylor Greene has no publicly listed district offices

Even though his committee has failed to make the case that Biden corruption is a family affair leading all the way to the White House, Gaetz dismisses the Hunter Biden gun case as “dumb.” He says DOJ lawyers need to do more — and broaden their investigation.

“I identify strongly with the statement from the Trump campaign that it was a distraction from the real Biden crimes. These guys are moving around millions of dollars in Chinese bribe money, and what we got him on was lying on a gun form? It’d be like getting Jeffrey Dahmer for littering,” Gaetz said, referencing the convicted serial killer.

Dumb or not, many Republicans are now watching to see whether Hunter Biden gets any jail time for his first time, non-violent felony conviction.

“Well, I think they considered the facts and found him guilty. It’ll be interesting to see what his consequences are,” Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) told Raw Story. “If you’re on drugs, should you really have a gun? It’s either a law or it’s not a law. If they don’t believe in it, it’s like anything else, you gotta change it.”

While Norman’s closely watching the case against the first son, he, too, accuses the Department of Justice of playing politics even after the special prosecutor won a conviction this week.

“I do think it's a smokescreen,” Norman said. “I mean, look at what Hunter Biden’s gotten by with. $8 million in art sales. I don’t think he’s an artist.”

President Biden has said he will not pardon Hunter Biden.

“I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal," President Biden said. "Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery."

President Biden also reaffirmed his loyalty to his family.

"Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support,” Biden said. “Nothing will ever change that."

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McCarthy accuses Gaetz of 'buying coke and paying minors for sex': 'Hunter Biden of the GOP' ›

Ex-Trump adviser: 'Republicans need a different talking point' after Hunter Biden conviction ›

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gaetz 8

former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California) may no longer be in Congress, but he's not finished criticizing the Republicans who led the push to strip him of the speaker's gavel.

On Tuesday, Daily Beast congressional reporter Reese Gorman tweeted an off-the-cuff remark from McCarthy attacking Rep. Nancy Mace (R-South Carolina), who was one of the eight Republicans who voted with all Democrats to oust him as speaker in October of 2023.

"I just hope she gets help to straighten out her life. I mean, she she's got a lot of challenges. No one will stay working for her," McCarthy said, in an apparent reference to the congresswoman's difficulty keeping staff.

In December, the Washington Examiner reported on a sudden exodus of staff from Mace's office, in which chief of staff Don Hanlon, deputy chief of staff Richard Chalkey and legislative director Randal Meyer all left in the span of just a few days. Hanlon reportedly even took the office popcorn machine with him after he was fired. Hanlon is now officially running against Mace in the Republican primary for her district.

Mace also made headlines for various antics in the halls of Congress, like wearing a "scarlet letter" to cast herself as a martyr for being one of a small handful of Republicans to be singled out for triggering a weeks-long battle to elect a new speaker, and for screaming "you have no balls" at President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, during a House Oversight Committee hearing. The Washington Post also reported that Mace — who is now one of former President Donald Trump's biggest defenders — tried to get punched in the face by Trump supporters on January 6 to garner media coverage for being an anti-Trump Republican.

In addition to his comments about Mace, McCarthy also took a jab at Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), who was the instigator of the motion to vacate that led to his eventual ouster.

"[Gaetz] probably lies about who he sleeps with to," McCarthy told Gorman.

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an 6 24

i don’t agree with anything you just said': Garland repeatedly slams Gaetz’s 'false' claims

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Gaetz tops lists of congressmen exploiting 'ridiculous loophole' in new expense format

an 6 24

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an 2 24

When 2024 arrived, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California) was gone from Congress. McCarthy was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2006 midterms, but after being ousted as speaker in October 2023, he obviously lost his desire to remain a congressman. And instead of serving out the rest of his term, McCarthy made December 31 his final day in the House.

According to Politico reporters Ally Mutnick and Olivia Beavers, McCarthy and his allies are planning revenge against the Republicans who are responsible for him being ousted as speaker.

Far-right Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) triggered a "motion to vacate" that led to a full House vote on McCarthy, and seven Republicans joined Gaetz in voting to oust him as speaker. Collectively, they are known as the "Gaetz Eight" on Capitol Hill, and Mutnick and Beavers report that McCarthy ally Brian O. Walsh is "overseeing an attempt to recruit primary challengers" against them.

"Behind the scenes," the Politico journalists report in an article published on February 1, "McCarthy allies have identified three of the Gaetz Eight as the most vulnerable in primaries — and thus, the ripest targets: Reps. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), Bob Good (R-Va.) and Eli Crane (R-Ariz.). Mace and Good already have strong challengers, but Crane still lacks a compelling prospective candidate to take him on. That quiet work shows McCarthy's appetite for payback remains intense, even months after his October ouster as speaker and December departure from Congress."

Mutnick and Olivia Beavers continue, "It also illustrates that even out of office, the former speaker and his supporters can make life miserable for his detractors — a further sign that the House GOP power struggle between burn-it-down hardliners and more establishment conservatives is alive and well."

Walsh's thirst for revenge was evident in a statement to Politico.

The McCarthy ally said of the Gaetz Eight, "These traitors chose to side with Nancy Pelosi, AOC and over 200 Democrats to undermine the institution, their fellow Republicans and a duly elected speaker. There must be consequences for that decision.”

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1 24

Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is currently weighing whether to uphold the Colorado Supreme Court's decision to disqualify former President Donald Trump from the state's Republican primary ballot. One House Republican is attempting to sway that decision with legislation of his own.

According to Politico, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) is drumming up support for a resolution that declares the former president did not "engage in insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or give aid or comfort to the enemies thereof." That's language lifted directly from Section 3 of the 14th Amendment — also known as the "insurrection clause" — which was used to disqualify Trump in both Colorado and Maine.

The decisions from both Colorado's high court and Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows to remove Trump from their respective ballot stems from his role in the January 6 siege of the US Capitol, which both entities referred to as an "insurrection." Those disqualifications cited Trump taking an oath "to support the Constitution of the United States," which they accuse him of violating by egging on his supporters on January 6.

Because SCOTUS issued a writ of certiorari agreeing to consider the Colorado ruling, a decision could be handed down anytime before June, when SCOTUS' current term ends. And even though the Court has a 6-3 conservative majority — which includes three justices appointed by Trump himself — a ruling in favor of Trump isn't guaranteed.

As University of Baltimore School of Law professor Kimberly Wehle wrote last month, the Colorado ruling is rooted in the same type of "judicial conservatism" that Republican-appointed jurists claimed in their confirmation hearings to follow while interpreting the Constitution. Trump-appointed Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh are all proponents of "originalism" and "textualism," in which adherents interpret the Constitution with a plain meaning, rather than try to apply it in a more modern way.

"If the purportedly conservative members of the U.S. Supreme Court are intellectually honest about their jurisprudential approach to the law, this case should not be hard," Wehle wrote in an essay for the Atlantic.

While Gaetz's anti-disqualification measure may pass the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, it's unlikely to go further than that. The insurrection clause stipulates that any disqualification of a candidate can be overturned by a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate, which is virtually impossible given Republicans' razor-thin House majority and the Democratic-controlled US Senate.

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Matt Gaetz uses GOP House primaries to up his battle with Kevin McCarthy - Alternet.org

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12 23 an motive for attack?

Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma) and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) are having a public back-and-forth on social media after the latter accused his fellow Republican of corruption.

On Wednesday, Gaetz posted a graphic to X (formerly Twitter) showing that Mullin's wealth had increased from $12 million, when he was a member of the House of Representatives, to $63 million in 2022 after several years in the US Senate. Gaetz tweeted the graphic with the words "we should pass a ban on trading stocks!"

Mullin didn't take kindly to Gaetz's post, and attacked the Florida congressman's "criticism of hard-earned success," adding that "he should try building a business that gains value" and that doing so is "more gratifying than living off your daddy’s money."

Gaetz, for his part, shot back at Mullin, tweeting that the only thing he criticized was Mullin's stock trades as a member of Congress.

"I want to ban those trades," Gaetz posted. "You cashed in and made millions."

Mullin's point about Gaetz's wealth is true: The far-right Florida congressman comes from an incredibly wealthy family, with Forbes estimating his father and mother's net worth at approximately $30 million as of June 2020. Gaetz's father, Don, is a former hospital executive who oversaw facilities in Florida and Wisconsin, and who eventually founded hospice provider Vitas Healthcare. Don and Victoria Gaetz now own multiple seven-figure stakes in various companies, 13 pieces of real estate and have a large and diverse stock portfolio.

However, Mullin is also a beneficiary of family wealth. According to a 2012 Roll Call profile of Mullin, the Oklahoma congressman admitted to inheriting his father's plumbing company, which he then built up over the years. Mullin — a mixed martial arts (MMA) enthusiast — has also founded an MMA gym called "Oklahoma Fight Club." Mullin's penchant for fisticuffs was on full display during a Senate committee hearing in November, when he challenged International Brotherhood of Teamsters president Sean O'Brien to a fight before being deterred by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont).

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an 12 23

the New York Young Republican Club recently held its annual gala in New York's financial district, and former President Donald Trump gave the keynote address with some of the global far right's most notorious political figures in attendance.

According to Talking Points Memo (TPM), the gala's attendees included not just American far-right politicians like Reps. Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado), Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) and Paul Gosar (R-Arizona), but also European right-wing extremists like Austrian politician Gerald Grosz and European Parliament member Susanna Ceccardi, who is from Italy's far-right Lega party. German politician Maximilian Krah — whose party, Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) has been criticized as a "neo-Nazi party" — was also at the event.

"Donald Trump rubbing elbows with Nazi-linked groups might be surprising if Trump’s last month wasn’t defined by him parroting Hitler and Mussolini, and promising to rule as a dictator so he can rip away Americans’ freedoms and round up millions of Americans into detention camps," said Ammar Moussa, who is the rapid response director for President Joe Biden's reelection campaign.

"The American people rejected Trump and his MAGA attacks on democracy in 2020, and it’s why he’s going to lose again next November," Moussa added.

Gerald Grosz was initially a member of Austria's far-right Freedom Party, which was founded by Anton Reinthaller — a former Nazi Party leader and SS officer. Grosz and his colleague Jorg Haider, who was the son of a Nazi stormtrooper who praised Adolf Hitler's regime, eventually joined a Freedom Party offshoot. While they all come from different countries, TPM described Grosz, Ceccardi and Krah as comrades-in-arms in movements that are "staunchly nationalist and anti-immigrant" in nature.

Prior to Trump's speech, he was introduced as the "45th, 46th and 47th presidents of the United States," which alludes to Trump's baseless conspiracy theory that he was the rightful winner of the 2020 presidential election. Trump doubled down on his "dictator" comments during his speech, repeating that if elected to another term he would assume dictatorial powers on day one of his administration to build a border wall and "drill drill drill."

The New York Young Republican Club's flirting with global far-right figures is in line with how international political scholars have described the modern GOP. In 2019, Harvard University political scientist Pippa Norris surveyed roughly 2,000 political experts around the globe on the authoritarian leanings of various modern far-right parties. She found that the American Republican Party has more in common with authoritarian, fascist-adjacent parties like Turkey's AKP and Hungary's Fidesz than with their counterparts in G7 countries like the Tories in the UK and the conservatives in Canada.

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Matt Gaetz exposed GOP’s illegitimate Biden impeachment effort at invitation-only fundraiser: report - Alternet.org

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Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy says Matt Gaetz 'belongs in jail' - Alternet.org

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abom hearing

https://www.rawstory.com/matt-gaetz-jan-6-riot/

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trucker roundtable troll caucus massie

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http://scorecard.lcv.org/moc/matt-gaetz

9/7% --> 13* 12%

tribe buff, gt lakes, shark fin

2021427Supporting Tribal Management of BisonWildlife, Environmental Justice, Public Lands/Forests

2021385Transformative Climate, Jobs, and Justice Investments (2x Score)Climate Change, Air, Clean Energy, Environmental Justice, Transportation, Public Lands/Forests, Water, Other

2021385Transformative Climate, Jobs, and Justice InvestmentsClimate Change, Air, Clean Energy, Drilling, Environmental Justice, Public Lands/Forests, Transportation, Water, Other

2021379Censuring Paul GosarJustice and Democracy

2021272Taking Action on PFAS ContaminationToxics/Public Right to Know

2021260Restoring the Voting Rights ActJustice and Democracy

2021247Pro-Environment Funding PackageOther, Climate Change, Clean Energy, Clean Air, Clean Water, Environmental Justice

2021217Protecting People from PFASToxics/Public Right to Know; Water

2021208Investing in Transportation and Water InfrastructureClimate Change, Transportation, Water, Clean Energy, Environmental Justice

2021206Building Climate-resilient Wastewater InfrastructureWater, Climate Change

2021201Investing in Climate-Smart and Pro-Wildlife InfrastructureTransportation, Climate Change, Wildlife

2021196Removing Confederate Statues from the U.S. CapitolLands/Forests, Justice and Democracy

2021185Repealing Assault on Methane Pollution SafeguardsClimate Change, Dirty Energy

2021169Corporate Climate Risk Disclosure RequirementsClimate Change; Other

2021145Increasing Awareness and Reporting of Hate CrimesOther, Justice and Democracy

2021132Washington, D.C. StatehoodJustice and Democracy

202191Protecting Dreamers and Immigrants Fleeing DisastersJustice and Democracy, Other

202170Protecting the Rights of Workers to OrganizeOther, Justice and Democracy

202162Voting Rights and Democracy ReformsJustice and Democracy

202145Protecting Public Lands and Waters Across the WestPublic Lands/Forests

202117Impeachment for Incitement of InsurrectionJustice and Democracy

202111Certifying Pennsylvania’s Electoral VotesJustice and Democracy

202110Certifying Arizona’s Electoral VotesJustice and Democracy

2020242Phasing Out Harmful Fishing GearOceans, Wildlife

2020203Increasing Funding for Renewable Energy Research & DevelopmentClean Energy, Climate

2020182Protecting the U.S. Postal ServiceJustice and Democracy

2020166Pro-Environment Funding PackageOther, Environmental Justice, Water, Dirty Energy, Drilling, Lands/Forests

2020164Slashing EPA FundingOther, Water, Air, Environmental Justice

2020163Blocking Trump’s Inadequate Soot StandardAir, Environmental Justice

2020156Removing Confederate Statues from the U.S. CapitolOther---020155Great American Outdoors ActLands/Forests 2020147Protecting the Grand Canyon and Colorado’s public landsPublic Lands/Forests, Dirty Energy 2020142Maintaining Suspension of Nuclear Weapons TestingDirty Energy 2020138Investing in Climate-Ambitious InfrastructureClimate Change, Clean Energy, Transportation, Water, Environmental Justice 2020136Eliminating Lead Service Lines to Protect Public HealthWater, Environmental Justice 2020135Harming Workers by Rolling Back Wage ProtectionsOther 2020122Washington D.C. StatehoodJudiciary, Justice and Democracy 2020109Heroes Act COVID-19 Relief PackageOther 202069Protecting Wilderness Across the WestLands/Forests 202054Emergency and Climate Disaster Aid for Puerto RicoClimate Change 202050Protecting the Rights of Workers to OrganizeOther 202036Great Lakes Restoration InitiativeWater 202013Protecting People from PFAS PollutionToxics/Public Right to Know; Water 202011Closing the PFAS Clean Water LoopholeToxics/Public Right to Know, Water 2019701USMCA Trade DealClimate Change, Other 2019666Attack on Marine Mammal Protections from Harmful Air Gun BlastingWildlife, Oceans, Drilling 2019654Protecting the Right to VoteOther, Justice and Democracy 2019634Shark Finning BanOceans, Wildlife 2019609Protecting Colorado's Public LandsLands/Forests 2019602Protecting the Grand Canyon from Toxic Uranium MiningDirty Energy, Lands/Forests 2019597Protecting Chaco Canyon from Oil and Gas DevelopmentDirty Energy, Drilling, Lands/Forests 2019530Restoring Protections for the Arctic RefugeDirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Drilling 2019525Banning Offshore Drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific OceansDirty Energy, Drilling, Oceans 2019521Stopping Future Drilling in the Eastern Gulf of MexicoDirty Energy, Drilling, Oceans 2019408Pro-Environment Funding BillClimate Change, Lands/Forests, Clean Energy 2019395Preserving the Mercury & Air Toxics StandardsClean Air, Toxics/Public Right to Know 2019390Eliminating EPA's Chemical Hazard Assessment Program, IRISToxics/Public Right to Know, Clean Water, Clean Air 2019385Methane Pollution SafeguardsClimate Change, Dirty Energy, Drilling 2019384Halting Oil Drilling in the Arctic RefugeDrilling, Dirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Wildlife 2019383Blocking the EPA from Reducing Carbon PollutionClimate Change020155Great American Outdoors ActLands/Forests 2020147Protecting the Grand Canyon and Colorado’s public landsPublic Lands/Forests, Dirty Energy 2020142Maintaining Suspension of Nuclear Weapons TestingDirty Energy 2020138Investing in Climate-Ambitious InfrastructureClimate Change, Clean Energy, Transportation, Water, Environmental Justice 2020136Eliminating Lead Service Lines to Protect Public HealthWater, Environmental Justice 2020135Harming Workers by Rolling Back Wage ProtectionsOther 2020122Washington D.C. StatehoodJudiciary, Justice and Democracy 2020109Heroes Act COVID-19 Relief PackageOther 202069Protecting Wilderness Across the WestLands/Forests 202054Emergency and Climate Disaster Aid for Puerto RicoClimate Change 202050Protecting the Rights of Workers to OrganizeOther 202036Great Lakes Restoration InitiativeWater 202013Protecting People from PFAS PollutionToxics/Public Right to Know; Water 202011Closing the PFAS Clean Water LoopholeToxics/Public Right to Know, Water 2019701USMCA Trade DealClimate Change, Other 2019666Attack on Marine Mammal Protections from Harmful Air Gun BlastingWildlife, Oceans, Drilling 2019654Protecting the Right to VoteOther, Justice and Democracy 2019634Shark Finning BanOceans, Wildlife 2019609Protecting Colorado's Public LandsLands/Forests 2019602Protecting the Grand Canyon from Toxic Uranium MiningDirty Energy, Lands/Forests 2019597Protecting Chaco Canyon from Oil and Gas DevelopmentDirty Energy, Drilling, Lands/Forests 2019530Restoring Protections for the Arctic RefugeDirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Drilling 2019525Banning Offshore Drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific OceansDirty Energy, Drilling, Oceans 2019521Stopping Future Drilling in the Eastern Gulf of MexicoDirty Energy, Drilling, Oceans 2019408Pro-Environment Funding BillClimate Change, Lands/Forests, Clean Energy 2019395Preserving the Mercury & Air Toxics StandardsClean Air, Toxics/Public Right to Know 2019390Eliminating EPA's Chemical Hazard Assessment Program, IRISToxics/Public Right to Know, Clean Water, Clean Air 2019385Methane Pollution SafeguardsClimate Change, Dirty Energy, Drilling 2019384Halting Oil Drilling in the Arctic RefugeDrilling, Dirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Wildlife 2019383Blocking the EPA from Reducing Carbon PollutionClimate Change

---

2020 155Great American Outdoors ActLands/Forests

2020147Protecting the Grand Canyon and Colorado’s public landsPublic Lands/Forests, Dirty Energy

2020142Maintaining Suspension of Nuclear Weapons TestingDirty Energy

2020138Investing in Climate-Ambitious InfrastructureClimate Change, Clean Energy, Transportation, Water, Environmental Justice

2020136Eliminating Lead Service Lines to Protect Public HealthWater, Environmental Justice

2020135Harming Workers by Rolling Back Wage ProtectionsOther

2020122Washington D.C. StatehoodJudiciary, Justice and Democracy

2020109Heroes Act COVID-19 Relief PackageOther

202069Protecting Wilderness Across the WestLands/Forests

202054Emergency and Climate Disaster Aid for Puerto RicoClimate Change

202050Protecting the Rights of Workers to OrganizeOther

202036Great Lakes Restoration InitiativeWater

202013Protecting People from PFAS PollutionToxics/Public Right to Know; Water

202011Closing the PFAS Clean Water LoopholeToxics/Public Right to Know, Water

2019701USMCA Trade DealClimate Change, Other

2019666Attack on Marine Mammal Protections from Harmful Air Gun BlastingWildlife, Oceans, Drilling

2019654Protecting the Right to VoteOther, Justice and Democracy

2019634Shark Finning BanOceans, Wildlife

2019609Protecting Colorado's Public LandsLands/Forests

2019602Protecting the Grand Canyon from Toxic Uranium MiningDirty Energy, Lands/Forests

2019597Protecting Chaco Canyon from Oil and Gas DevelopmentDirty Energy, Drilling, Lands/Forests

2019530Restoring Protections for the Arctic RefugeDirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Drilling

2019525Banning Offshore Drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific OceansDirty Energy, Drilling, Oceans

2019521Stopping Future Drilling in the Eastern Gulf of MexicoDirty Energy, Drilling, Oceans

2019408Pro-Environment Funding BillClimate Change, Lands/Forests, Clean Energy

2019395Preserving the Mercury & Air Toxics Standards Clean Air, Toxics/Public Right to Know

2019390Eliminating EPA's Chemical Hazard Assessment Program, IRIS Toxics/Public Right to Know, Clean Water, Clean Air

2019385Methane Pollution Safeguards Climate Change, Dirty Energy, Drilling

2019384Halting Oil Drilling in the Arctic Refuge Drilling, Dirty Energy, Lands/Forests, Wildlife

2019383Blocking the EPA from Reducing Carbon Pollution Climate Change

---

punked on award

Watch: Ohio Republican escorted off-stage after honoring Matt Gaetz with 'surprise award' - Alternet.org

---

GOP-led committee revives investigation into Matt Gaetz’ alleged sex trafficking and corruption - Alternet.org 12 23

---

bb 1023

In yet another attempt to convince Donald Trump that she should be his Vice-President, Georgia's most rotten peach, Congressperson Marjorie Taylor Greene, rails against free speech. Greene complains that Trump has had some restrictions placed upon him to prevent his witness tampering and endangering public servants while urging actual free speech be restricted.

It just so happens that people will call fascists fascists, and in the case of MTG and Trump, they are correct. Trump refused to decry neo-Nazis and insisted there were "good people on both sides" when presented with the opportunity. Marge imagined "Jewish Space Lasers" to place blame for wildfires upon Jewish people. Both stand with Nazis and when you do, you aren't "with the Nazis"; you are a Nazi. Nazism is specialized fascism.

twt]

In other news it looks like Greene was well paid for supporting Kevin McCarthy:

In a FEC fundraising report released on Sunday, McCarthy's Majority Committee PAC is listed on two of six PAC donations made to Greene's congressional campaign between July 1 and Sept. 30.

The two $5,000 donations were dated July 19 — just weeks before Rep. Matt Gaetz's (R-FL) motion to "vacate the chair" that resulted in McCarthy's ouster.

In all, Greene reported receiving $15,000 from the PAC during the reporting period.

---

Badash @ The New Civil Rights Movement: Gaetz Filing Resolution to ‘Censure and Condemn’ Judge Overseeing Trump Election Fraud Trial. rww 823

---

https://www.alternet.org/biden-impeachment-2664005762/

no lnx

Matt Gaetz says 'the quiet part out loud' about true 'purpose' of Biden impeachment

Alex HendersonAugust 17, 2023

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California) has said that the House Oversight Committee's Hunter Biden probe may lead to an impeachment inquiry against President Joe Biden. And Rep. Adam Schiff (D-California), during a late July appearance on MSNBC, accused McCarthy of pandering to the "craziest" members of his caucus.

Schiff views talk of impeaching President Biden as motivated by partisan politics, not concern for the rule of law. And far-right Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) admitted that a Biden impeachment would be political during a Monday, Aug. 14 Twitter Space event.

If President Biden were impeached, a conviction during a trial in the U.S. Senate would be most unlikely — as Democrats have a small effective Senate majority. Four U.S. presidents have faced articles of impeachment (Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton and Donald Trump), and not one of them was removed from office by the Senate. Johnson, Clinton and Trump were found "not guilty," and Nixon avoided a Senate trial by resigning in August 1974.

On Twitter Space, Gaetz argued that although Biden wouldn't be found guilty in an impeachment trial, the event could hurt his chances of reelection in 2024.

Gaetz said, "The purpose of that impeachment, from my standpoint, is not to force a vote that loses. It's to put on a trial in the Senate — and by the way, not for the sake of conviction…. There's no conviction and removal of Joe Biden coming on impeachment. I know that, you know that."

:{:{}:

The MAGA congressman went on to say, "If we had the Senate as the stage and the platform for (Republican House Oversight Committee Chairman) James Comer to put on his evidence and advance this impeachment, it will not result in a conviction. But the true verdict can still be rendered by the American people."

The New Republic's Tori Otten, in an article published on August 16, stresses that Gaetz said "the quiet part out loud" when he admitted that the purpose of a Biden impeachment would be to "make him look bad enough that he loses the 2024 election."

READ MORE: Kevin McCarthy tells Hannity Biden family’s business is 'rising to the level of impeachment inquiry'

Otten warns, "All of the investigations into Biden are absolutely for political purposes. House Republicans have mobilized multiple committees to go after the Biden family. There has yet to be any proof of wrongdoing, but Republicans have used the investigations as excuses to trash Biden, attack policies they don't like such as immigration, and share his son's nude photos. An impeachment inquiry, and certainly a full-on impeachment, would take that governmental weaponization to the next level."

READ MORE: 'It's like a soap opera': These Republicans are weary of their colleagues’ Hunter Biden obsession

FROM YOUR SITE ARTICLES

'The Biden family is next': Fox’s Watters demands 'impeachment' because Trump has to go to court ›

GOPers 'who represent districts that Biden won in 2020' rightfully against impeachment: NPR host ›

'They’ve kind of gone rogue': House Republican infighting ensues over calls to impeach Biden ›

RELATED ARTICLES AROUND THE WEB

House Republicans move Biden impeachment forward as hard-right ... ›

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House GOP eyes fall push for Biden impeachment inquiry | CNN ... ›

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https://www.alternet.org:(style="background-color:#ffffffff"):}::{/matt-gaetz-not-be-charged/

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https://www.alternet.org/gaetz-pushes-public-school-prayer/

pansexual portland prayer

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obligatory macho? // gaetz w trump iowa? use force

right cannot rule out violence?

https://www.mediamatters.org/charlie-kirk/charlie-kirk-responds-audience-question-about-forming-militias-you-needs-have-systems

---

GAETZ

CNN Director: Network Hammering Gaetz ‘To Keep Hurting Him’ Because It’s ‘Great’ For Democrat Party

April 19, 2021

In The News

Article by Ryan Saavedra

Published on The :{Daily WIRE}:

James O'Keefe's Project Veritas released explosive video on Tuesday that appeared to show CNN Technical Director Charlie Chester admitting that the network has aggressively covered allegations that have been made against Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) "to keep hurting him" because it would be "great" for the Democrat Party.

"If the agenda say, is to like get, like Matt Gaetz right now, he's like this Republican," Chester said. "He's a problem for the Democratic Party because he's so conservative and he can cause a lot of hiccups in passing of laws and what not."

:{:{"So, it would be great for the Democratic Party to get him out. So, we're going to keep running those stories to keep hurting him and make it so that it can't be buried and like just settled outside of court and just like, you know, if we keep pushing that, it's helping us," he added. "That's propaganda because it's helping us in some way."}:

Other videos released by Project Veritas showed Chester admittinG that the network's "focus" was getting Trump removed from office and that the network creates "propaganda." Chester also said that the network was going to use "fear" to push their climate change agenda.

On CNN and its employees working to oust Trump from office, Chester made the following remarks throughout various encounters that he had with an undercover Project Veritas journalist:

"Look what we did, we [CNN] got Trump out. I am 100% going to say it, and I 100% believe that if it wasn't for CNN, I don't know that Trump would have got voted out…I came to CNN because I wanted to be a part of that."
"It's going to be our [CNN's] focus. Like our focus was to get Trump out of office, right? Without saying it, that's what it was, right? So, our next thing is going to be climate change awareness."
On CNN creating "propaganda" to damage Trump, Chester said:
"[Trump's] hand was shaking or whatever, I think. We brought in so many medical people to tell a story that was all speculation — that he was neurologically damaged, and he was losing it. He's unfit to — you know, whatever. We were creating a story there that we didn't know anything about. That's what — I think that's propaganda."
On having a predetermined agenda to cover climate change and to use "fear" to sell it, Chester said:
"I think there's a COVID fatigue. So, like whenever a new story comes up, they're [CNN's] going to latch onto it. They've already announced in our office that once the public is — will be open to it — we're going to start focusing mainly on climate."
"I have a feeling that it's going to be like, constantly showing videos of decline in ice, and weather warming up, and like the effects it's having on the economy–"
Climate change is the next "pandemic-like story that we'll beat to death, but that one's got longevity. You know what I mean? Like there's a definitive ending to the pandemic. It'll taper off to a point that it's not a problem anymore. Climate change can take years, so they'll [CNN will] probably be able to milk that quite a bit."
"Be prepared, it's coming. Climate change is going to be the next COVID thing for CNN."
When asked if CNN was going to use "fear" to push their agenda, Chester said, "Yeah. Fear sells."

---

work requirements

https://www.alternet.org/youre-unemployable-matt-gaetz-welfare/

---

https://www.alternet.org/matt-gaetz-2659593697/

staffer racist

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an raw 3 23

During a hearing this week, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) was humiliated after promoting a report from the Global Times to justify the end of military aid to Ukraine — only for the witness to point out the Global Times is Chinese state-run media.

But there's a lot more to the story, wrote Aaron Blake for The Washington Post on Tuesday.

"The Trump administration in 2020 designated the Global Times and three other outlets as 'foreign missions' because they are 'effectively controlled by the government of the People’s Republic of China,'" wrote Blake. "'This designation recognizes PRC propaganda outlets as foreign missions and increases transparency relating to the CCP and PRC government’s media activities in the United States,' the State Department said."

"Some media scholars have likened the Global Times to China’s Fox News. The New York Times in 2019 labeled it 'a 24-hour propaganda machine' whose top editor at the time was 'seen as a combative public voice of the administration of President Xi Jinping in an era of more open rivalry with the United States,'" said the report. "Responding to a request for comment from The Washington Post, Gaetz spokesman Joel Valdez said, 'Congressman Gaetz wanted to ask if the report was true. The panelist said it wasn’t true, and that was a good enough answer for him.' He did not address the congressman’s apparent surprise at where his source came from."

The specific article Gaetz was pushing alleged that the Azov Battalion was getting access to U.S. weapons. The Azov Battalion is a militia founded by far-right extremists that was later incorporated into Ukraine's military and separated from its original extremist mission. Russian propagandists have long used the existence of the group to claim, baselessly, that the entire Ukrainian government is run by neo-Nazis, one of the public justifications used by Vladimir Putin for the invasion of the country.

The Global Times article cites a 2018 blog post to support the idea the U.S. is training the Azov fighters — but there is no firm evidence to support this.

"The Global Times article goes on to cite various experts accusing the United States of 'inciting conflicts between Ukraine and Russia” and “being very much conniving with the neo-Nazi forces' in Eastern Europe," wrote Blake. "It cites the United States and Ukraine having voted against a United Nations resolution on 'combating the glorification of' Nazism and neo-Nazism. But it does not explain that this is a resolution frequently pushed by Russia, which many European countries abstain from voting on. The United States has repeatedly said the resolution calls for 'unacceptable limits on the fundamental freedom of expression' and that it’s a thinly veiled political attack on Ukraine and even a pretext for Russia’s invasion."

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an 2 23

On Sunday's edition of Face the Nation,United States Representative Michael McCaul (R-Texas)said that he backs efforts to aid Ukraine while conceding that certain right-wing Republicans will never be convinced that doing so is a worthwhile endeavor.

"You voted in the last Congress to provide a lot of assistance to Ukraine, but this past week, uh, at least ten of your members, Republican members, introduced a bill called the Ukraine Fatigue Resolution to try to cut off aid. How hard is it going to be to have a Republican-led House continue to help Ukraine?" CBS moderator Margaret Brennen asked McCaul, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

"I still believe Margaret, there are many, uh, on both sides of the aisle, majority of the majorities in support of this. Uh, we have factions on the left and right that do not support Ukraine assistance and that will probably continue," McCaul said.

"This is a Republican bill," Brennan interjected.

"Right? And I do think, uh, for me particularly, it's, uh, we have to educate, where has the money gone? Um, you know, the audits that are in place right now, there are four of them on Ukraine funding. Uh, and we have to explain why is Ukraine so important," McCaul continued. "You know, what happens in Ukraine impacts Taiwan and Chairman Xi, that China's aligned with Russia, Iran, and North Korea against freedom, democracy in the West. And um, you know, I, I think that's a debate we'll have, but I still feel very confident that we will give them the assistance they need. I'd like to see it faster so they can win this faster."

The conversation then turned to CongresspersonsMatt Gaetz (R-Florida) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia), who are among the clique of House Republicans who think that helping Ukraine is a waste of time and money.

"So you, you think Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene, others who signed this need to be educated?" Brennan wondered about the aforementioned Ukraine Fatigue Resolution, which Greene and Gaetz both cosponsored along with ten of their colleagues.

"Uh, I, you know, look, we took Marjorie Taylor Greene, uh, in, into a briefing. Uh, she was satisfied, I thought, with what, uh, the controls have been put in place on the spinning. But I don't think that they will be, ever be con, uh, persuaded, uh, that this cause is something, uh, that they would support," McCaul replied. "I think they have this false dichotomy that somehow we can't, uh, Ukraine, you know, beat back, uh, the Russians who invaded their country, uh, and, and secure the border. Uh, we can do both. We're a great nation. Um, and the fact of the matter is, unfortunately, this administration has chosen not to secure the border. He can't even control and secure our airspace, now it looks like."

Watch below or at this link.

---

2/1/23

vs cissiline on pledge insurrectionist; murderer led pledge?

https://truthout.org/articles/gaetz-wants-reading-of-pledge-of-allegiance-before-judiciary-committee-meetings/

no lnx

wednesday, Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz introduced a new amendment to the House Judiciary Committee hearing rules, which would require lawmakers to recite the Pledge of Allegiance before each meeting.

:{:{}:

Gaetz’s proposal was likely aimed at embarrassing Democrats on the committee, who opposed the requirement.

The pledge has been used as a political weapon numerous times in U.S. history,to label those who don’t participate or who oppose its use as unpatriotic.

Nativists and white supremacists have also used the pledge to attack people they deem “un-American” based on their race or immigration status.

Rep. Jerry Nadler (R-New York), who previously chaired the Judiciary Committee, objected to Gaetz’s proposal.

“I don’t know why we should pledge allegiance twice in the same day to show how patriotic we are,” Nadler said.

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy addresses the media outside his office at the U.S. Capitol on January 24, 2023, in Washington, D.C.

NEWS | POLITICS & ELECTIONS

Kevin McCarthy Appoints 3 Election Deniers to the House Ethics Committee

The new chair of the committee signed on to a lawsuit from Texas that sought to discount millions of votes in 2020.

By Chris Walker , TRUTHOUTFebruary 1, 2023]

Predictably, Gaetz and other committee members fired back, noting that Nadler and others aren’t always on the House floor when the pledge is recited. Nadler responded by saying that there is documentation of him saying the pledge many times.

:{:{}:

Later that day, after the Judiciary Committee’s hearing, Gaetz attacked Nadler on social media for opposing his amendment. “The Pledge of Allegiance is not a waste of time,” Gaetz said on Twitter. The account representing the Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee also rebuked Nadler and Democrats for opposing the idea.

During the meeting, however, Rep. David Cicilline (D-Rhode Island) turned the issue on its head. Cicilline proposed adding wording to Gaetz’s amendment on reciting the pledge specifying that no person “who supported an insurrection against the United States in any way” should be invited to read the pledge before the committee.

Republicans voiced their disdain for the idea, interpreting it as an attack on some members’ votes against certifying the 2020 presidential election on January 6, 2021, the day the Capitol was attacked by a mob of loyalists to former President Donald Trump. Gaetz claimed that Democrats “may be disqualifying [their] own members” through such an amendment, perhaps referring to the fact that Democrats have voted against certifying electors in previous presidential elections (though not nearly in the same numbers as Republicans in 2021).

Cicilline said it was “interesting” that Gaetz’s mind went in that direction, since his proposed amendment was referring to people in general, not solely lawmakers.

:{:{}:

“I think we should all agree that no one who participated in insurrection should lead the Judiciary Committee in the Pledge of Allegiance, so it shouldn’t be complicated to accept this amendment,” Cicilline said, adding:

This pledge is an affirmation of your defense of democracy and the Constitution. It’s hard to take that claim seriously if in fact, an individual in any way supported an insurrection against the government.

Cicilline’s amendment was ultimately defeated, while Gaetz’s amendment, requiring that the Pledge of Allegiance be read before each committee hearing, was passed.

Had Cicilline’s amendment passed, it likely wouldn’t have been enforced, as it would have given power to determine whether or not someone is an insurrectionist to the Judiciary Committee Chair, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). Only one person in the U.S. so far has been successfully barred from holding future office for violating the insurrectionist clause of the 14th Amendment — former Cowboys for Trump leader Couy Griffin, who helped coordinate the attack on the Capitol.

Notably, Trump himself could be barred from holding office in the future under the insurrectionist clause. Noah Bookbinder, president of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), has promised that the organization will seek to have Trump listed as an insurrectionist under the terms of the 14th Amendment.

In an open letter to Trump in November, Bookbinder warned that if Trump announced another presidential run, CREW would take appropriate action to bar him “based on [his] engaging in the insurrection that culminated on January 6, 2021.”

“The evidence that you engaged in insurrection as contemplated by the Fourteenth Amendment — including by mobilizing, inciting, and aiding those who attacked the Capitol — is overwhelming,” Bookbinder wrote, weeks before Trump announced his 2024 presidential run.

CHRIS WALKER

Chris Walker is a news writer at Truthout, and is based out of Madison, Wisconsin. Focusing on both national and local topics since the early 2000s, he has produced thousands of articles analyzing the issues of the day and their impact on the American people.

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an 2 23

"it only goes downhill from here': GOPer Nancy Mace trolls Matt Gaetz over his sex trafficking investigation

Meaghan Ellis

February 10, 2023

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) did not mince words when she shared her opinion of the sex trafficking investigation of her colleague, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.).

Mace's remarks arrived during the Washington Press...

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an 2 23 MOFO where are these # coming from?

United States Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) told right-wing commentator Steve Bannon on Saturday that he would back efforts to slash spending toward the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as a substitute for cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Nearly half of those Americans who benefit from SNAP are children.

"I just don't understand why we're a country that pays people who could go to work, not to. And when I go..." Gaetz began.

:{:{"How big a deal is that? Does that come away with the emergency measures coming off or is it deeper?" Bannon interrupted to ask.}:

"Oh, considerably deeper. And by the way, it pays you on both sides of the ledger, right? If you impose work requirements on all means-tested entitlement programs for working-age people, not for the disabled, not for seniors, but for working-age people, it's a trillion dollars in savings during the ten-year budget window," Gaetz said on War Room.

"This is in Medicaid and other..." Bannon interjected.

"This is in Medicaid and in food stamps," Gaetz stated.

"...in food stamps. Discretionary spending," Bannon added.

"Yeah. The biggest chunks are from the Obamacare Medicaid expansion to able-bodied adults and to the SNAP program. It's over 400 billion to SNAP," the congressman continued.

"So Social Security and Medicare are off the table. But you're saying taking Medicaid and other aspects of discretion?" Bannon wondered.

"Well look, if it was Matt Gaetz, I think that we do need reforms to Social Security and Medicare. I understand politically enough people have said that's off the table," Gaetz mused.

"But that can come later," Bannon added.

"By the way, Medicaid should not be a sacred cow.And so it hasn't been," said Gaetz. "You notice people and talk about Medicaid the same way they're talking about Social Security, right? So with Medicaid, I think there's a lot of meat on the bone for savings. In SNAP, you can get over 400 billion in savings."

Watch below or at this link.

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mma 1 23

MATT GAETZ (GUEST HOST): You have admitted embellishing your resume, you've acknowledged it, you've apologized for it, some have said that you shouldn't be seated on committees for it. I would offer that if we didn't seat people on committees who embellish their resume running for Congress, we probably wouldn't be able to make quorum in any of those committees. Do you now have a sense of the committees you want to serve on, the type of work you want to do?

REP. GEORGE SANTOS (GUEST): I came to D.C. without really any preconceived notions of what committees to serve, but whether what I can give to the American people. Whatever committee I'm given, whether it's, I don't know, Science and Technology, or Education and Labor, or whatever committee is thrown my way, I will deliver 110% because that is what I know how to do. I am going to outwork any of the pundits and talking heads that are out there saying that I should resign, that I'm unfit for office. The reality is and the case and point here being is, I'm a work horse, I've worked my whole life, I'm the kid who came from a basement apartment.

...

GAETZ: Embellishing one's resume isn't a crime. It's, frankly, how a lot of people get to Congress and we want everyone to be honest and, again, you've acknowledged that, and you're working forward going forward. One of the principal critiques I've heard is that a lot of money was donated to your campaign by you -- $700,000, I believe. Where did it come from?

SANTOS: Well, I'll tell you where it didn't come from. It didn't come from China, Ukraine, or Burisma. How about that?

GAETZ: Well, that is an answer. I mean, I also put money into my campaign when I ran.I had to sell some of the property that I'd acquired in my life in order to fund something that I really believed in.

---

old school jc in bkgd

https://www.mediamatters.org/steve-bannon/rep-matt-gaetz-r-fl-and-former-trump-official-russ-vought-discuss-using-new-house

REP. MATT GAETZ (GUEST HOST): Let's start with the Holman Rule. Talk about what it means for any member of Congress to be able to get up and defund a particular bureaucrat.

RUSS VOUGHT (PRESIDENT, CENTER FOR RENEWING AMERICA; FORMER OMB DIRECTOR): It's huge. And so you know I come from the executive agency before this role, and we would have all of these career bureaucrats that we would be having to work with and the American people would largely not know their names, until Covid happened and now everyone knows who Tony Fauci is. But think about the ability to go to the House floor and have a debate about a particular bureaucrat. That is enormous. It changes the entire game right now.

I would have situations where our staff would do anything they possibly could not to necessarily give me what I needed, because they were worried about their own ability to stay anonymous. The Holman Rule makes sure that those career bureaucrats are no longer anonymous, and that they are put in the crosshairs to the same extent – in the arena – that you are. That I am.

So that is a game changer in having the appropriations debate. Also, not just what the message it sends, but the extent to which it itself focuses the appropriations process on the deep state, on theadministrative state that exists, that is now woke, and it's weaponized.And that has to be the biggest fiscal priority that we have, to go after the woke and weaponized bureaucracy.

GAETZ: Russ, if we'd have had this tool, we would have obviously directed it at Anthony Fauci, right? So, if you're comparing and contrasting, we would have had the ability – if we had the rules that we now have in place – if we'd have had those in place in the last Congress, you could actually force a vote on funding Fauci or not funding Fauci. As we look at a weaponized system across the apparatus of government, give us some examples or advice for who are some of the bureaucrats that enjoy their anonymity now? What are some of the agencies we should look at to target and take this tool out of the toolkit and actually put it to use?

VOUGHT: Well, there's all sorts of the types of people that you'd want to get in with Labor, HHS, and the COVID fascism that we've saw as a result of kind of lockdown-era policies. But we're going to want to use this in the Department of Justice. We're going to want to find those people that participated in the Russia hoax, that participated in going to FISA and lying to get warrants that are cooked up against the American people. So as you bring that aspect of what you negotiate, along with the Church-style committee that will sit within Judiciary, those are the kinds of things that you can say in real time that makes this enforcing.

The battle is certainly not over. We've got to show up at every stage, but it is self-enforcing.You enforce it, the 20 enforce it.And that was what makes this different than anything else that we've seen in recent memory, because not only is your voting no confidence in real speak – your motion to vacate present, but you also have the Rules Committee that is enforcing this on a bill-by-bill basis. So it's enormously successful and you've got a lot of potential to use it against thatbureaucrat that you'd identify that's standing in your way at NASA or the EPA – who's the EPA bureaucrat that put Joe Robertson, a 77-year-old Navy veteran in jail for building four ponds on his ranch to be able to fight wildfires. That's the person we want to use the Holman rule on.

---

https://www.alternet.org/2022/11/matt-gaetz/

evid but not prosec

---

Kevin McCarthy's 14th failed attempt to become Speaker of the House was punctuated by a spat between Republicans Mike Rogers and Matt Gaetz. Gaetz clowning around had already humiliated Rogers' good friend Kevin McCarthy so many times that when his latest clever vote of "Present" wasn't enough to help close the deal, Rogers lost control and had to be muzzled.

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an 1 23

On Thursday night, January 5, the new Congress of 2023 still lacked a House speaker. Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, in no less than 11 roll-call votes, had been rejected by a group of far-right MAGA House members (many of them part of the House Freedom Caucus) who have been dubbed the“Never Kevin” Republicans. Nonetheless, McCarthy vowed that he would keep trying to win them over.

The majority of House Republicans have been voting to make McCarthy House speaker, but around 19 or 20 Never Kevin Republicans voted against McCarthy repeatedly. And some of them, according to Axios reporter Lachlan Markay, have been using their theatrics for fundraising pitches.

“The three-day deadlock has brought the House to a standstill and prevented newly elected members from being sworn in,” Markay explains in an article published by Axios the night of January 5. “For some members, though, the fight itself has a financial upside.”

Markay cites Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona and Rep. Bob Good of Virginia as examples of Never Kevin Republicans who have been using their “no” votes to ask for donations.

In a fundraising e-mail, Gaetz wrote, “Patriot, maybe the right person for the job of Speaker of the House isn’t someone who has sold shares of himselffor more than a decade to get it. I HAVE NO REGRETS ABOUT CASTING MY VOTE ON THE HOUSE FLOOR AGAINST KEVIN McCARTHY FOR SPEAKER!…. If you want to Drain the Swamp, you CANNOT put the biggest alligator in charge of the exercise! But that’s exactly what we would get with a McCarthy speakership.”

Gaetz described McCarthy as “Kiev Kevin,” underscoring his opposition to helping the government of Ukraine at a time when Ukrainian forces are continuing to fight against invaders sent by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin.

Biggs asked Republican donors to “turbocharge our emergency efforts to break the Establishment” and told them that “every dollar helps secure the Speaker position.” Good, in his fundraising pitch, accused McCarthy of spending “millions of dollars trying to defeat conservatives in Republican primaries.”

Markay reports, “Ultra MAGA PAC, a group run by ex-(Donald) Trump aide Corey Lewandowski, sent a fundraising e-mail Thursday that called for McCarthy, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell and RNC chair Ronna McDaniel to be replaced. McCarthy ‘stopped the Red Wave single-handedly by weighing in on primaries against good MAGA candidates,’ the email claimed.”

Meanwhile, Democrats have been using the House speaker debacle to do some fundraising of their own. One of their fundraising e-mails was sent by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) under Rep. Hakeem Jeffries’ name. Jeffries is Democrats’ presumptive House minority leader, and House Democrats repeatedly voted to give him that position in the roll-call votes of January 3-5. Jeffries was endorsed by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who resigned as Democratic leader in the House but will remain in Congress in 2023.

That DCCC fundraising e-mail read, “Republicans have fallen into complete chaos. Will you help me prove that grassroots Democrats can get more support than Republicans in these first hours of the new Republican House?"

---

2021

brennan ctr

...19. The rich always throw the new boss a fete, no matter the party.

President Joe Biden’s inaugural raised $61 million, which was provided by 18 billionaires and many corporate donors, among others. Many of these corporate donors like Pfizer, AT&T, and Boeing had previously given to President Donald Trump’s inaugural in 2017, which incidentally is still under investigation by the D.C. attorney general.

18. Some campaign treasurers need to improve their math skills.

Federal candidates report their fundraising and spending to the FEC, but in some cases, the numbers did not add up. Rep. Jim Jordan’s (R-OH) campaign faced questions from the FEC over accounting discrepancies that exceed $100,000.

17. Campaign funds are not personal piggy banks.

You might think after the prosecutions of former congressmen Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-IL) for personal use of campaign funds, the message would have sunk in by now that federal candidates cannot use campaign money for lifestyle perks. But in August, the FEC had to ask Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) to explain the apparent personal use of her campaign funds to allegedly pay for rent and utilities. And demonstrating how serious personal use of campaign funds is, in September, Milwaukee City Council member Chantia Lewis, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, was charged with a series of campaign finance violations for allegedly using donations and improper travel reimbursements on more than $21,000 in car payments, family trips, and a worship conference. Also in September, former Massachusetts state representative David M. Nangle (D) was sentenced for illegally using campaign funds to pay for his personal expenses.

16. Big offices still cost big money.

There was at least $84 million spent in the failed effort to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). At least $76 million was spent in the New Jersey governor’s race where the Democratic incumbent, Phil Murphy, raised more money and won reelection. But the Virginia governor’s race took the cake, costing at least $148 million. Republican Glenn Youngkin raised slightly more than Democrat Terry McAuliffe and won slightly more votes to take the governor’s mansion.

15. The worst places got worse.

Florida, which already wasn’t great in terms of money in politics, got rid of low local contribution limits for localities by passing a state law that displaced good local campaign finance ordinances.

14. The fallout from Russian interference in the 2016 election is still generating criminal cases.

The Justice Department charged Roy Wead of Florida, an advisor to multiple presidential campaigns, and Jesse Benton of Kentucky, who previously worked as a campaign manager for two U.S. Senate campaigns and one presidential campaign, with conspiracy to solicit an illegal campaign contribution by a Russian foreign national.

13. Not every campaign finance matter from the 2016 election was resolved.

Time ran out on the statute of limitations for charging Donald Trump for the hush fund payments to Stormy Daniels that landed Trump lawyer Michael Cohen in jail. October 27 was the five-year anniversary of when Trump had Cohen secretly pay hush money to the porn star.

12. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is doing his best to crush campaign finance reform.

:{:{}:

The Supreme Court agreed to hear FEC v. Ted Cruz for Senate. The question in the case is whether the federal loan-repayment limit for candidates violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment. The case gives the Roberts Supreme Court another chance to further hobble campaign finance law, which groups like the Brennan Center have advocated against.}:

11. Some campaign expenditures raise more eyebrows than others.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) has been under scrutiny ever since a close associate, Joel Greenberg, was arrested and began cooperating with investigators who are looking into an alleged sex trafficking ring. Those looking at Gaetz’s campaign expenditures have discovered that $825,000 has gone to a PR firm called Logan Circle Group, $50,000 went to legal fees to the same lawyer who represented Jeffrey Epstein, and $20,000 went to a company run by Roger Stone.

---

gaetz and her smirk at zel sp?

https://www.alternet.org/trump/boebert-russian-tv-brave-zelensky/

---

https://www.alternet.org/msnbc-roasts-punk-kevin-mccarthy/

foto twt

===

wait, what?

https://www.eenews.net/articles/gop-criticizes-its-own-on-climate

ref climatewire 5/19

https://www.eenews.net/articles/gop-criticizes-its-own-on-climate/?ref=drilled

rep. Matt Gaetz (center), a Florida Republican who accepts that man-made climate change is occurring, is being criticized by conservatives for offering legislation to address global warming. Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Newscom

As some Republicans inch toward climate policy for the first time in years, those in the party who reject climate science are getting nervous that a more permanent shift is coming.

And they’re going on the attack against their former allies.

A group called Energy & Environment Action Team recently sent a 16-page pamphlet to every member of Congress encouraging lawmakers to reject all climate policy and connecting concern about global warming to political losses. In bold letters across the top, the pamphlet stated, "The Plan is … No Plan! Why the GOP shouldn’t do anything on climate."

"There is absolutely no reason for any Republican to offer a plan to ‘combat climate change,’" the pamphlet continued. "Such a plan, if enacted would accomplish nothing good for America or the climate."

A growing number of Republican lawmakers, including some who have disputed climate science for years, are not only now acknowledging global warming but also putting forward climate policies. But some worry that their colleagues are simply shifting to climate action because they have been spooked by the popularity of the Green New Deal.

"If you are planning on running against the Green New Deal, it seems sort of odd to play footsie with key elements of the Green New Deal," said Republican energy lobbyist Mike McKenna, who was on President Trump’s Energy Department transition team.

In March, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) proposed a "Green Real Deal" resolution that acknowledges the reality of climate change and the threat it poses to national security, and seeks to use innovation to combat global warming.Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) called for a bipartisan "New Manhattan Project for Clean Energy"that would increase the share of renewables on the energy grid, boost nuclear power and encourage electric car production.

"Congressman Gaetz and others are going to do what they think is best, but the idea that Republicans are going to outcompete with Democrats with respect to who can have the best government-based solution to anything is ridiculous and profoundly unserious," McKenna said.

While modest in comparison with the ideas put forward by Democrats — none of the Republican proposals would restrict fossil fuel use, for example — such plans have angered groups allied with the GOP for years.

The Competitive Enterprise Institute and other groups opposed to regulations want to increase political pressure on Republicans who are proposing climate action to "educate them and thereby bring them back into line," said Myron Ebell,director of CEI’s Center for Energy and Environment and head of the Trump EPA transition team.

Ebell said he is particularly concerned that there seems to be a push among House leadership to craft climate policy. He accused House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) of misleading others in the party and said some lawmakers, including Reps. Garret Graves (R-La.) and Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), have been misinformed by advocates on the value of clean energy.

"It’s when conservatives have decided to offer alternatives, they have gotten beat, because in the public’s mind it becomes very difficult to tell the difference between the left’s plan and the right’s plan and then pretty soon they’re compromising it, they’re coming to some sort of middle ground and pretty soon we’ve lost the whole issue," he said.

Ebell added: "It’s pretty clear to anybody who looks at it, there is no middle ground."

A spokesman for Gaetz said the congressman has discussed "the reality of climate change" with Republican lawmakers as well as with Trump. Gaetz, who once proposed eliminating EPA, is optimistic that more Republicans will eventually form their own plans to address climate change, spokesman Luke Ball said. Gaetz doesn’t view those in the party who reject science as a lost cause because the scientific evidence is now so overwhelming that it will push others to act, his spokesman said.

"Gaetz is concerned at the lack of support he has received from members of his own party who continue to deny the science of climate change," Ball said. "He believes history will judge harshly those who refuse to acknowledge this issue or take actionable steps to address it."

Other GOP lawmakers criticized from the right for climate policy were more reluctant to call out their colleagues.

Graves is one of the most visible congressional Republicans when it comes to the issue of global warming. Not only does he serve as the top GOP lawmaker on a new House climate change committee, but Graves has a history of acknowledging the risks of a warmer planet (Climatewire, March 11).

In a brief Capitol Hill interview, he said he hasn’t encountered noticeable pushback from climate deniers or climate contrarians. But he said he’s still cognizant of the way he must broach the issue with other Republicans.

"What you have to do is to meet people where they are and sort of use verbiage or words that translate to people the right way," Graves said.

"You may not be able to go into some Republican circles and say that, ‘Hey, I’ve got this plan on how we’re going to reduce greenhouse gases in the United States and we’re going to convert everything to renewable energy,’" he said.

But Graves added that the audience could be more receptive "if you come in and start talking about strategies on how we can reduce energy costs by improving efficiency and conservation [or] by bringing new technologies to the table."

Nonetheless, conservatives who oppose climate policy plan to escalate their attacks if members of the party don’t back down.

The recent 16-page brochure attacked a few lawmakers for being concerned about climate change, labeling Gaetz as "one Republican to fall for the climate-baiting guilt-trip." The pamphlet, which misrepresents and distorts climate science, portrays Republicans as politically victorious when they reject climate policy. It blamed the late Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain’s loss in the 2008 presidential election on his climate policy.

Steve Milloy, editor of JunkScience.com and the author of the pamphlet, said it’s a signal to Republicans not to get out of line on climate policy. Democrats have united on the other side, he said, and the GOP should also do the same. He blamed Republican actions on climate change on young staffers who don’t yet understand the party’s position. Milloy said he plans to make sure other lawmakers don’t "drift" and warned he would extend his advocacy beyond pamphlets.

"People say all kinds of shit, and if they stop saying it, then OK, but if they persist, well, tougher action will be required," he said. "Then it’s going to be ugly."

The differences between Gaetz’s plan and the Green New Deal backed by progressive Democrats are mere "window-dressing," wrote James Taylor, a senior fellow at the Heartland Institute, which aims to muddy climate science.

Taylor has said that Republicans risk alienating their base if they craft climate policy. He said that "weak-minded congressional Republicans" who try to respond to the Green New Deal take away the chance to run against it in the 2020 elections.

He has written critically of Gaetz in particular and even referred to him as "Matt Gore" in reference to Al Gore, the former U.S. vice president and environmental activist.

"Gaetz, Alexander, and theirsmall cadre of Republican climate alarmists are seeking to undermine the conservative Republican voter base and Trump on one of his most important policy principles," he wrote."Their betrayal of Trump and the conservative Republican base will almost certainly and justly come back to haunt them."

The fight on the right over climate change isn’t a new one for Alex Flint, who leads the Alliance for Market Solutions, a conservative group that supports carbon taxes.

Earlier this year, Flint criticized climate contrarians for their views and argued that denialism is anathema to conservatism because it ignores the risks of global warming. And "being irresponsible disqualifies anyone from being a true conservative," he wrote at the time (Climatewire, April 15).

In an interview Thursday, Flint made the case that the rejection of climate science is losing ground with Republicans.

"But we won’t know until after the 2020 elections how rapidly it’s occurring," he said.

---

rock scott, rubio on fema? 10 22

https://www.alternet.org/2022/10/matt-gaetz-demands-hurricane-aid/

---

an 10 22

Republican legislators are starting to suggest defunding the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), the office founded in 1989 to assist with veteran needs. The VA assists with getting veterans mental and physical healthcare, educational opportunities, community support, and other everyday housing and living needs.

An Arizona legislator, captured on video participating in a mock congressional hearing, said he supported shutting down the department.

“That’s sort of what I’m thinking because … I hear no good stories. I had zero in my district,” the legislator said in a video posted by the far-right watchdog group Patriot Takes. “So I guess it’s a matter of us leading the fight to defund it.”

A second video, posted by the same account, showed Republican Florida Representative Matt Gaetz advocating for defunding the VA while speaking at an event held by FreedomWorks, a conservative and libertarian advocacy group.

“This is my question to the group. Is it savable? Why not abolish the VA, take all of the money that we are otherwise spending andgo to an any willing provider system inside of our communities?” Gaetz says in the video. “And then, if people get bad care, they can vote with their feet and you don’t have a two-tier system of healthcare in this country with our veterans and then with everyone else.”

Generally speaking, Republican policies favor the privatization of all government functions, thinking that a “small government,” “free-market,” “for-profit” privatization provided by a corporation can solve any market ill.

In reality, if entire communities are deprived of VA access, U.S. military veterans will be left largely on their own to get their life needs met after militaries service. Those who lack money or transportation won’t be able to “vote with their feet” and find a local care provider to handle their specific issues… they’ll either have to spend massive amounts to get such essential care or just go without.

In late July, 41 Senate Republicans voted against a bill aimed at protecting veterans exposed to toxic materials during their military service. The legislation would have expanded care to 3.5 million veterans exposed to toxic burn pits. It would have also added 23 toxic and burn pit exposure-related illnesses to the VA database, Newsweek reported.

After massive blowback, Senate Republicans re-voted on the bill and helped it pass.

Patriot Takes posted the video hoping that it would encourage veterans and military members to vote in the upcoming mid-term elections.

---

ex liar for air mercs desantis martha

https://www.alternet.org/2022/09/matt-gaetz/ sex traff --> 0?

mma 922

JESSE WATTERS (HOST): Remember when Congressman Matt Gaetz was smeared by the media and the Democrats? They said he was a criminal? He was a sex trafficker? But as time went on, it became clear they didn't have anything on him. There was never any evidence, and now listen to this. The Washington Post is reporting that prosecutors have advised against charging Gaetz with anything. Why? Because they don't think two key witnesses are credible.

Okay, so what happened here? Is this some just giant smear job? It doesn't even matter if they don't charge now. I mean, the damage has been done. He's got to clean up his reputation. But this is what the left always does. They'll concoct a story, feed it to the press. The media runs with it. They'll dangle charges. And then it's just done. Oh well. They did it to Trump. They did it to Kavanaugh.They did it to Gaetz. So, who's next?

---

https://www.alternet.org/2022/08/matt-gaetz/

op ed ~

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an 8 22

https://www.alternet.org/2022/08/fbi-matt-gaetz-stone/

A former official for the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) recently compared members of TrumpWorld to the mafia.

During an appearance on MSNBC, Frank Figliuzzi, who worked as an assistant director in the FBI's counterintelligence division, shared his opinion of The Washington Post's recent report offering details about a "hot-mic conversation" that took place between Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and longtime Trump ally, Roger Stone.

The report highlighted a 2019 recording whereGaetz "repeatedly assured Stone that 'the boss' would likely grant him clemency if he were convicted." Figliuzzi also recalled how Stone said he was hoping the Florida lawmaker and "dozens of others" would help him circumvent his legal woes.

"It's a much larger conspiracy than I think even those of us who followed it every day could have imagined," Figliuzzi said.

The former FBI official also insists that the conversations between Gaetz and Stone appear to echo a "we're all in this together" ideology and sheds light on how members of TrumpWorld function. According to Figliuzzi, it's similar to the mafia mentality.

"You know, La Cosa Nostra, the Italian Mafia, translates as, 'This Thing of Ours,'" he said. "That's all I keep hearing here: 'We're all in this together.'"

He also noted that the mob wiretaps he'd previously heard sound relatively similar to the conversations between Gaetz and Stone. "And they're part of a criminal enterprise," he added. "It's a criminal organization. They know it. They know they're screwed with regard to legality, and they know the only way out is for the boss to get them out of it."

Business Insider also highlighted other sections of hot-mic conversation that alluded to mafia-style rhetoric.

At one point, Stone "was also heard telling Gaetz that he might have to "appeal to the big man" because most jurors surveyed for his trial despised him." The news outlet added that Gaetz "was then heard agreeing with Stone, saying Stone was 'fucked' where the trial was concerned. The congressman added, however, that he believed Stone wouldn't go to prison because the 'big guy' would not let that happen."

---

8 22 gone for a yr?

https://www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/after-temporary-banishment-rep-matt-gaetz-once-again-fox-news-star-despite-his-situation

within the first three months of 2021, according to Media Matters’ internal database, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) made 37 weekday appearances on Fox News daytime and prime-time programming. At the time, Gaetz and Fox News enjoyed a symbiotic relationship: Gaetz would appear weekly to biweekly to lend his firebrand personality and shameless distortion of the truth to whatever culture or message war the network was pushing, and in turn, the network elevated his stardom and status as one of former President Donald Trump’s top henchmen.

On March 30, 2021, the relationship between the Trump loyalist and the network dramatically shifted when The New York Times reported that Gaetz was facing a Justice Department inquiry over allegedly engaging in a sexual relationship with an underage girl. Fox’s leading face, Tucker Carlson, responded to the bombshell report by hosting Gaetz for a softball interview in which the congressman professed his innocence and claimed the Times was “smearing” him based on a financial extortion plot against Gaetz and his family. (While a Florida businessman eventually pleaded guilty to wire fraud against the Gaetz family, the investigation into Gaetz’ relationship with underage women was separate, and The Daily Beastoutlined the numerous falsehoods Gaetz made in the interview.)

Gaetz also attempted to implicate Carlson by comparing his situation to false allegations against Carlson and suggesting Carlson had met a “friend” involved in the plot, leading the host to call it “one of the weirdest” interviews he’s ever done. This exchange landed Gaetz an informal excommunication from the network, forcing him off Fox airwaves until Carlson hosted him again, an exact year later, on March 30, 2022, to plead his innocence. Within the two last months, Carlson’s other prime-time colleagues Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingrahamhave all followed suit, hosting Gaetz with no mention of the scandal.

The Justice Department investigation is still ongoing, yet Fox has welcomed its former star back with open arms. As Gaetz’s scandals have deepened, it’s unclear what changed in the network’s calculation of the lawmaker’s suitability for its airwaves. At best, Gaetz’s increased appearances on Fox are another tool to fuel bad-faith Republican arguments, especially amid their desperate attempts to distract from the January 6 hearings. At worst, the network’s embrace of Gaetz represents a callous disregard for serious allegations, made particularly ironic given Fox’s recent homophobic campaign against the LGBTQ+ community under the pretense of protecting children from supposed groomers.

Here is a timeline of all the revelations made about Gaetz during his time off-air:

- March 30, 2021: The New York Times reported that Gaetz is the subject of a Justice Department inquiry over an alleged sexual relationship with a 17-year-old in which he had paid for her to travel with him, thus potentially violating federal sex trafficking laws. The investigation, which was opened in the final months of the Trump administration under Attorney General William Barr, arose from an investigation into Gaetz’ political ally Joel Greenberg, who was indicted in 2021 for various charges, including sex trafficking of a child and financially supporting people in exchange for sex.
## April 2021
- April 1, 2021:CNN reported that Gaetz had allegedly showed nude photos of women he’d had a sexual relationship with to lawmakers while on the House floor.
- April 1, 2021: The New York Times reported that the inquiry into Gaetz and Greenberg is focused on their “involvement with multiple women who were recruited online for sex and received cash payments.” According to the Times, Gaetz and Greenberg allegedly used Cash App for payments, instructing “the women to meet at certain times and places, often at hotels around Florida,” and telling them “the amount of money they were willing to pay.” The Times also reported that Gaetz allegedly took ecstasy before having sex and would ask women to find others interested in having sex with him and his friends.
- April 2, 2021: ABC News reported that a source said Gaetz was “often spotted trying to pick up young women at 101 Restaurant, a once-popular watering hole in Tallahassee for some lawmakers and students from nearby Florida State University.” The source also said that Gaetz was part of the group of male lawmakers who had a scoring system to score their female sexual conquests. (The scoring system had been previously reported by the Miami Herald.) The men allocated points for various targets such as interns, staffers, and virgins.
- April 5, 2021:The Orlando Sentinel quoted retired Florida state Rep. Tom Goodson explaining that Gaetz fought fiercely against a 2015 law that protected against revenge porn because Gaetz “thought that any picture was his to use as he wanted to, as an expression of his rights.”
- April 6, 2021:The New York Times reported that Gaetz had privately sought “blanket pre-emptive pardons for himself and unidentified congressional allies for any crimes they may have committed” in the final weeks of Trump’s term.
- April 8, 2021:CBS News reported that a trip to Gaetz took to the Bahamas “in late 2018 or early 2019” was a part of the federal investigation into sex trafficking. Gaetz took the trip with “marijuana entrepreneur and hand surgeon … Jason Pirozzolo, who allegedly paid for the travel expenses, accommodations, and female escorts.” CBS News also reported that investigators were determining whether Gaetz “was accepting paid escorts in exchange for political access or legislative favors.”
- April 8, 2021: The Daily Beast reported that Gaetz had used the app Venmo to pay $900 to Greenberg, who in turn then sent money to “three young women” that totaled $900. While Gaetz had a nickname for one of the young women in the subject line of one of the payments, Greenberg had disguised the money as being for “tuition” or “school.” The article also stated that Venmo transactions had linked Gaetz with women to whom Greenberg had previously used taxpayer funds to send payments.
- April 9, 2021: The House Ethics Committee announced it would investigate claims that Gaetz engaged in “sexual misconduct and illicit drug use and showed images of naked women on the House floor,” as The Washington Post reported.
- April 13, 2021:Politico reported that Gaetz’s 2018 Bahamas trip included “at least five young women,” including the former minor at the heart of the Justice Department’s investigation.
- April 14, 2021: CNN talked to two women who said they attended parties in the Orlando area with Gaetz and other prominent Florida officials involving drug use, sex, and payments.
- April 14, 2021: The Daily Beast reported that Greenberg made “more than 150 Venmo payments to dozens of young women.” Greenberg paid the then-17-year-old $300 in June 2017, with the Venmo subject line listing “Food.” The article also cited sources who claimed Gaetz “was among the men who tapped Greenberg to access a large network of young women.” The Daily Beast reviewed Venmo transactions that “show[ed] dozens of suspicious and curiously titled payments. Some were as simple as ‘Ass’ or a lipstick kiss mark.”
- April 23, 2021:CNN also independently confirmed that the Justice Department is focusing on the 2018 Bahamas trip, specifically on whether it was “part of an orchestrated effort to illegally influence Gaetz in the area of medical marijuana.”
- April 29, 2021: The Daily Beast obtained a draft of a confessional letter from Greenberg that claimed he and Gaetz “paid for sex with multiple women — as well as the girl who was 17 at the time.” The letter said, “On more than one occasion, this individual was involved in sexual activities with several of the other girls, the congressman from Florida’s 1st Congressional District and myself.” The Daily Beast also explained that the letter said Greenberg “facilitated Gaetz’s interactions with college students — and paid them on his behalf.” The letter was reportedly written after Greenberg offered $250,000 in Bitcoin to Trump ally Roger Stone, seemingly to help him receive a pardon from Trump.
## May 2021
- May 21, 2021: CNN reported that Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend, a “former Capitol Hill staffer” and “critical witness,” agreed to cooperate in the sex trafficking investigation.
## January 2022
- January 12, 2022: NBC News reported that Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend had testified to a grand jury earlier in the month about “other women Gaetz was involved with” at the time of their relationship. Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend also reportedly attended the 2018 Bahamas trip.
- January 26, 2022:The Daily Beast reported that a witness named “Big Joe” Ellicott can confirm that Gaetz was told he had sex with a minor because he was in Greenberg’s office when Greenberg told Gaetz the fact during a call on September 4, 2017.
## March 2022
- March 4, 2022: The Washington Post obtained video from a Danish documentary crew of Stone “telling a friend over the phone” that he had “raised the cases of ‘Gaetz and others’” on a phone call with then-President Trump, referring to pardons.

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https://www.alternet.org/2022/05/captain-venmo-matt-gaetz-declares-war-on-educated-pet-owners/

troll-->reaction --> troll2

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troll BS, not ad hoc? abortion is moral get out of jail free card [// blm guy beaten up at az gop mtg]

an 722

United States Congressman Matt Gaetz is standing firm to the sexist remarks about abortion rights protestors that he delivered to a right-wing rally over the weekend.

"Have you watched these pro-abortion, pro-murder rallies? The people are just disgusting. Like, why is it that the women with the least likelihood of getting pregnant are the ones most worried about having abortions? Nobody wants to impregnate you if you look like a thumb," Gaetz crowed at Saturday's Turning Point Action's Student Action Summit in Tampa, Florida.

"These people are odious on the inside and out," Gaetz continued. "They're like five-two, 350 pounds and they're like, 'give me my abortions or I'll get up and march and protest.' And I'm thinking, march? You look likeyou've got ankles weaker than the legal reasoning behind Roe versus Wade. A few of them need to get up and march! They need to get up and march for like an hour a day, swinging those arms, get the blood pumping, maybe mix in a salad."

On Monday, Gaetz was confronted by a reporter who asked him if he harbors any concerns about the potentially harmful impact of his provocative rhetoric.

He does not.

Gaetz:

It's just pure ugliness. And I see that ugliness on the inside, I see it on the outside. You know, even in the horrible circumstances where an abortion may happen, it is nothing to celebrate and it is nothing to cheer.

Reporter:

Is it safe to say that, based off these comments, that you’re suggesting the women at these abortion rallies are ugly and overweight?

Gaetz:

Yes

Reporter:

What do you say to people who think those comments are offensive?

Gaetz:

Be offended.

Watch below or at this link....

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an 6 25/22

Trump told Congressional cronies how to get pardons for aiding his bogus election scheme, GOP Rep. says

Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene are panic-tweeting after revelations they sought pardons

Conservative insider denounces Republicans who wanted Trump to provide pardons for their involvement in his election scheme

Mo Brooks texts email to CBS containing instructions from Donald Trump on how to request pardons

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During Tuesday’s televised hearing the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack revealed the names of eleven congressional Republicans who attended a December 21, 2020 White House meeting with then-President Donald Trump and his top aides to discuss ways to promote his false claims in an effort to overturn the election.

The January 6 Committee “introduced evidence that the White House coordinated with members of Congress to encourage the Big Lie and to fight the election results,” reports Heather Cox Richardson at the Milwaukee Independent.

“Representative Mo Brooks (R-AL) set up a meeting between members of Congress (and one member-elect) on December 21, with the subject line: ‘White House meeting December 21 regarding January 6.’ That meeting included Trump, Pence, Meadows, Giuliani, and ten representatives: Brian Babin (R-TX), Andy Biggs (R-AZ), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), Louie Gohmert (R-TX), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Andy Harris (R-MD), Jody Hice (R-GA), Jim Jordan (R-OH), Scott Perry (R-PA), and recently elected Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).”

Social media users expressed astonishment that barely hours later, Rep. Matt Gaetz, who attended the meeting on how to overturn the election, took to Twitter to mock John Bolton. One of Trump’s former National Security Advisors, Bolton that same day had told CNN: “As somebody who has helped plan coup d’etat, not here, but other places, it takes a lot of work.”

In response, Gaetz declared, “John Bolton is against any coup he didn’t help plan!”

Many mocked the Florida Republican, with some taking his remark as a confession – inadvertent or not.

Attorney George Conway was among those taking a shot at the pro-Trump Florida Congressman. He tweeted, “PRO TIP: don’t enter into any criminal conspiracies with Matt Gaetz,” and a one-word response: “Um…”

Minnesota attorney Matt Pelikan, responding to Conway added, “Just Matt Gaetz out here admitting to a coup and somehow thinking it’s a dunk on John Bolton.”

“Don’t think Matt has any room to talk about ‘planning coups’…the entire planet now knows he was at the WH (along with his House cohorts in crime) in Dec. 2020 to plan the Jan 6 insurrection,” wrote one Twiter user.

“Nice self-own, Bevis,” wrote another.

“Is this a confession, Mattie?” asked a Twitter user.

“After Bolton publicly admits planning coups, so does Gaetz,” tweeted an account named “Conservative Self Own.”

On user focused on reports Gaetz had openly used his Venmo account to pay sex trafficker Joel Greenberg, who then “venmoed” three young women.

“Is Gaetz really dunking on Bolton because he wasn’t included in their plot to overthrow the government? Captain Venmo might be a dumbass,” they wrote.

And another, tweeting directly to Rep. Gaetz, said: “Sir, are you implying that a coup was planned here and that John Bolton is whining that he wasn’t a part of it? Dude, just stop talking. Your asking for a pardon, and your record, and allegations are such, that you should exercise the 5th. Not an attorney, but hey, what do I know.”

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7 22 edit bd

...

Matt Gaetz gave an account to Steven Bannon’s podcast. He said that he and the other Republicans tried persuading Mike Pence to reject the electoral votes. Gaetz said that, “we were in the Cabinet Room meeting with Mike Pence in the days leading up to January 6, and I left quite disappointed that he was not motivated by our argument.”

That’s because it wasn’t an argument.

Murphy said House and Senate Republicans never got any evidence of voter fraud. There wasn’t any to receive. Meanwhile, the chair of the House Republican conference, who had been Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney, who is now the vice chair of the J6 panel, issued a lengthy memo explaining why objection posed “legal and constitutional problems.” Even so, “they went forward anyway.”

Indeed, these 10 House Republicans not only voted to reject Biden and hence the democratic will of the American people. They voted to reject the president-elect after the former president had ordered his paramilitaries and the armed mob to sack and loot the US Capitol.

...

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an 6 22

A new article featuring Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) initially sought to shed light on the "MAGAWorld" and how its top influencers are rising to power. However, it also uncovered something less favorable about the Republican lawmakers.

The report included a reference to former President Donald Trump's autographed message to Gaetz. Ironically, the former president signed it on top of a report about the child sex trafficking case Gaetz is currently up against.

"In a glass display case, there’s a handwritten note from President Trump, scribbled in Sharpie on an article about Gaetz defending himself against a federal sex-trafficking probe involving the transportation of a 17-year-old across state lines. 'Matt, This is Great,” Trump wrote. 'Keep fighting – You will WIN!'”...

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7 22 an

Fox News' Tucker Carlson is once again circulating reports about the so-called "Great Replacement" theory.During the Tuesday night broadcast of "The Tucker Carlson Show," the Fox News host made his arguments about the great replacement theory as he explained why he doesn't believe it's just another conspiracy.

“The great replacement? Yeah, it’s not a conspiracy theory. It’s their electoral strategy,” Carlson said as the headline "Democrats often celebrate demographic change” was displayed at the bottom of the screen.

“You’ve heard a lot about the great replacement theory recently; it’s everywhere … we’re still not sure exactly what it is,” he later said.

According to HuffPost, the theory centers around the belief that "white Christians are being intentionally replaced by immigrants, people of color and non-Christians." On multiple occasions, Carlson has also managed to tie the replacement theory to the various mass shootings that have taken place across the United States in the last several months.

Like Carlson, a number of mass shooters have also attempted to blame the great replacement theory for their actions. Among those are the suspects allegedly involved in the recent mass shootings that took place in Buffalo, N.Y., El Paso, Texas, and Christchurch, New Zealand.

Carlson's latest remarks have drawn more criticism as there are concerns about the dangerous rhetoric he is sharing with Fox News viewers. Matthew Gertz, a senior fellow at Media Matters, weighed in with his assessment of Carlson's broadcast.

“The difference between a Tucker Carlson monologue and a white supremacist mass murderer’s manifesto is the Tucker Carlson monologue gets aired in prime-time on the nation’s most-watched cable news network,” said Gertz.

To view Carlson's latest broadcast, watch below or at this link....

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6 22

united States Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) appeared on a recent edition of Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia)'s podcast and suggested that Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) is unable to do his job because his son committed suicide.

Raskin served as the House of Representatives' manager of former President Donald Trump's second impeachment for inciting the January 6th, 2021 Capitol insurrection. Raskin also sits on the Select Committee investigating the attack, which was triggered (at least in part) by Republican lawmakers refusing at Trump's behest to acknowledge President Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 election.

Now, with just 24 hours remaining before public hearings revealing what the bipartisan congressional commission has found begin, Gaetz and Greene have launched a new and unusually cruel offensive against Raskin.

"When people encounter trauma, they often associate a lot of the other things around that trauma with it, even if they don't naturally or even rationally associate. And what I worry about for the Congress and for Jamie Raskin, you know, no one would ever want to lose a child, particularly to suicide," said Gaetz.

"As human beings, our hearts go out to him. But I think that he takes that trauma and he associates it now with his work in the Congress to such an interwoven way that he's unable to do the congressional experience outside of just the dungeon of that personal trauma," Gaetz continued, "and I think it makes him look at everything in these very like, dark and severe ways."

Greene agreed.

"You know, we try to come to the job to uplift people," Gaetz resumed.

"We're here to serve the people," Greene interjected.

"Well and we love this country," Gaetz added.

"Absolutely," said Greene.

"We're not here out of a sense of grievance or hatred. We love America," Gaetz said.

"No we love it," Greene chimed in again.

"And we want to vindicate the rights of our citizens and we want to champion their causes and battle their dislikes," Gaetz remarked.

"Yes that's right," Greene said.

"But I think for Jamie Raskin, it's really like, his service in the Congress has almost become like inextricably attached to this sad personal trauma he's had," Gaetz proclaimed. "And I do think it clouds his judgment and you could see that, that very darkness and that pain manifest on Thursday in a way that's not particularly relevant to the challenges that we've talked about, but it might be deeply relevant to what he's going through. And the country shouldn't have to go through all that with him."

Greene then stated the quiet part out loud.

"Well my goodness, it's a horrible thing, what he went through, but it doesn't change the fact of, uh, his political beliefs," she said, "and I believe he's a communist and I believe what he's doing on the January 6th Committee is completely wrong."

Watch below via PatriotTakes:

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an 6 22 uvalde

Matt Gaetz thinks voters going to the polls should be able to carry guns to protect themselves from “intimidation.” The Florida Republican repeatedly delivered extreme opposition to legislation the House Judiciary Committee debated on Thursday, with every Republican opposing the “Protecting Our Kids Act.”

The bill would raise the minimum age to purchase certain firearms from 18 to 21, require firearms to be stored in a lockbox or other safe storage, and help prevent gun trafficking.

In response to an amendment proposed by Republican Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky, as The Hill reported, Gaetz casually declared:

“I sort of like Massie’s legislation that maybe everyone who’s a voter or on their way to vote ought to have the opportunity to carry a firearm to ensure that they’re not subject to any intimidation.”

Watch (clip begins at the 3:07 mark):

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an 5 22

Republicans just voted against two bills to ease the baby formula shortage they have spent weeks falsely trying to pin on President Joe Biden.

In tweets and in floor speeches, Republicans have been attacking President Biden for the nationwide baby formula shortage caused by one manufacturer’s recall and closure of its plant for bacterial infection after two infants died.The shortage has been exacerbated by a trade agreement signed by then-President Donald Trump that makes it extremely difficult and expensive to import formula from other countries, and the fact that 90 percent of baby formula in the U.S. is manufactured by just four companies. Also, hoarding, and price-gouging.

Last week President Biden sat down with manufacturers and retailers to map out a plan to get more formula onto store shelves immediately and directed the Food and Drug Administration to help get the plant reopened. This week he went two steps further: he invoked the Defense Production Act to force manufacturers to produce more formula and produce it ahead of other products and created a program to use federal planes to import baby formula from other countries.

House Democrats last week also opened an investigation into the baby formula shortage.

On Wednesday the House voted on two emergency bills to further ease the shortage.

One example of Republicans falsely attacking President Biden and the left is House GOP Caucus chair Elise Stefanik‘s now-infamous tweet accusing Democrats of having “no plan” as she labeled them “pedo grifters.”...

one bill would give FDA $28 million to add staff, work to help get more formula to consumers, and create a long-term strategy, including increased safety inspections so this cannot happen again. The second would dramatically increase supply from foreign sources to consumers using the federal Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Program.

192 House Republicans voted against giving FDA $28 million to help fix the crisis and ensure it does not happen again.

Nine House Republicans voted against making it easier for WIC customers to get access to baby formula.

Many Americans are becoming outraged as the news from last night’s votes is spreading online.

[Here’s the list of 9 members of Congress (all Republicans)who voted NO:

Marjorie Taylor GreeneMatt GaetzLouie Gohmert Lauren Boebert Paul Gosar Thomas Massie Andy Biggs Clay Higgins Chip Roy.]

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3 22 trade vote ukraine

The vote was 424-8.

Here are the eight “no” votes – all from Republicans:

Lauren Boebert (CO)

Thomas Massie (KY)

Matt Gaetz (FL)

Andy Biggs (AZ)

Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA)

Dan Bishop (NC)

Chip Roy (TX)

Glenn Grothman (WI)

---

February 28 2022, Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted: "If Russia wanted to destabilize Ukraine, Putin didn’t need to send tanks. We could’ve just sent Dr. Fauci."

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an 5 22

in a blunt column for theconservative Bulwark, Cato Senior Fellow Cathy Young raged against the spread of the so-called "replacement theory"that played a major part in prompting an 18-year-old white man in New York to go on a shooting rampage Saturday afternoon in a Buffalo-area grocery store situated in a community that is reportedly 80 percent black.

As Young put it, "Those who follow the news know that this is far from the first time “replacement theory” has figured in the ravings of a mass shooter," before adding, "We know these ideas are floating out there. We also know that, disturbingly, “replacement theory” is being mainstreamed on the right," the columnist specifying Fox News host Tucker Carlson who has repeatedly claimed that Democrats are trying to "replace" Americans with immigrants.

As Young notes, two prominent Republican lawmakers have also taken up the "replacement theory" banner, with Rep Matt Gaetz (R-FL) tweeting, "The Left/Media think of replacement solely on race/ethnicity terms. I don't at all. Democrats failed voters who relied on them to run their states/cities. Now they are importing new voters. That is my argument. Those reading more into it are projecting their own bias."

Add to that, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), who Young explained, ".. jumped on the bandwagon as well with a Facebook ad claiming that the Democrats were going to use amnesty for illegal immigrants to 'overthrow our current electorate and create a permanent liberal majority in Washington.'"

"This is hateful, stupid, paranoid nonsense," she wrote before adding, "It is also, need I point out, the epitome of collectivist 'identity politics' the right sometimes likes to deplore in its progressive guises."

Noting that a recent poll shows that a third of Americans "agreeat least somewhat that 'There is a group of people in this country who are trying to replace native-born Americans with immigrants who agree with their political views,'" Young wrote, "In a sane and decent political climate, both media figures and political figures on the right would quickly and emphatically disavow “great replacement” as un-American, race-baiting nonsense. Which means … don’t hold your breath."

"That was a joke. Cue bitter laugh," she lamented.

You can read more here.

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ron fein does better w/ MTG on block election, she rattled

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no lnx twt

Trump’s most strident House 'exhibitionists' are spending more than they’re bringing in: report

[Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia speaking at the 2021 AmericaFest at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona, Gage Skidmore]

Alex Henderson April 20, 2022

In the 2022 midterms, a long list of far-right House Republicans — from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia to Rep. Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina to Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado — are running for reelection. And if Republicans regain control of the U.S. House of Representatives as many pundits are predicting, extremists like Greene and Boebert, assuming they are reelected, will be part of the House’s majority party.But the Daily Beast’s Roger Sollenberger, in an article published on April 20, reports that some of Trump’s most strident “exhibitionists” in the U.S. House have been underperforming from a fundraising standpoint in 2022.

“Last year, it was a fundraising feast for the MAGA Goon Squad,” Sollenberger explains. “But in 2022, without the donor stimulus of an attempted insurrection, things are going in the wrong direction. The first three months of the year took more than $275,000 combined out of the pockets of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Madison Cawthorn (R-NC), and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) — the foursome of America First, Donald Trump-loving, exhibitionist election objectors. All told, it was their worst showing to date.”

Sollenberger continues, “It wasn’t always like this. In 2021, that crew saw eye-popping returns, stacking up a combined year-over-year gain of $4.8 million. The only one who showed a net loss on the year was Gaetz, whose campaign account shed $95,000 amid a drumroll of bombshell headlines and steep costs related to an ongoing child sex trafficking investigation. Still, the post-insurrection fundraising ground was so fertile that even he posted record fundraising hauls, taking in $3.2 million in the first half of 2021.”

Greene’s 2022 reelection campaign, according to Sollenberger, is spending more money than it’s bringing in.

“The campaign that led the way last year has also done the most damage this year,” Sollenberger observes. “That distinction would go to the Greene campaign, which, after banking $5.2 million last year, kicked off 2022 with a $3 million haul. While stunning, that total didn’t outstrip the record spending that ultimately left her $314,000 in the hole. It was Greene’s first negative fundraising return since she was elected.”

Sollenberger notes that Boebert “hasn’t turned in a quarterly loss,” but Gaetz and Cawthorn have. And even Boebert’s “quarter’s totals represented her smallest gains by far,” according to Sollenberger.

“The Gaetz campaign took a bath in both the second and third quarter last year, and Cawthorn hasn’t bulked up since his million-dollar fundraising spree on the heels of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol,” Sollenberger writes. “After losing another $41,300 since January, the Cawthorn campaign only holds about $282,000 — a little more than half its stash this time last year. And he’s sapped whatever firepower he might hold in his other committees, in the process rankling potential allies.”

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4/22 edit bd

I don’t follow what every Democrat says. No one can. There’s no way for me to know whether the tenor and tone of their collective rhetoric changed last week. But it felt like it got stronger, sharper and angrier.

Consider Brian Schatz.

The Hawaii Senator took to the Senate floor to scorch his colleague Josh Hawley of Missouri, who’s been holding up appointments to the Department of Defense that are necessary to America’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Before he signs off, he said, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin must resign for his “failures” in Afghanistan.

Schatz said that’s rich coming from a guy who raised his fist in solidarity with the J6 insurrectionists and who voted to acquit the former president for the high crime of extorting Ukraine’s president.

“This comes from a guy who before the Russian invasion suggested that maybe it would be wise for [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy to make a few concessions about Ukraine and their willingness to join NATO.”

He added:

“They withheld lethal aid until, unless Zelenskyy released false smears against Joe Biden's son. Then [Hawley] voted to exonerate President Trump for this. So spare me the new solidarity with the Ukrainians and with the free world, because this man's record is exactly the opposite.”

His tirade amazed those of us longing for the Democrats to take a strong stand against the Republican Party’s lies and bad faith. Perhaps we’ll see more now that Greg Sargent put a brighter light on it.

The Post columnist interviewed Brian Schatz on Friday. “Democrats need to make more noise,” the Senator conceded. “We have to scream from the rooftops because this is a battle for the free world now.”

Let’s not forget what Schatz said, however.

He said Hawley is “doing a very specific thing.”

“He is damaging the Department of Defense.”

So far, Schatz is the only Democrat seeing what needs seeing.

Though he says he’s outraged by the US pullout from Afghanistan, Josh Hawley is also attacking, directly, the military leadership itself. (He won’t move on appointments until the secretary of defense resigns.)

Demanding Austin’s resignation is not a “reasonable request,” Schatz said. It can’t be. The point is sabotaging civilian control of the military.

You read that right.

The point is cleaving the ranks. The point is to create conditions in which military personnel feel inspired to take action that’s favorable to the Republicans’ (perhaps the former president’s) return to power.

They are picking up where the J6 insurrection left off. But next time, it won’t be a mob of schlubs. It will be an army of highly-trained insurgents bent on restoring whiteness to the center of the republic.

At gunpoint.

Everyone should see what Schatz sees.

So I interviewed Fred Wellman, founder of Beer Hall Projectand a 20-year Army veteran who served when Secretary Austin was General Austin. I called Fred after US Rep. Matt Gaetz failed to humiliate the secretary in testimony before the House Arms Services Committee.

Fred said: “A standing army can’t be a tool of a political party. Under the Trump years, it became more partisan. Now Matt Gaetzand his peers in the Republican Party are directly undermining the apolitical and nonpolitical nature of the military by dividing troops from leaders.”

Matt Gaetz and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. Thoughts?

My main frustration has always been with the “performance wing” of the Republican Party. They don’t want to govern. They want to act.

In this case, Matt Gaetz tried convincing people that “wokeism,” or trying to get a more diverse American military force, is hurting our ability to fight wars. It shows how monumentally stupid he is.

He's dragging culture wars into national defense. That he does so while sitting on the House Armed Service Committee is outrageous.

It’s a committee responsible for oversight of the men and women in uniform, but it’s oversight partially provided by someone as monumentally asinine as Matt Gaetz – that’s just disgusting to me.

Good point. When a country sends people overseas, the presumption should be that leaders will take that responsibility deadly seriously. Deadly serious responsibility is the opposite of Matt Gaetz.

I'm a 20-year Army veteran. I rose through the ranks to be a lieutenant colonel. I retired after Desert Storm and three Iraq tours. I’m the son of a World War II Marine veteran. My son is an Army veteran. My son-in-law continues to serve in the National Guard.

But not everybody can serve.

Less than 7 percent of our nation is veterans. Less than 1 percent serve at all. Less than one-third of the eligible population is capable of serving. I'm talking about fitness, criminal record, mental health, etc. This is the reality of maintaining and growing an all-volunteer force.

That's the point of trying to increase the diversity of the officer corps. That's the point of trying to increase the diversity of the pilot corps. That's the point of welcoming all races and creeds. As Secretary Austin said, anybody who's eligible, who has the capability to serve, should be welcomed even if they're non-binary, gay, straight, whatever.

If they're capable of serving, of meeting the physical and mental requirements we need in our military, we've got to open our arms.

There are just not enough white dudes left.

When you have someone like the Florida congressman directly attacking that, that turns away possible recruits. Gaetz is literally undermining those who serve and who may serve in the future.

Sounds like you’re angry?

I amangry.

The Matt Gaetzs and Marsha Blackburns of the world are openly undermining good order and military discipline with a culture war for political effect. A representative sitting on the Armed Services Committee should understand the challenges of an all-volunteer force.

Civilian oversight of the military matters even though those civilians may never have served, may not have been qualified to serve. People like me, people like Secretary Austin – we understand that. Someone who rose to the rank of four-star understands he’s going to answer to some 25-year-old kid on the Armed Services Committee.

That's the nature of it.

But what frustrates me is the lack of respect for the office and a lack of respect for the military as an apolitical and non-political entity.

One of the biggest fears of our founding fathers was a standing army. They didn't want one and that undermined efforts early on in the republic because of rebellions. We had no army to address them.

Even Washington was like, man, we need an army.

A standing army can’t be a tool of a political party. Under the Trump years, it became more partisan. Now Matt Gaetz and his peers in the Republican Party are directly undermining the apolitical and nonpolitical nature of the military by dividing troops from leaders.

The troops love Trump, they believe, but the troops are being failed by “woke” leaders. Where the fuck do you think the leaders are? You don't just magically make a general. Secretary Austin started as a fucking second lieutenant. He rose through the ranks. This is dangerous.

I do not say this lightly.

This is incredibly dangerous.

They attack the military leadership as“woke”because they're trying to cause a break in the ranks. They're literally undermining good order and military discipline deliberately to break the chain of command.

I've never seen that in my lifetime.

You’re describing national security risk. Is that overstating it?

No, I don't think so.

The very nature of our republic relies on an apolitical military every American knows serves them, no matter their race, creed, religion, color, region, political party, whatever. Our republic depends on everyone knowing a standing army is not a threat to the country.

Many in the Republican Party are super-fans of Putin, let's be honest.They're having CPAC in Hungary, for God's sake, a country led by a rightwing dictator, a Putin fan. Imagine a scenario in which they’re in power and we can't fight because they’ve undermined the military.

It's terrifying to think where this could go.

I've seen reports of white nationalism gaining traction in the ranks of the military. There's an effort from above to deal with that.

I learned in military science 101 at West Point that an all-volunteer force is a direct reflection of our society. You raised your children for 18 years before they get into the military. I give them 12 weeks of basic training. That won’t overcome 18 years of raising them as racists.

All I can do is ensure they don't act on those beliefs and undermine good order and military discipline. If they do behave inappropriately, we use the separate military system to discipline them appropriately and remove them from the military as they're no longer a threat.

But we do know white nationalist and patriot front-type groups have been actively sending “their troops,” if you will, into the military for military training. Right-wing nationalist groups are infiltrating the ranks and recruiting veterans after they get out of the military.

At one point,10 percent of Jan6 cases were United States military and veterans. One of them is an active-duty Marine Corps major!

How horrifying that is.

Talk about the fundamental tension between universal values, like honor, and individual interest, like investment in whiteness.

Some really extreme right-wing politicians say universal values are an attack on conservative thought. It's not against conservative thought.

Conservative thought should mean taxes and “pulling up my bootstraps and raising myself up by going into the military” – that's fine.

Saying Black people are inferior soldiers, assaulting the ranks, inciting homophobia and transphobia and attacking fellow service members – That’s not conservative. That’s extremism, white nationalism.

That needs to be stomped out.

There have been several surveys of service members saying the biggest threat they face isn’t Muslim terrorists. It’s extremism in the ranks....

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irony is dead

https://www.alternet.org/2022/02/matt-gaetz/

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1 22 trms wonders how invest going why he is still walking around; not too long ago just accusation of sex w/ minor wd be disqualifying in gop

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mma 122 https://www.mediamatters.org/tucker-carlson/alex-berensons-antivax-commentary-killing-fox-viewers-because-thats-what-network

Pandemic conspiracy theorist Alex Berenson’s latest turn on Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s show, in which he called for the withdrawal of the mRNA vaccines for COVID-19 and said that “no one should get them” or “get boosted,” based on the false premises that the vaccines do not work and are “dangerous,” has rightly spurred a wave of revulsion.

As everyone from progressive MSNBC hosts to conservative National Review writers has noted, programming like this is killing Fox’s viewers by discouraging them from taking shots that are incredibly effective in preventing hospitalizations and deaths from the virus.

And that’s apparently how the Fox brass likes it.

Berenson’s pattern of spreading coronavirus misinformation is well-documented – he’s been described as “the pandemic’s wrongest man” and banned from Twitter over his constant falsehoods. But his “contrarian” willingness to denounce any and all measures to contain the pandemic, from masks to vaccines, has made him a fixture on Fox: Tuesday marked his 105th appearance since January 2020, 47 of which have come on Carlson’s show.

While Carlson himself is a constant font of anti-vaccine talking points and doubtlessly wants to host people who agree with his lies, the responsibility for Berenson’s ongoing presence on the network’s most-watched programs ultimately rests with Fox’s executives, like Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch and Suzanne Scott. Even if they aren’t willing to part with Carlson for the sake of their viewers, they could dispense with Berenson in a second if they wanted to. Over the years, they have repeatedly – and effectively – banned particular guests from the airwaves based on their off-air behavior or on-air commentary. Carlson has obeyed those diktats when they have come down, just like his fellow prime-time stars.

Fox hosted Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) hundreds of times from August 2017 to March 2021, including at least three dozen hits with Carlson, according to the Media Matters guest database. But on March 30 of the latter year, The New York Times reported that he was under federal investigation for alleged sex trafficking. After one last bizarre appearance on Carlson’s show to respond to the story that night, the network apparently left him for dead.

Fox’s executives were responsible for Gaetz’s disappearance from the network, with The Daily Beast reporting a few weeks later that Fox’s executives had put the congressman “on an informal blacklist” for trying “to rope the Fox News star into the congressman’s scandal.” Gaetz regularly appears on other right-wing networks like Newsmax, but he has not returned to Fox. Carlson, who was reportedly initially “livid” with Gaetz but subsequently suggested on-air that the congressman had been treated unfairly, has not defied that corporate mandate.

Something similar appears to have happened to Republican lawyers Joseph diGenova and Victoria Toensing,both longtime fixtures at Fox who were apparently banished from its airwaves in fall 2019. Both of them stopped appearing on Fox News amid reporting that they were deeply involved in the genesis of the Ukrainian dirt about Joe Biden that they were often called upon to opine about. The pair continued to appear on Fox Business, vanishing from that outlet as well after diGenova was widely criticized for an odious antisemitic rant about progressive philanthropist George Soros.

Fox refused to respond to reporters’ queries about whether the pair had been formally banned in the months after they disappeared, but they have not returned in the years since – including to Carlson’s show, which had hosted diGenova at least 27 times, according to the Media Matters guest database.

Similarly, in October 2018 a top Fox executive publicly condemned the rhetoric of Judicial Watch’s Chris Farrell, and a spokesperson said he would not be allowed to return to Fox News or Fox Business, following an uproar caused by the conservative political operative using an appearance on the latter network to falsely accuse Soros of masterminding a caravan of migrants headed toward the U.S. border from Central America.

Fox does not have anything resembling a consistent standard for this type of despicable commentary – indeed, Carlson just did an odious anti-Soros special for Fox Nation – but what matters for this discussion is that the ban stuck and Farrell has not been allowed back in subsequent years. Likewise, no Fox program has violated the network’s public bans of Harlan Hill (who tweeted in 2020 that Kamala Harris “comes off as an insufferable lying bitch,” or retired Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney (who said on-air in 2018 that torture “worked” on then-Sen. John McCain (R-AZ).

Fox’s executives have proved themselves to be capable of keeping unsavory guests off the air when they chose to do so. But with Berenson, they haven’t bothered trying. The network has made the calculation that keeping its viewers from needlessly dying isn’t worth it. As one Fox insider explained, the network is running anti-vaccine commentary because it is “great for ratings.”

The more than 3 million people who tuned into Carlson’s show on Tuesday heard a kook denounce lifesaving vaccines and urge them not to take them. If they listen to him, they could die. And Fox’s leadership is entirely uninterested in preventing that dire outcome.

---

an 12 21

their sphincters will tighten': Matt Gaetz goes after the FBI

David Badash

December 10, 2021

U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, under investigation by the Dept. of Justice for the better part of a year for possibly having sex with an underaged teen and for child sex trafficking, went after the DOJ and FBI on Thursday...

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/11/matt-gaetz/

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., suggested on Wednesday that his office is open to hiring Kyle Rittenhouse as a congressional intern if the accused gunman is acquitted, arguing that the 18-year-old is "not guilty" for the killing of two men during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin last summer.

"You know what, Kyle Rittenhouse would probably make a good congressional intern," Gaetz said Wednesday during an appearance on Newsmax. "We may reach out to him and see if he'd be interested in helping the country in additional ways."

The Florida lawmaker continued: "He is not guilty. He deserves a not guilty verdict and I sure hope he gets it."

Thursday marks the third day of jury deliberations for Rittenhouse's trial, which began on November 1. In August of 2020, Rittenhouse drove from his home of Antioch, Illinois to Kenosha, where he apparently sought to defend a car dealership from the threat of looting in the aftermath of the police shooting of Jacob Blake. During an armed confrontation – the details of which were litigated at trial – Rittenhouse fatally shot two men and injured another with an AR-15-stylerifle.[barrrell short thus got off one slam dunk charge, ok to carry if hunting? POC?]

Rittenhouse has pleaded not guilty, claiming that he acted in self-defense, while prosecutors argue that the then-17-year-old acted like a vigilante. "I defended myself,"[[proudly, manly?] Rittenhouse said during the trial last week. The teen faces life imprisonment if convicted.

Over the last several weeks, the televised trial has been closely followed by politicians, pundits, and activists, who have weighed in the proceedings as they relate to racial justice, white privilege, Black Lives Matter, and gun violence.

In a Fox News interview this week, conservative author J.D. Vance, currently vying to fill a U.S. Senate vacancy for Ohio, called Rittenhouse's trial a "farce," adding that "it's child abusemasquerading as justice in this country."

"The kind of people who thought O.J Simpson was innocent are the same people who believe that Kyle Rittenhouse is guilty," echoed right-wing commentator Candace Owenslast week. "Facts don't matter to emotionally-indoctrinated zombies. Only feelings do."

But those on the left have sung a markedly different tune.

Paul Butler, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches at the Georgetown University Law Center, said that Rittenhouse's trial reflects "white privilege on steroids."

"It is literally impossible to imagine a 17-year-old Black kid traveling to a different state … who shoots three people, kills two – who, right now, isn't in prison," Butler told POLITICO.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., spoke about the case with marked candidness for a federal lawmaker, tweeting on Wednesday: "Lock up Kyle Rittenhouse and throw away the key."

Rittenhouse's defense team has already filed a motion for a mistrial with prejudice, according to CNN, meaning that Rittenhouse would be protected from any state bid to retry the case going forward.

For his part,Gaetz also railed against the recent sentencing of 34-year-old Jacob Chansley, the "QAnon Shaman" notorious for breaching the U.S. Senate floor on January 6 while donning a horned fur headdress. On Wednesday, Chansley was sentenced to three years in prison on a single count of felony obstruction of an official proceeding.

"This QAnon Shaman is a relatively harmless,nonviolent veganand the notion that he has to be in prison for three and a half years to settle some sort of political score defies justice,"[eternal victims, shocked shocked playing politics, we never do that] Gaetz continued.

---

--> rw tag

aha babyface kyle in sinday blue church suit is martyr [note self-def: can shoot anyone at any time as long as you can claim fear of having gun TAKEN?! which is what will happen in any active shooter Gabe Z PBUH] MATT GAETZ INTERN GIG OFFER BEFORE SENTENCE; JUDGE THREW OUT SLAM DUNK WEAPONS CHARGE, RINGTONE TRUMP SONG; https://www.alternet.org/2021/11/matt-gaetz/

aha: almost truism but true that 1st step is to make enemy subhuman thus ok to kill; in fact it is your duty to kill enemy that threatens the sacred 14 words white children or OUR Way Of Life = capitalism freedumb see violence "when do we get to use the guns?"

xian end days = // qanon storm // turner diary cleansing fire of race war; madison [girl name?] cawthorne evokes satan? MTG? boebert?

nancy aoc, ilhan omar greta are women/ POC with power which is unnatural; nanny STATE gubmint take guns freedumbs vs strict fr who will punish/ put THOSE ppl back down in their rightful place //PHOBES basket of deplorables.

to apologize is unmanly, admitting defeat, esp to trump/istas for whom loyal tribal solidarity litmus is all; played inevitable victim card? gop minority in both houses explicit aim is obstructionist, gerry maintain minority power yet he bemoan/threatens this will be weapon in future?

aha: polarization --> demonization--> death threat --> death squad pinochet helo rides did nothing wrong Kyle

mantra of demonization can make name eg pelosi into a devil term; she was actively hunted 1/6 shoot bitch in the brain? AOC = commie? radicalization // demonization

landed here pol cartoon accidentally but interesting analogy? pirate creshaw action here, gosar flies? defeats evil? scott perry chr freedom cocks we must destroy dems/nazis; the flipside of demon is martyr ashli babbitt who was willing to give life and commit violence for the sacred cause, what about you?!

https://www.alternet.org/2021/11/ocasio-cortez-gosar/....

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/11/sedition-caucus/

no lnx twt

house Republicans have no problem with one of their members posting a tweet depicting him murdering Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez but they are outraged at 13 members of their caucus who voted to pass President Joe Biden's infrastructure bill.

According to Jake Sherman's Punchbowl News, rank and file GOP members of Congress are trying to force Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to strip the 13 of their committee assignments, noting that "GOP leadership is bracing" for the attempt. McCarthy was opposed to the bill, which will vastly improve basic necessities like roads, bridges, rail, and the nation's ports, expand broadband access, and help localities protect against climate change.

Not only are GOP members of Congress angry the 13 voted for the legislation, they are angry they voted "early," rather than forcing Democrats to cross the majority threshold of votes to pass the bill without Republicans.

"Much of the anger is directed at Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.),who voted early for the legislation. Katko is the ranking member on the Homeland Security Committee. Katko told multiple lawmakers on the House floor that he had seen Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) on television talking about the infrastructure bill, and he was voting early."

Members of the Sedition Caucus, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, and Matt Gaetz have publicly attacked their fellow Republicans for voting to help the American people by voting for the bill.

Greene especially has been at war with her 13 GOP colleagues, even posting their phone numbers. Here are two of several of her attacks:

And CongressmanGaetz told far right Newsmax host Grant Stinchfield Katko should be stripped of his ranking member status:

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===

1021 AN

According to a report from Mother Jones, the PAC created by Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) with great fanfare and a national tour has already blown through what money it had and now is close to broke.

As Russ Choma reports, the publicity-seeking lawmakers started up the Put America First PACand then launched what turned into a troubled "America First" tour -- that saw events canceled or moved multiple times due to problems securing venues -- which, in turn, burned through their early cash donations.

According to Choma, "Marjorie Taylor Greene and Matt Gaetz both have a knack for ginning up outrage and stealing headlines. All this sound and fury is assumed to hoover up dollars from the riled up grassroots, but that's not true, according to the most recent campaign finance filings, " adding, "Despite the two spending the summer barnstorming the country on a grand fundraising swing they dubbed the America First tour, (the moniker adopted after scraping the "Anglo-Saxon" caucus), neither Greene nor Gaetz lived up to expectations on the fundraising end. And, just six months after founding it, the joint fundraising committee they launched to drive their tour is nearly broke."

As the report details, the two lawmakers' PAC raised $360,000 initially but donations dropped off and a recent filing shows a meager $13,000 on hand.

Choma reports that Greene is having her own fundraising issues as well.

"While Greene is definitely more successful—in her short Congressional career she's raised more than $8.8 million—the most recent numbers filed by her own campaign show her fundraising totals are increasingly eaten up by the costs of chasing donors and paying off the operatives and professional fundraising consultants and vendors that she hires," he reported.

As for Gaetz... "Gaetz campaign's latest filing shows that his fundraising has all but dried up. He raised just $527,000 from July 1 to September 30. He spent far more—$627,000—trying to raise that money. In another parallel to Greene, Gaetz's biggest expenses are direct mail and paying fundraising consulting costs to his vendors. In fact, those two things ate up more than 60 percent of his donations," Choma reported.

You can read more here.

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no lnx twt

'Deeply dangerous': MSNBC host reveals the history behind the GOP embrace of a deadly conspiracy theory

Mehdi Hasan // Hasan

Alex Henderson October 01, 2021

Fox News' Tucker Carlson generated considerable controversy when, on his April 8 show, he promoted the Great Replacement Theory — a racist conspiracy theory that has become prominent in white supremacist and white nationalist ideology. And almost half a year later, Carlson is still claiming that President Joe Biden and other Democrats are trying to "replace" white voters with immigrants from developing countries. MSNBC's Mehdi Hasan called Carlson out on his show this week, warning that he is promoting a claim that "gets people killed."

The progressive firebrand described the Great Replacement as a "conspiracy theory so vile, so extreme, so dangerous" that it was, in the past, avoided by mainstream conservatives and kept "on the furthest fringes of the far right."

Hasan told viewers, "What is the Great Replacement? It's a story, or a theory if you will, about liberal elites secretly changing our demographics, helping Black and Brown immigrants to invade America and replace white people. It's a white supremacist story about so-called white genocide. Scary, right? Bonkers, too. And yet, this year, Fox's Tucker Carlson came along and thought, 'Hmmm, let's bring this idea into the light to a prime-time cable audience."

The MSNBC host went on to say that the Great Replacement Theory has become a "rallying cry for the neo-Nazi far right," noting that it originated in France with white nationalist author Renaud Camus and his book "Le Grand Remplacement." And Hasan noted that a series of terrorist attacks have been carried out by White supremacists who embrace and promote that theory.

"The Great Replacement Theory gets people killed," Hasan warned. "And yet, you now haveTucker Carlson— the most influential right-wing cable news host in America — defending it, promoting it, mainstreaming it. And elected Republicans are now following in his footsteps…. Members of the GOP are now openly trafficking in neo-Nazi rhetoric."

Hasan showed clips of Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Rep. Brian Babin of Texas promoting the Great Replacement Theory, arguing that "members of the GOP are now openly trafficking in neo-Nazi rhetoric" rather than simply using racist "dog whistles" like Republicans of the past. And he noted thatRep. Matt Gaetz of Floridahas vigorously defended Carlson by explicitly promoting the Great Replacement Theory by name.

"This is how white supremacy is normalized in America today: the marriage between Rupert Murdoch's Fox and Donald Trump's GOP," Hasan warned. "And they make us numb to this stuff…. This is a deeply dangerous moment for America."

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/10/matt-gaetz-case/

not good for him

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/09/mark-milley-matt-gaetz/

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/09/matt-gaetzs-100000-donation-to-a-chris-christie-nonprofit-raises-questions-report/

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The leaders of the Republican Party—Rep. Matt Gaetz and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene—have been touring the nation. Whether this is part of Gaetz's plans for expanding his sex trafficking ring, Greene's recruiting drive for terrorists, or simply a cash grab by both, isn't clear (except for the part where it definitely is a cash grab). What is clear is that it's a keen demonstration of the GOP is making a "star" out of anyone who is merely willing to be disgusting on a regular basis.

As a quick reminder, Greene was taken off her House committee assignments for continually promoting the Big Lie in a way that encouraged violence, and downplaying the events of Jan. 6. Meanwhile, Gaetz is under investigation for his involvement in a multi-state scheme to recruit young women, provide them with fake IDs, and jet them around the country for sex in exchange for cash and prizes—a scheme that is complicated by the fact that at least one of these women was underage. Both these things together, and you have the makings of a modern Republican dream team.

The two have been touring the country making appearances that allow their followers to own the libs by showing that they don't care about details like rape or insurrection, so long as they get to hear jokes about Nancy Pelosi and watch Gaetz sputter on in his obsession with AOC. They also have been talking up a proposed political caucus to defend "Anglo-Saxon" culture by strictly limiting immigration.

But a funny thing has happened when it comes to the West Coast edition of the Gaetz and Greene show. Funny in the "ha ha" sense. Because nobody wants them. For the third time in a week, venues have put out the Not Welcome mat, leaving the pair looking for somewhere to gestate their hate supposedly right on the eve of their next appearance.

FROM YOUR SITE ARTICLES

RELATED ARTICLES AROUND THE WEB

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/06/matt-gaetz/?rs=182

hmmn

Writer Ken Klippenstein, over Memorial Day weekend, managed to reel in Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), American Conservative Union Chairman chair Matt Schlapp, and conservative commentator Dinesh D'Souza into a ruse honoring Lee Harvey Oswald, the man who assassinated former President John F. Kennedy.

On Monday, May 31, Klippenstein asked Gaetz, "Congressman, my grandpa's a big fan of yours and is a veteran, he would be thrilled if you could RT this photo of him for Memorial Day. Here he is as a young Private First Class."

He added, "Happy Memorial Day."

Without researching the image, Gaetz retweeted Klippenstei's words along with the photo and a caption that read, "Wow [Ken Klippenstein] it's my honor to retweet the photo of a veteran on a day we remember his fallen friends. God bless your grandfather."

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distraction gun BS duty // flynn myanmar coup?!

https://www.alternet.org/2021/05/matt-gaetz-second-amendment/

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an 521

Gaetz (R-FL) Friday evening tried to set up a smokescreen, insisting he's "not focused on scandal" as news breaks his ex-girlfriend has flipped and is now cooperating with federal authorities, just like his former "wingman," Joel Greenberg.

Gaetz, who is under federal investigation for possible sex trafficking and possible sex with a 17-year old girl, in an interview tried to minimize the charges against his friend, Greenberg, by suggesting he is in jail for defamation. Greenberg was facing dozens of charges, but currently the list stands at just six felonies after he entered a plea deal on Monday. Legal experts expect he is handing federal prosecutors evidence against the Florida GOP Congressman.

Meanwhile, federal authorities investigating Gaetz "have secured the cooperation of the congressman's ex-girlfriend," CNN reports.

"The woman, a former Capitol Hill staffer, is seen as a critical witness, as she has been linked to Gaetz as far back as the summer of 2017, a period of time that has emerged as a key window of scrutiny for investigators. She can also help investigators understand the relevance of hundreds of transactions they have obtained records of, including those involving alleged payments for sex, the sources said." CNN adds, citing people familiar with the matter.

"I'm not too worried about Joel Greenberg," Gaetz told Newsmax (video below). "Joel Greenberg is literally sitting in jail right now because he originally accused someone d who was innocent – of having had a relationship with a minor."

Gaetz is accused of having had a relationship with a minor.

"That wasn't true, it was just a false thing that Joel Greenberg had said, and that's landed him in quite a bit of trouble."

Greenberg is not in jail for defamation.

"But I'm not focused on scandal. I'm focused on socialism," Gaetz said in what appeared to be another road-tested soundbite. "That's why I'm here in Arizona with Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene."

Hardly a state facing "socialism," Arizona narrowly broke for Joe Biden but it has a Republican governor and GOP majorities in both chambers of its state legislature.

"We're going to have about a thousand patriots behind us supporting the Arizona audit and our ongoing efforts for election integrity."

Watch:

---

stone wanted $250K to get him a pardon?

an 421, also another

no twt many

Widespread outrage ensues over Joel Greenberg's confession letter: 'How is Matt Gaetz still in Congress?'

[U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz speaking with supporters at an "An Address to Young Americans" event, featuring President Donald Trump, hosted by Students for Trump and Turning Point Action at Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona.]

Bob Brigham and Raw Story April 30, 2021

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) was buried in scorn and mockery following a bombshell report published by The Daily Beast on Thursday evening.

"A confession letter written by Joel Greenberg in the final months of the Trump presidency claims that he and close associate Rep. Matt Gaetz paid for sex with multiple women—as well as a girl who was 17 at the time," The Daily Beast reported Thursday evening.

A copy of the confession letter was obtained by The Beast.

"On more than one occasion, this individual was involved in sexual activities with several of the other girls, the congressman from Florida's 1st Congressional District and myself," Greenberg wrote in reference to the 17-year-old. "From time to time, gas money or gifts, rent or partial tuition payments were made to several of these girls, including the individual who was not yet 18. I did see the acts occur firsthand and Venmo transactions, Cash App or other payments were made to these girls on behalf of the Congressman."

And Roger Stone also made an appearance in the story.

:{:{}:

"In late 2020, Greenberg was out of jail and in communication with Stone. A series of private messages between the two—also recently obtained by The Daily Beast—shows a number of exchanges between Greenberg and Stone conducted over the encrypted messaging app Signal, with communications set to disappear. However, Greenberg appears to have taken screenshots of a number of their conversations," The Beast reported.

On Twitter, Gaetz was roasted. Here's some of what people were saying:

FROM YOUR SITE ARTICLES

Matt Gaetz gets unanimously admonished by House Ethics ... ›

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/04/republican-frat-boy/

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MURDOCH HE BROKE AMERICA? DEMOC?

common dr 421

...Oh, for a simpler, saner time – and I don't mean that white American idyll that never was, a rightwing fever dream in which all is falsely remembered as sunshine, jellybeans and petroleum products burnt without a care. Rather, as columnist Frida Ghitis notes, "It wasn't very long ago that the country had two reality-based, generally centrist parties. Democrats and Republicans, with different philosophies, debated the merits of their ideas, in search of a workable compromise.

But then, bit by bit, the GOP started veering in a different direction. By the time Trump became president, the maximalist, nativist, conspiracy-driven, scandal-manufacturing, hate-stoking wing was already ascendant, propelled by the engines of Fox News and other far-right provocateurs. Trump's victory was the coup that toppled the old GOP and turned it into the extremist MAGA machine.

:{:{}:

And now, what's left? A handful of old-fashioned, conservative Republicans in Congress and their supporters who apparently still believe in some semblance of democracy and the republic that gave their party its name. But they're overwhelmed by a crowd of fanatics and sycophants: men and women, in Frida Ghitis' words, busily "promoting the delegitimization of America's duly elected president, people who are endorsing or refusing to rectify dangerous lies."

You know who they are: Cruz, Hawley, Graham, Jordan, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert, et al. They include, of course, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, "rewarded by recklessness," to use campaign strategist Rick Wilson's phrase, and as of this moment still standing, despite more and more evidence of his misogyny and possible abusive behavior, sexual and otherwise.

Like so many among these ranks, Trump fanboy Gaetz is one of the smarmy, privileged, attenuated frat boys who refuse to believe that rules and norms apply to them – much like the man who was their president and would be forever more if the rest of us become indifferent and lower our guard.Gaetz cares about his job title only as far as it gets him booked on talk shows and the lecture circuit – so far, he has failed to sponsor a single piece of significant legislation.

In his new memoir, former Republican House Speaker John Boehner describes these types of Republican rabblerousers as "the chaos caucus," not caring about the country but only about their power base and appearances on Fox News and right wing talk radio: "They didn't really want legislative victories," Boehner writes. "They wanted wedge issues and conspiracies and crusades."

Not that Boehner is blameless. He and so many Republican colleagues let themselves be bullied, then acquiesced to our current dilemma, yielding to those pledged to lunacy and a lemming-like fealty to a president as bereft of thought and feeling as they are. You see the results: a shattered party not of ideas and programs, but only insults and bogus intrigues. No wonder the Biden infrastructure proposals infuriate them; they have nothing to offer in return.(Remember Trump's Infrastructure Week, always imminent but never occurring over the whole four years of his presidency?)

They fear any and all success during Biden's first term. Think back to 1993, when now anti-Trumpist conservative Bill Kristol advised Republicans to shun any healthcare plan from Bill and Hillary Clinton. In a memo—Kristol was then head of the Project for the Republican Future—he warned his colleagues, "It will revive the reputation of the party that spends and regulates, the Democrats, as the generous protector of middle-class interests. And it will at the same time strike a punishing blow against Republican claims to defend the middle class by restraining government."...

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https://www.alternet.org/2021/03/matt-gaetz-2651215213/

no lnx twt

att Gaetz blasted after standing up for anti-LGBTQ hate group and promoting a 'fascist sympathizer'

Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida speaking at the 2019 Teen Student Action Summit hosted by Turning Point USA in Washington, D.C., Gage Skidmore

David Badash and The New Civil Rights Movement March 25, 2021

U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) on Thursday stood up for the Family Research Council, a hate group that has spent nearly 40 years spreading dangerous lies about LGBTQ people under the cloak of "religious freedom." He also attacked the Southern Poverty Law Center, a decades-old institution that tracks and reports on the more than 800 current hate groups of all kinds across the U.S.

It did not turn out well for the Florida Congressman, as some rushed to remind Gaetz, a top Trump MAGA sympathizer, of his own associations with the far right.

Gaetz tweeted out an article from the conspiracy theory website Gateway Pundit, whose owner was regularly labeled the stupidest man on the Internet. The article, by Cassandra Fairbanks, paints Gaetz in a very favorable light to his far right supporters. Fairbanks previously worked for Sputnik, the Russian government state media site.

The Southern Poverty Law Center is a hate group. The @splcenter's designation of @FRCdc as a "hate group" caused a… https://t.co/QiJ5oaTm1j

— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@Rep. Matt Gaetz)1616693100.0

The SPLC is not a hate group.

Fairbanks, according to domestic extremism expert Jared Holt, is a "self-professed fascist sympathizer."

Sharing articles from a self-professed fascist sympathizer to own the SPLC https://t.co/a3kXCUcQ9o https://t.co/gIpDZWqBHo

— Jared Holt (@Jared Holt)1616700329.0

Journalist Christopher Mathias offered up a similar characterization:

Hardly a week goes by without a GOP congressman promoting/citing the propaganda of fascists. This time, it's Gaet… https://t.co/S6pvvRhI0f

— Christopher Mathias (@Christopher Mathias)1616701049.0

Gaetz also suggested MAGA is not a dangerous extremist group:

How long until MAGA hats are considered an "extremist symbol?" How long until Christian or pro-life groups are "to… https://t.co/igtqPlLpTr

— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@Rep. Matt Gaetz)1616697480.0

Here's how some are responding to Congressman Gaetz's attack.

Journalist Daniel Moritz-Rabson posted a graphic of Fairbanks appearing on VDARE with its founder. VDARE is a white nationalist hate group, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

oops pic.twitter.com/R17NOTDOug

— Daniel Moritz-Rabson (@DMoritzRabson) March 25, 2021

Journalist Sam Youngman notes Rep. Gaetz took Holocaust denier Chuck/Charles Johnson to the State of the Union Address and appears to continue to support Trump's attempt to overturn the election:

This person took a Holocaust denier to the State of the Union and voted against honoring the police who fought off… https://t.co/nYQj0c0PJs

— Sam Youngman (@Sam Youngman)1616701347.0

This Twitter user offered up the details:

This you? https://t.co/CxFWz3WEpU https://t.co/6MI2azkYDl https://t.co/HhpGwF0YPr

— Bizarrobrain (@Bizarrobrain)1616700819.0

White supremacist tracker:

A guy targeted the FRC because they're bigots. https://t.co/kB85u6wrfP

— Eyes on the Right (@Eyes on the Right)1616699231.0

Retired journalist:

Family Research Council: -"homosexual conduct is objectively harmful" -"people can stop being LGBTQ through conve… https://t.co/JMitDo7lYV

— jonhumbert (@jonhumbert)1616703576.0

Bullshit, Matt. There is an active on-going racist insurrection underway and you are part of it. It's un-American a… https://t.co/5shBxeIukD

— Curley (@Curley)1616693335.0

This is the classic Goebbels technique of accusing your enemies of what you, in fact, are guilty of. https://t.co/SPiJhsPdTO

— Matthew Spira (@Matthew Spira)1616707549.0

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1220 pam kieth oppon petition to disbarr after stop the steal BS

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Gaetz accuses GOP’s Kelly Loeffler of bribing Trump with $50 million to push out her opponent

Matthew Chapman Raw Story

September 24, 2020

On Thursday, The Daily Beast reported that Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is accusing Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) of offering President Donald Trump money for his re-election in return for helping her push opponent Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) out of the race....

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https://www.alternet.org/2020/09/house-adopts-resolution-calling-for-a-peaceful-transfer-of-presidential-power-except-for-5-republicans

claiming that Democrats are trying to use mail-in voting to promote voter fraud, President Donald Trump has refused to say that he will accept the election results if former Vice President Joe Biden wins in November. The U.S. House of Representatives, in response, adopted a resolution on Tuesday calling for a peaceful transfer of power in the presidential election — and it passed 379-5. Most House Republicans voted in favor of the resolution,but five didn't: Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas, Rep. Steve King of Iowa, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana.

Gaetz, according to Axios reporter Rebecca Falconer, views the resolution as a Democratic attack on Trump even though many Republicans voted for it. Falconer quotes the Florida congressman as saying: "This resolution is a way for Democrats to attack the president and disguise the fact that they will refuse to accept the election results unless they win. Professional loser Hillary Clinton has told Joe Biden that he should not concede — and I'm quoting — 'under any circumstances.'"

Gaetz is taking Clinton's words out of context. During an August interview with Jennifer Palmieri for Showtime, Clinton stressed that under no circumstances should Biden, in a close election, concede until he is certain that all of the votes have been counted. Clinton fears that Trump will prematurely claim victory on Election Night before all of the votes have been counted in key swing states such as Pennsylvania, Florida and Arizona.

Clinton, during that interview, said, "Joe Biden should not concede under any circumstances, because I think this is going to drag out, and eventually, I do believe he will win if we don't give an inch — and if we are as focused and relentless as the other side is." But Clinton wasn't saying that Biden should never concede under any circumstances, only that under no circumstances should he concede until there has been a thorough vote count. And Clinton is confident that a thorough vote count will eventually favor Biden, who unlike Trump, has said that he would concede if a final vote count showed a Trump victory.

During that interview, Clinton also said, "We've got to have a massive legal operation; I know the Biden campaign is working on that. We have to have poll workers, and I urge people who are able to be a poll worker. We have to have our own teams of people to counter the force of intimidation that the Republicans and Trump are going to put outside polling places. This is a big organizational challenge, but at least we know more about what they're going to do."

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Gaetz accuses GOP’s Kelly Loeffler of bribing Trump with $50 million to push out her opponent

Matthew Chapman / Raw Story September 24, 2020

On Thursday, The Daily Beast reported that Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is accusing Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) of offering President Donald Trump money for his re-election in return for helping her push…

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https://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/matt-gaetz-speech-writing-consultant-likens-covid-19-restrictions-to-crimes-against-humanity/

darren Beattie, who has been paid thousands of taxpayer dollars by Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida for speech-writing consultant services, likened restrictions of business and public gatherings during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic to “crimes against humanity.”

:{:{}:

In a tweet posted Aug. 17, Beattie wrote: “Covid lockdowns might turn out to be one of the greatest crimes against humanity short of war/genocide."

gaetz announced last year that he had hired Beattie, a former White House speechwriter who left the Trump administration after CNN revealed he attended and presented at a conference that regularly draws white nationalist attendees and speakers. The Florida congressman tweeted in April 2019, “Very proud to have the talented Dr. Darren Beattie helping our team as a Special Advisor for Speechwriting. Welcome on board!”

Beattie never joined Gaetz’s congressional staff payroll. Rather, Politico reported in July that Gaetz was disbursing public funds to Beattie for speech-writing consultant services through a limited liability company registered in Wyoming. The arrangement ran afoul of Congressional ethics rules that forbid using taxpayer money to pay speech writers, political consultants and other such outside hires. Gaetz’s aides told Politico at the time that they made a clerical error and were working to fix it.

Political Research Associates reported this month that since Beattie started working with Gaetz, his “connection to White nationalist leaders, and commitment to a range of disturbing supremacist and anti-democratic views, has only deepened.”

In March, Gaetz wore a gas mask on the House floor to mock an emergency funding bill to combat the coronavirus. The following week, Gaetz announced he was undergoing self-quarantine after coming in contact with a Conservative Political Action Conference attendee who tested positive for the virus.

Tags: Darren Beattie Rep. Matt Gaetz Coronavirus

820 a

Matt Gaetz gets unanimously admonished by House Ethics Committee over conduct code David Badash / The New Civil Rights Movement

odd timing?

https://www.alternet.org/2020/07/gop-rep-matt-gaetz-files-a-criminal-referral-against-facebooks-mark-zuckerberg-with-william-barr

no lnx

gOP Rep. Matt Gaetz files a criminal referral against Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg with William Barr

Written by Roger Sollenberger / Salon July 29, 2020

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., on Monday asked Attorney General William Barr to open a criminal investigation into Mark Zuckerberg over allegations that the Facebook CEO lied to Congress. MIRROR FLYNN STONE?

In a letter to Barr, Gaetz accused the social media executive of making false statements to Congress on two occasions in 2018. He alleged that Zuckerberg “repeatedly and categorically denied any bias against conservative speech, persons, policies or politics” on his platform.

“On both occasions, members of Congress asked Mr. Zuckerberg about allegations that Facebook censored and suppressed content supportive of President Donald Trump and other conservatives,” Gaetz wrote.

“Mr. Zuckerberg also dismissed the suggestion that Facebook exercises any form of editorial manipulation,” he added.

:{:{}:

Zuckerberg made the remarks in 2018 under questioning from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tex., who accused Facebook of “bias and censorship.” Cruz cited a 2016 Gizmodo revealing allegations that the social media platform had knowingly suppressing conservative news. Zuckerberg responded:

I understand where that concern is coming from, because Facebook and the tech industry are located in Silicon Valley, which is an extremely left-leaning place. And this is actually a concern that I have, and that I try to root out in the company, is making sure that we don’t have any bias in the work that we do. And I think it is a fair concern that people would at least wonder about."

As evidence to support his claims, Gaetz directed Barr to a recent sting by Project Veritas, a right-wing organization known for its efforts to take down liberal organizations, mainstream media outlets and public figures through misinformation and deceptively edited “insider” videos.

Project Veritas published hidden-camera footage of purported Facebook content moderators apparently admitting that they delete conservative posts. Gaetz says the “whistleblowers” in the video offer “ample evidence” of the company’s “bias and manipulation.”

“According to the Veritas report and undercover footage, the adjudicators were outspoken about their political bias against Republicans and actively chose to eliminate otherwise-allowable content from the platform and from public view simply due to its political orientation,” Gaetz wrote.

“At the same time,” Gaetz added, “speech promoting violence against the president and his supporters was labeled as merely ‘political,’ and was thus allowed to stay on the platform.”

The Republican representative also claims, without citing evidence, that Facebook’s artificial intelligence content screening program is itself not politically neutral, which he alleges is a violation of the “good faith” provision of the Communications Decency Act.

Republicans — from internet trolls, up to lawmakers and President Donald Trump himself — regularly accuse Facebook and other social media platforms of anti-conservative bias.

However, Facebook launched its own project in the weeks after the 2016 election — “Project P,” for propaganda — which found dozens of pages peddling fake news ahead of Trump’s victory. Nearly all the pages were based overseas, had financial motives and “displayed a clear rightward bent,” according to the Washington Post.

Another reason why moderators may encounter a higher volume of flagged conservative content is because Facebook’s most popular content has become overwhelmingly conservative over time. “Facebook has become the home of right-wing America, while Twitter and Snap have become the home of the left,” Vanity Fair’s Nick Bilton reported earlier this year.

And while liberals have criticized Facebook for refusing to fact-check political ads — and even threatened to break up the social media platform — a number of leading conservatives have reportedly met in secret with Zuckerberg, including Tucker Carlson, Sen. Lindsey Graham, and on at least one occasion, Trump himself. Zuckerberg has not disclosed the content of those meetings.

Matt Gaetz did not respond to Salon’s request for comment. Facebook declined to comment.

an 720

Matt Gaetz goes full white fright on Twitter — and sparks hilarious backlash

an 420 corrupt rent deal donor?

an 420

Gaetz calls for removal of ‘corrupt’ fellow GOP lawmaker: ‘A pattern is being revealed’

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http://scorecard.lcv.org/moc/matt-gaetz

9/7%

led pizza party sciff storm

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i do not get this ingraham?

https://www.alternet.org/2020/04/matt-gaetz-get-brutally-taken-down-on-fox-news-for-minimizing-coronavirus-and-costing-lives/

320 an

Matt Gaetz obliterated after going full ‘Florida Man’ with racist, uninformed coronavirus tweet

There are all kinds of issues one might have with…

ass clown:

Sarah K. Burris @ Raw Story: Matt Gaetz mocks essential coronavirus funding by strapping on a gas mask.

meghan McCain corners Matt Gaetz as the Trump-loving congressman face-plants on The View

Travis Gettys / Raw Story February 20, 2020

Rep. Matt Gaetz loudly argued with “The View” panelists over President Donald Trump’s pardons. The Florida Republican immediately started an argument with Joy Behar, and conservative Meghan McCain laughed in…

https%3A%2F%2Fthehill.com%2Fhomenews%2Fhouse%2F481796-gaetz-files-ethics-complaint-against-pelosi-for-destroying-trump-speech

Dobbs and guest bash Rep. Matt Gaetz for voting to limit Trump’s war powers

01/09/20 8:16 PM EST

https://www.alternet.org/2020/01/the-trumpiest-congressman-matt-gaetz-just-infuriated-the-president-by-voting-to-limit-his-war-powers-report

no lnx

‘The Trumpiest Congressman’ Matt Gaetz just infuriated the president by voting to limit his war powers: report

Written by Cody Fenwick January 11, 2020

Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz has infuriated President Donald Trump by voting Thursday in favor of a measure in the House of Representatives seeking to restrain the conflict in Iran, the Washington Post reported Friday night.

Gaetz was one of three Republicans to support the measure. Eight Democrats, on the other hand, opposed it, and it passed 224-194. Because it is a concurrent resolution designed to be paired with a companion measure in the Senate, it’s not designed to go to the president’s desk for either a veto or a signature. Its fate in the Senate is unclear.

Gaetz’s vote in favor of the resolution came as a surprise to many observers, even though, as I have noted, he previously wrote in opposition to the ongoing U.S. support for Saudia Arabia’s war on Yemen. Outside of these issues, Gaetz is generally seen as one of Trump’s biggest fans in Congress. As the Post explained:

Gaetz (R-Fla.) has been called “the Trumpiest Congressman in Trump’s Washington,” a judgment that he features proudly and prominently on his campaign homepage, along with quotes depicting him as “Trump’s Best Buddy,” “Trump’s Ultimate Defender” and “Rising star of the Trumpian right.”

But it seems to be, at least in part, this closeness that makes Gaetz’s vote seem like such a betrayal:

It was a risky move that surprised the president and showed rare fissures in a Republican Party that Trump has firmly controlled. Trump fiercely complained about Gaetz after aides informed Trump that his office had sent the email backing the resolution, which was pushed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Trump’s team lobbied heavily against the nonbinding resolution.

“The Trump administration was disappointed in the congressman’s vote and is hopeful that as the president’s foreign policy continues to unfold, he will reconsider his points of view,” Eric Ueland, the head of legislative affairs for the White House, said in an interview.

…

A senior White House official said it was “super uncool” and “quite unwise” for Gaetz to push for limits on the president’s authority. This person added that White House officials would not be returning Gaetz’s phone calls, text messages, “smoke signals or his kneelings in the snow.”

On the day of the vote, Gaetz gave a speech on the House floor defending his position and trying to make clear that he intended no insult to the president.

“I take a seat to no member of this body when it comes to defending the president. This resolution offers no criticism of the president. No critique!” he said. He argued that his vote was based on his duties as a congressman, rather than distrust of Trump. “If the members of our armed services have the courage to go fight and die in these wars, as Congress, we ought to have the courage to vote for ’em or against ’em.”

Watch the clip below:

I represent more troops than any other member of this body. I buried one of them earlier today at Arlington.

If our servicemembers have the courage to fight and die in these wars, Congress ought to have the courage to vote for or against them.

I’m voting for this resolution. pic.twitter.com/cSCBG7CmIm

— Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) January 9, 2020

atl? 2017?

...There has been a flurry of recent Republican efforts to stall action on climate policy, including a pair of bills just introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives. Bill H.R. 861, introduced by Representative Matt Gaetz, proposes “to terminate the EPA.” This bill may not even get a vote, but as The New York Times reported earlier this week, Pruitt “has a blueprint to repeal climate change rules, cut staffing levels, close regional offices and permanently weaken the agency’s regulatory authority.”

Meanwhile, Bill H.R. 673, introduced by Representative Blaine Luetkmeyer, proposes to “prohibit United States contributions to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the Green Climate Fund.” It’s also no secret that many Republicans want to halt funding for the UN FCCC, the international treaty system of 195 nations that produced the Paris Agreement. As the Republican party platform stated in the run-up to the presidential election: “We reject the agendas of both the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement.”

rand paul

anti- commie book 10/19 book tv gaetz

Gaetz starts shouting in hearing and gets shut down with a gavel: ‘You cannot simply yell out’

Cody Fenwick

https://www.alternet.org/2019/12/trumps-national-security-adviser-pensacola-shooting-appears-to-be-a-terrorist-attack/

trump’s national security adviser: Pensacola shooting ‘appears to be a terrorist attack’

Matthew Rozsa

During an appearance on the CBS program “Face the Nation” on Sunday, White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien said that at a shooting at a naval base in Pensacola

... the shooting is to believed to have been perpetrated by Mohammed Alshamrani, 21, a second lieutenant in the Royal Saudi Air Force and student naval flight officer at the Naval Aviation Schools Command. The shooting left three service members dead and eight others injured. The fatalities included Airman Mohammed Hathaim, 19, from St. Petersburg, Fla., Ensign Joshua Kaleb Watson, 23, from Coffee, Ala. and Airman Apprentice Cameron Scott Walters, 21, from Richmond Hill, Ga.

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https://www.alternet.org/2019/10/dont-sleep-on-the-gop-strategy-republican-attacks-on-impeachment-process-have-a-clear-goal-in-mind/

no lnx

Don’t sleep on the GOP strategy: Republican attacks on impeachment ‘process’ have a clear goal in mind

Written by Heather Digby Parton / Salon October 28, 2019

President Trump left the safe bubble of his properties and his rallies to venture out into a world where people don’t cheer ecstatically whenever he appears. He attended the fifth game of the World Series on Sunday night at Nationals Park in Washington, and was lustily booed by the crowd, some of whom also held up impeachment banners and chanted “Lock him up.” Trump is not used to that sort of thing and he had a hard time hiding his discomfort.

Look how Trump’s face changes when he realizes an entire stadium is booing him pic.twitter.com/E46rzbzmbl

— Arlen Parsa (@arlenparsa) October 28, 2019

He probably thought he was going to be received as a hero since earlier in the day he’d announced that U.S. Special Forces had staged a raid in Syria that led to the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. (Who has been declared dead several times before, to be fair.) No doubt he was gravely disappointed to turn on the TV and see that the impeachment inquiry that is bedeviling him remains at the top of the news. If he had it in his head that wagging the (“beautiful, talented”) dog would tamp down impeachment talk, by the time he got into his jammies on Sunday night he must have realized that it didn’t work.

Last week we saw the absurd protest staged by Trump’s favorite court jester, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and several dozen other GOP members of Congress who stormed the secure facility where witness depositions are taken in private session. They made a big show of claiming that the process is being used improperly by House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif,, because Republicans like Gaetz are not allowed in the room to ask questions and transcripts are not being released to the public.

This is ridiculous, of course, since all members of the House Intelligence, Oversight and Foreign Affairs committees, of both parties, are allowed to participate and ask questions. According to the Washington Post, Republicans, led by Intelligence Committee ranking member Devin Nunes, R-Calif., have been quite active during these long depositions. Mostly they seem to be trying to find out the name of the CIA whistleblower, and to further conspiracy theories about Ukraine supposedly working with Hillary Clinton to sabotage Trump in the 2016 election. They also want to know if these witnesses are loyal to Trump because, as we know, anyone who fails to declare fealty to him cannot be trusted to tell the truth. With his usual dignity and grace, Trump recently suggested that at least some of these witnesses were “human scum.”

Meanwhile, we had Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., fatuously declaring that the impeachment inquiry is unfair and offering a resolution to condemn it in the Senate. That was a meaningless gesture, more or less designed as a test vote to reassure the president that he doesn’t have to worry about being convicted in an impeachment trial. As of Sunday, only three Senate Republicans had failed to sign on.

But some of them have gone even further, such as Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., who told CNN’s Jake Tapper that he believes Schiff and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi want to give Trump “a fair and impartial firing squad.” (Kennedy sees himself as a clever and colorful character.)

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas just went for it:

What if, just what if, the Obama administration, including the leadership of the Justice Department and FBI unlawfully coordinated with the DNC and the Clinton campaign to “go after” an opposing presidential campaign? No problemo?

— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) October 25, 2019

That’s odd, considering that Cornyn signed the recent Senate Select Committee on Intelligence findings confirming that Russia was behind the 2016 election interference. So he knows better. But he’s up for re-election in Texas next year and is playing to the big rube in the White House, who was no doubt pleased.

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trump’s lawless Republican mob was egged on by Sean Hannity

David Cay Johnston / DC Report

The Republican gang that crashed a secure hearing room on Capitol Hill Wednesday was no flash mob. Donald Trump, working with junior Republican House members, arranged the stunt, equally lawless…

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pizzagaetz:

https://www.rightwingwatch.org/post/meet-the-far-right-house-members-who-stormed-secure-hearing-room/

more than two dozen Republican House members stormed a closed-door hearing with a top Pentagon official on Wednesday morning in protest of the impeachment investigation of President Donald Trump.

?The storming stunt was staged a day after Trump ?had a White House meeting with members of the Freedom Caucus–who were among the Republicans storming the hearing–?and has complained in recent days that Republicans have not been strong or vocal enough in their defense of him.

The House Republicans caused a five-hour delay, broke House rules, and compromised security by bringing cellphones and other electronic devices into the secure facility, where they are not allowed to protect sensitive information. ?One member, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, even tweeted from the secure hearing room, called the Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility, or SCIF (pronounced “skiff”).

So who are these ?security-flouting congressmen and congresswomen? We rounded up a few that have graced our pages here at Right Wing Watch.

Matt Gaetz

“I led over 30 of my colleagues into the SCIF where Adam Schiff is holding secret impeachment depositions,” Gaetz said on Twitter Wednesday morning. On Thursday, he compared himself to Spartans in the Movie “300,” telling TMZ, “We were like the 300s, standing in the breach to try to stop the radical left from storming over our democracy.”

Gaetz may now be best known for leading the stunt, but there’s plenty more to know about him. In 2018, he tried to impede efforts to count all the ballots in the tight Florida Senate race between Rick Scott and Bill Nelson. As Right Wing Watch’s Jared Holt reported at the time:

Gaetz told listeners of “Breitbart News Daily” on SirusXM that Republicans should push back on the vote-counting efforts without fear of outraging voters.

“If the Democrats were in charge and this was happening in a Republican county, do you think that those supervisors of elections would still have jobs? I mean, they’d be gone. They’d be out on their rear ends,” Gaetz said.

…

Gaetz said that Democrats will never “get better” and “treat us better,” so it’s important that Republicans “take the gloves off and fight like they do.”

Gaetz also pushed a conspiracy theory that the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee authored a secret memo that “proves that the Obama administration improperly sought to spy on Donald Trump and his presidential campaign,” Holt wrote in 2018. Gaetz appeared on the conspiracy-theory outlet Infowars to complain about being labeled a conspiracy theorist. Gaetz also pushed a conspiracy theory that progressive billionaire donor George Soros organized and funded a ?”caravan?” of migrants.

And in 2018, Gaetz brought Chuck Johnson, a right-wing political operative who has posted Holocaust-denying statements online, to Trump’s State of the Union address.

Louie Gohmert

After storming the secure room, Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas reportedly started a shouting match with Democratic lawmakers.

Recently, Gohmert has claimed he knows the? identity of the whistleblower who raised the red flag on Trump’s call to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which the U.S. president asked Zelensky to investigate Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and Biden’s son, Hunter. Gohmert’s assertion is based on a conspiracy theory involving the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. But Gohmert is best known on our pages for ? homophobic remarks. In 2016, he said homosexuality was to blame for ?the flood described in the biblical story of Noah. Right Wing Watch’s Brian Tashman reported on a speech Gohmert gave on the House floor in 2016:

But due to the attacks on “natural order” and religious freedom, Gohmert said, “we don’t have much longer to go.”

Gohmert also cited the work of Jonathan Cahn, a far-right End Times preacher who believes God is punishing America (and France) due to gay marriage with events such as the 9/11 attacks, to assert that the end is near.

He also claimed that transgender people are disordered and “perverse” individuals who need help.

Gohmert also claimed that sexual abuse turned boys gay, stating in 2016, “the boys just seemed like, universally, they ended up feeling that they were gay.”

Debbie Lesko

A fervent supporter of Trump, Arizona Rep. Debbie Lesko stormed the secure Capitol room and expressed her outrage about how the ?impeachment inquiry process was being handled.

Lesko has boosted the CrowdStrike conspiracy theory and supported anti-vaccination conspiracy theories. In June, Lesko attacked social media companies that had made it harder for users to find anti-vaccination conspiracy theories. As the Daily Beast reported then:

A Republican lawmaker slammed Facebook and Google on Wednesday for making it harder to find anti-vaccine content on their platforms, calling the companies’ efforts to stop the spread of the conspiracy theories “really scary stuff.”

Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-AZ) attacked the platforms’ efforts at a House Homeland Security committee hearing on online terrorism and disinformation, where representatives from Google, Facebook, and Twitter faced their latest round of grilling from lawmakers.

…

Medical professionals and public officials have all warned that disinformation about vaccines (including a persistent and pernicious conspiracy that they can lead to autism) has fed public health epidemics. But Lesko suggested that anti-vaccine theories are just a difference of opinion.

“What you deem as inaccurate, I do not deem as inaccurate, or other people may not deem,” she said.

Lesko is also an anti-abortion activist and believes “God has put me on a mission,” to be anti-choice, Lesko said at Family Research Council’s “Pro-Life Con” earlier this year.

Andy Biggs

Andy Biggs, the former president of the Arizona Senate, was among those leading the charge to disrupt the hearing and called the hearings “secret, Soviet-style, Stalinist” on Wednesday. On Monday, Biggs forced a vote in the House to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, which failed.

In 2015, Biggs sat silent when the founder of the Oath Keepers, an anti-government militia group, called for the hanging ?of Sen. John McCain of Arizona. As Right Wing Watch reported at the time:

Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes told a Phoenix television station yesterday that he called for the hanging of Arizona Sen. John McCain last week because McCain “is every bit as nuts as Adolf Hitler was.”

Rhodes made the comment while sitting next to Andy Biggs, the president of the Arizona Senate, who has said that he didn’t speak up because criticizing Rhodes would have violated his “free-speech rights.”

Steve King

White supremacist Rep. Steve King of Iowa was ?also among the lawmakers who stormed the SCIF. King may be best known for comments he made to the New York Times earlier this year ?in which he defended white nationalism.

“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?” he said in an interview with the New York Times. “Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?”

The New York Times reported:

At the same time, he said, he supports immigrants who enter the country legally and fully assimilate because what matters more than race is “the culture of America” based on values brought to the United States by whites from Europe.

But before his comments to the Times, King promoted white supremacists on his Twitter and has made other racist comments. In 2018, King quote-tweeted Lana Lokteff, who spread white supremacist hate on YouTube via the hate channel, Red Ice. Holt reported at the time:

In June, King promoted Mark Collett, a well-established British neo-Nazi. Additionally, King has a reputation for professing white-nationalist rhetoric about undocumented immigrants, once comparing them to livestock, and racial demographics in America, claiming “we can’t restore our civilization with somebody else’s babies.”

Tags: Andy BiggsDebbie LeskoLouie GohmertRep. Louie GohmertRep. Matt GaetzRep. Steve KingSteve KingImpeachmentRepublican Party

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https://www.alternet.org/2019/10/beyond-parody-matt-gaetz-and-dozens-of-his-gop-colleagues-try-to-barge-into-secret-hearing-in-latest-anti-impeachment-stunt/

...more than two dozen House conservatives rail on Schiff and the process outside the closed impeachment proceedings, and have now entered the SCIF - and they are bound to be kicked out bc they don’t serve on the three committees conducting the probe. It is being led by Matt Gaetz...

https://www.alternet.org/2019/10/gop-rep-matt-gaetz-complains-after-being-kept-out-of-closed-door-hearing-with-former-russian-affairs-adviser-to-trump/

...manu Raju, senior congressional correspondent for CNN, reported, “Matt Gaetz emerges from closed-door interview with Fiona Hill saying he was kicked out by House Democrats (because) he’s not a member of the three committees conducting the interview. He said he consulted with the House parliamentarian, who ruled that he could not be there.”

Although Gaetz sits on the House Judiciary Committee (which is chaired by Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler), he is not part of the Oversight, Intelligence or Foreign Affairs committees. Gaetz has complained about being barred from the hearing with Hill on Twitter, posting, “Judiciary Chairman @JerryNadler claimed to have begun the impeachment inquiry weeks ago. Now, his own Judiciary members aren’t even allowed to participate in it. And yes, my constituents want me actively involved in stopping the #KangarooCourtCoup run by Shifty Schiff.”

This Super PAC Is Funded By Groups Once Run By The Candidate It ...

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/.../matt-gaetz-super-pac_us_57a4e1aee4b056bad215...

Aug 5, 2016 - Steve Cannon/AP Two PACs once connected to Florida state Rep. Matt Gaetz (pictured) contributed to a super PAC now supporting his ... was actually a $10,000 donation from Gaetz'sEconomic Freedom Foundation.

Trump: 'I wouldn't be surprised' if Soros were paying for migrant ...

https://thehill.com/.../414171-trump-i-wouldnt-be-surprised-if-soros-were-paying-for-...

2 days ago - Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) October 17, 2018 ... He went on to describe the caravan as a "dangerous group of people," and said he might ...

Missing: gaet ?| ?Must include: ?

gaet

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ASHINGTON ? Three days before Florida Republican state Rep. Matt Gaetz announced his intention to run for an open seat in Congress, he sent two letters to the state’s Division of Elections formally stepping down as the chairman of two leadership PACs he had run for over two years. Three months later, those two PACs contributed all of their remaining funds to a super PAC supporting his congressional bid.

These donations are yet another sign of the porous rules restricting coordination between campaigns and independent groups. Whether the PAC contributions to the pro-Gaetz super PAC amount to violations of Federal Election Commission rules governing coordination depends on the as-yet-unknown facts of the case.

The contributions in question include a $369,008 donation from the Economic Freedom Foundation and a $11,306 contribution from the Free Enterprise Fund. Both are political action committees registered with the Florida Division of Elections. They were led by Gaetz from 2013 until he stepped down as chairman and named Amanda Clark as his replacement on March 18, 2016. On March 21, he announced his congressional bid.

Under Clark’s leadership, the two PACs filed papers with the Florida Division of Elections to formally terminate operations on May 26. Then on June 20 they contributed their remaining funds to North Florida Neighbors, a federally registered super PAC.

North Florida Neighbors was created in July 2015 with a stated goal of supporting the congressional campaign of Republican Neal Dunn in Florida’s 2nd Congressional District. One of the group’s first contributions was actually a $10,000 donation from Gaetz’s Economic Freedom Foundation.

At the time, Gaetz was running for the state Senate seat currently occupied by his retiring father, Don Gaetz. It wasn’t until Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) announced that he was retiring from Congress that the younger Gaetz dropped the bid to replace his father in the state Senate and threw his hat into the race to represent Florida’s 1st Congressional District in Washington.

On May 20, North Florida Neighbors announced that they would now be supporting Gaetz’s campaign along with Dunn’s ? conveniently running in neighboring districts in Florida’s panhandle. One month later, the super PAC received the $380,314 in contributions from the two PACs formerly led by Gaetz. These contributions amount to 65 percent of the total funds raised by the super PAC.

North Florida Neighbors has since spent $292,262 to support Gaetz in the eight-candidate Republican primary in the 1st District.

The question at issue is whether Gaetz directed his successor at his two leadership PACs, Amanda Clark, on what to do with the remaining funds. Neither the Gaetz campaign nor Clark responded to requests for comment.

Federal coordination rules prohibit any entity controlled by a candidate from making independent expenditures on their behalf. Although untested, those rules presumably extend to prohibit contributions from a leadership PAC controlled or directed by a candidate to a super PAC supporting that candidate.

“If what happened was that he raised the money to these state organizations and then he said ‘transfer money over to the super PAC,’ that would be illegal,” Larry Noble, general counsel to the Campaign Legal Center, told The Huffington Post. “What they always say, though, is that they had nothing to do with it.”

Christina Johnson, spokeswoman for North Florida Neighbors, simply stated, “We don’t comment on specific contributions or donors.”

This is not the first time that a candidate-linked leadership PAC has contributed to a super PAC supporting the same candidate. In 2015, a leadership PAC connected to Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Penn.) donated $75,000 to Prosperity for Pennsylvania, a super PAC run by former Toomey aides. The super PAC, however, refunded the Toomey leadership PAC contributions more than a month after The Huffington Post wrote about them. That was before the super PAC spent a dime on Toomey’s election.

ref irs

8489 Cabin Hill Road tallahassee fl

Economic Freedom Foundation

ginni 2013 pix

https://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/ginni-thomas-caravan-fake-meme

...

invasion thank gof for trump"

...BVut sharing extremist right-wing content is not a new thing for Thomas, a conservative activist who has made frequent use of social media. Earlier this year, she shared posts attacking the Parkland kids and praising the "#WalkAway" movement, a fake campaign of Russian trolls pretending to be people of color leaving the Democratic Party.

The migrant caravan, which consists of thousands of men, women, and children fleeing civil strife in Central America and heading toward the United States, is not actually anything new or unusual; similar groups of migrants have routinely formed over the last 20 years, and there is no evidence anyone in the group poses a danger. But it has still become the fear du jour in the Republican Party, particularly among those hoping to gin up enough fear among President Donald Trump's core voters to turn them out to the polls and counteract a blue wave.

Trump has claimed with no evidence that "unknown Middle Easterners" are traveling with the caravan. And last week, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) theorized that left-wing Jewish billionaire George Soros is secretly funding the caravan, in the hope that it will somehow disrupt the midterm election in favor of Democrats.

---

Pro-Trump Congressman Self Destructs With Racist Conspiracy Theory About George Soros Paying Honduran Migrants

By Matthew Chapman, AlterNet

Rep. Matt Gaetz suggested a caravan of Honduran refugees was paid by George Soros to disrupt the U.S. election. And he only went further off the rails when challenged. READ MORE»

https://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/dana-rohrabacher-matt-gaetz-chuck-johnson

Reps. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) previously drew scrutiny for hanging out with Chuck C. Johnson, a far-right Internet troll and Holocaust denier, and both have tried to explain away the occurence.

But according to Mother Jones, both congressmen somehow ended up fraternizing with him a second time this summer. Specifically, Johnson was on board a yacht fundraiser in Newport Beach, California, on behalf of Gaetz's re-election campaign, at which Rohrabacher gave a speech in support of his colleague. The fundraiser was hosted by public relations executives Alfred Balitzer and Rod Wilson, the former of whom Johnson has referred to as a "mentor."

In January, Gaetz, one of President Donald Trump's closest kindred spirits in Congress, faced controversy and a letter of condemnation from the Anti-Defamation League for providing Johnson a ticket to attend Trump's State of the Union Address as his guest. Gaetz argued that Johnson had simply "showed up at my office" and the invite was not an endorsement of his views, but bizarrely, added in an interview on Fox Business that Johnson is "not a Holocaust denier, he’s not a white supremacist."

Rohrabacher, another Trump ally and Congress' most notorious apologist for Russian President Vladimir Putin, allowed Johnson to sit in on a meeting between himself and Sen. Rand Paul, after Johnson had helped him secure a meeting with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in August and donated $5,400 in Bitcoin to his campaign. Rohrabacher maintains that Johnson was not invited to the meeting with Paul, but admits that he was not asked to leave it either.

Johnson, a former Breitbart reporter who has spent years promoting fake news through his GotNews web site, and who was banned for life from Twitter for inviting people to raise money to help him "take out" Black Lives Matter activist DeRay McKesson, came out as a Holocaust denier in early 2017.

"I do not and never have believed the six million figure," he told a commenter on an alt-right Reddit thread. "I think the Red Cross numbers of 250,000 dead in the camps from typhus are more realistic. I think the Allied bombing of Germany was a ware [sic] crime. I agree … about Auschwitz and the gas chambers not being real."

He has since tried to claim that he does not actually deny the Holocaust, and only said this to see what a reaction it would get.

---

Investigative reporter Michael Isikoff of Yahoo News dropped a small bombshell this quiet holiday week that hasn't really exploded yet but might just explain the GOP's recent full-court press to discredit the FBI and special counsel Robert Mueller's team. Rep. Francis Rooney, a Florida Republican, explained:

I would like to see the directors of those agencies [the DOJ and FBI] purge it and say, "Look, we’ve got a lot of great agents, a lot of great lawyers here." Those are the people to see and know the good work’s being done, not these people who are kind of the deep state.

On Wednesday, Rep. Ron DeSantis, another Florida Republican, went on "Fox & Friends" and backed up his colleague's sentiments, saying, "You look at a guy like Peter Strzok [the FBI agent demoted for sending derogatory texts about many politicians including Trump]. If he’s gonna say that it’s his job as an FBI to prevent a certain candidate from getting elected. ... Anyone who turns up in that situation, I think they should get another line of work.”

For what it's worth, Strzok is a counterintelligence agent who appeared concerned that the "certain candidate" might be acting as an agent of a foreign adversary, which was important information the nation didn't have before the election. In any case, from what we can gather, these Republican congressmen identify nefarious "deep state" actors as those who cannot swear that they are not now and have never been a... Democrat.

As one can imagine, the use of the word "purge" brought forth some rather unfortunate historical images. We haven't seen evidence that they plan the usual accompanying show trials, but give them time. Republicans in Congress are working feverishly to prepare hearings on the Hillary Clinton "Russian uranium email treason" hearings so there's a chance we'll see some kind of facsimile before 2018.

The hysteria that's now raging seems a bit of an outsized reaction for this particular phase of the scandal, especially considering that Mueller actually did remove the offending "deep-staters." Isikoff may have come across a different motivation than simple loyalty to President Trump. He wrote:

In just the last few weeks, his prosecutors have begun questioning Republican National Committee staffers about the party digital operation that worked with the Trump campaign to target voters in key swing states. They are seeking to determine if the joint effort was related to the activities of Russian trolls and bots aimed at influencing the American electorate, according to two of the sources.

It would not be surprising if certain Republicans were to become a bit nervous when the investigation into Russian interference turned in that particular direction. It's flown under the radar since the election, but the fact is that it wasn't only the Democratic National Committee and John Podesta's email accounts that were hacked. The intelligence community identified the same group of Russian-affiliated hackers as behind the hacking of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

I've been intrigued by this aspect of the Russian hacking story since the New York Times published an early report about it back in November of 2016. Recall that at first the hacker known as Guccifer 2.0 released personal information that was used to intimidate Democratic candidates, but then he/she/they suddenly became more sophisticated and targeted, dumping valuable tactical information:

The seats that Guccifer 2.0 targeted in the document dumps were hardly random: They were some of the most competitive House races in the country.

People have wondered ever since if the hacker(s) might have gotten some expert assistance.

Perhaps it's a coincidence that so much of the information in question was republished on a website called HelloFLA by a Florida Republican and former congressional staffer named Aaron Nevins, who was connected to Trump associate and longtime political operative Roger Stone. It could be completely random that among the core group of Mueller antagonists, those calling the probe a "coup d'état" and demanding purges of members of the "deep state" are Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., who proposed that Mueller's funding be cut off, and the aforementioned Rep. Francis Rooney, who's been all over TV talking about purging the FBI.

Indeed, as journalist Marcy Wheeler pointed out a while back, one of the ringleaders of the movement to discredit the Department of Justice and Robert Mueller, Rep. DeSantis, directly benefited from Guccifer 2.0’s leak to Nevins after the latter published five documents regarding the DCCC’s recruitment of DeSantis’ Democratic opponent, George Pappas. According to The Wall Street Journal, Guccifer 2.0 even sent a link with a HelloFLA article directly to Roger Stone, who told reporters he didn’t forward the hacked material to anyone -- the answer to a question nobody asked,

Donald Trump may think their vociferous attacks on Mueller are all about loyalty to him personally. After all, this group all flew down to Florida together on Air Force One earlier this month. But these guys have skin in the game now and may very well be caught up in the maw of the Russia investigation themselves.If Mueller's team is looking into the digital operation and Roger Stone's interactions with Guccifer 2.0, as one would expect them to do, then these shenanigans in Florida are also coming into view. That may explain why this little circle of Sunshine State GOP congressmen are so anxious to shut him down.

They might not be the only ones. According to The New York Times, material from the DCCC hack was first used by Miami-area Democrat Joe Garcia, a former congressman, to win a tight primary race. Then "the National Republican Campaign Committee and a second Republican group with ties to the House speaker, Paul Ryan, turned to the hacked material" to undermine Garcia and re-elect Rep. Carlos Curbelo, the Republican incumbent.

It should be noted that there were some candidates who refused to use the hacked material against their opponents. This gang of Florida Republicans who are now so loudly attacking the FBI for its supposedly unethical behavior were not among them. As we all know, neither was Donald "I love WikiLeaks" Trump.

digby

100k not listed:

1 Lewis Bear Co

$35,000 $35,000 $0

2 Surterra Holdings

$21,600 $21,600 $0

3 Costa Farms

$15,000 $15,000 $0

3 Republican Main Street Partnership

$15,000 $0 $15,000

5 ICI Homes

$13,500 $13,500 $0

5 Phillips Capital Partners

$13,500 $13,500 $0

7 American Medical Assn

$11,900 $6,900 $5,000

8 Smith Energy

$10,800 $10,800 $0

8 Valparaiso Realty

$10,800 $10,800 $0

10 Credit Union National Assn

$10,000 $0 $10,000

10 Majority Cmte PAC

$10,000 $0 $10,000

10 National Assn of Realtors

$10,000 $0 $10,000

10 Prosperity Action

$10,000 $0 $10,000

14 Carr, Riggs & Ingram

$9,400 $9,400 $0

15 Southern Co

$8,750 $3,250 $5,500

16 Habitribe

$7,500 $7,500 $0

16 National Beer Wholesalers Assn

$7,500 $0 $7,500

16 WW Thomas, Jr Inc

$7,500 $7,500 $0

19 State of Florida

$6,850 $6,850 $0

20 Lockheed Martin

$6,200 $1,200 $5,000

pac 2016

Agribusiness $17,500

Communications/Electronics $8,818

Construction $7,000

Defense $11,500

Energy & Natural Resources $17,500

Finance, Insurance & Real Estate $41,818

Health $22,000

Lawyers & Lobbyists $3,000

Transportation $11,500

Misc Business $16,000

Ideological/Single-Issue $84,750

https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00039503&newmem=Y

Real Estate$62,018$49,700$12,318Retired$54,263$54,263$0Health Professionals$51,250$32,750$18,500Leadership PACs$46,000$0$46,000Beer, Wine & Liquor$43,500$36,000$7,500Crop Production & Basic Processing$28,400$20,400$8,000Marijuana$21,600$21,600$0Food & Beverage$19,606$18,606$1,000Lobbyists$18,250$17,250$1,000Lawyers/Law Firms$17,850$15,850$2,000Candidate Committees$17,750$0$17,750Electric Utilities$15,750$3,250$12,500Accountants$15,706$13,706$2,000Republican/Conservative$15,000$0$15,000General Contractors$12,700$5,700$7,000Civil Servants/Public Officials$12,300$12,300$0Automotive$12,000$500$11,500Misc Manufacturing & Distributing$11,400$6,400$5,000Business Services$11,100$11,100$0Commercial Banks$11,000$3,500$7,500

ber beer gowlers

Scott worked to block Gaetz from UWF presidency - Politico

www.politico.com/states/.../scott-worked-to-block-gaetz-from-uwf-presidency-10552...

Sep 15, 2016 - Gov. Rick Scott applauds with State Sen. Don Gaetz at his side. ... UWF's board chairLewis Bear, a Gaetz supporter and prominent GOP donor, alleged that state ... that the university would still be taken care of as far as funding,” Bear said. ... a hospice care company he founded during one of his interviews.

Don Gaetz floated for University of West Florida presidency - Politico

www.politico.com/.../don-gaetz-floated-for-university-of-west-florida-presidency-101...

May 17, 2016 - “I honestly haven't thought about it," Gaetz told POLITICO Florida on Monday, adding that a “surprising” ... Power Company; Rick Harper, assistant vice president of economic development and engagement at ... Lewis Bear, who chairs the unviersity's board and is a prominent GOP donor, was also invited.

e&e legit

1st District

State Rep. Matt Gaetz (R) won the Panhandle-based seat of retiring Rep. Jeff Miller (R) on a conservative platform, promising to fight against what he called the Obama administration's "job-killing" executive overreach. Gaetz campaigned on the concept that environmental regulations are killing business.

Critics noted the PAC supporting Gaetz's bid received a $100,000 check from a Houston oil company. Gaetz said the contribution came from philanthropist family friends.

Gaetz did not respond to an inquiry about his energy and environmental policy priorities, but he expressed support for offshore drilling during the campaign.

During a primary debate, Gaetz referred to himself as a "never say never guy" on the subject of drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. "It would be shortsighted to say we will never extract another drop of oil," Gaetz said, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News.

Gaetz has also expressed uncertainty about whether global temperatures are rising naturally or if humans are contributing to climate change.

http://www.snopes.com/2017/02/06/florida-lawmakers-bill-terminate-environmental-protection-agency/

ok with noaa

There’s no shortage of outrageous bills in Congress that few people take seriously. Republican Representative Matt Gaetz’s

bill to abolish the EPA, for instance, caused widespread internet outrage and inspired hundreds of protesters to show up at a town hall Gaetz hosted. But the bill has absolutely no chance of becoming law.

---

Sponsor: Rep. Gaetz, Matt [R-FL-1] (Introduced 02/03/2017)

Committees: House - Energy and Commerce; Agriculture; Transportation and Infrastructure; Science, Space, and Technology

Latest Action: 02/10/2017 Referred to the Subcommittee on Environment. (All Actions)

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/861/all-actions-without-amendments?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22%5C%22environmental+protection%5C%22%22%5D%7D&r=9

Rep. Massie, Thomas [R-KY-4]* 02/03/2017

Rep. Palazzo, Steven M. [R-MS-4]* 02/03/2017

Rep. Loudermilk, Barry [R-GA-11]* 02/03/2017

Rep. Rogers, Mike D. [R-AL-3] 03/08/2017

Rep. Williams, Roger [R-TX-25] 03/08/2017

Rep. Mooney, Alexander X. [R-WV-2] 03/08/2017

4/17

---

http://www.alternet.org/environment/how-political-theater-congress-threatening-science-and-climate

As the Trump administration embarks on a deregulatory frenzy aimed at weakening federal climate action, Congress is matching his enthusiasm. Dozens of GOP-sponsored bills have been introduced that seek to hamstring the government’s ability to protect the environment, cut greenhouse gas emissions and consider peer-reviewed science in its decisions.

Legislation introduced since January includes a bill to undermine science used by the EPA, one to prevent the treatment of CO2 as a pollutant, a measure to end federal oversight of fracking and even one that abolishes the EPA altogether.

Some bills are revived versions from factions in Congress who have long opposed federal action on climate change and environmental regulation. With the Trump administration’s stated mission to roll back regulations of all kinds, Republican lawmakers are seizing the moment.

“I would still put long odds on any of them making it through the Senate,” said Michael Wara, an environmental law professor at Stanford Law School, noting the Republicans have only a 52-48 edge in that chamber. “So in some sense, not much has changed, and we should not put too much weight on legislation that has been introduced or even passed in the House until there is strong Senate sponsorship of a parallel bill.”

“These bills are aimed at making it more difficult for policymakers to use solid science in policymaking,” said Michael Mann, a Penn State climate scientist who testified before the House Science Committee on March 29. “Great for the fossil fuel industry, the tobacco industry, and the other corporate interests whose bidding they’re doing; bad for the rest of us who bear the brunt of lost protections and safeguards.”Only a few pieces of anti-climate or anti-environmental regulation legislation have gained traction in both houses. Still, climate scientists and watchdogs are alarmed by what they see, and fear that some bills could end up with Trump’s signature on them.

David Archer, a University of Chicago geophysicist who studies the carbon cycle, said the proposed legislation and Trump’s deregulatory efforts show contempt for science and the low-income and minority communities most likely to be harmed by policies that weaken environmental protection.

“I think it’s a kind of institutionally subconscious racially motivated genocide,” Archer said.

Taken together, however, the deregulatory bills amount to little more than political theater and have almost zero bipartisan support, said Michael Burger, executive director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University

“To the extent Republicans expect anything to pass into law, it seems they are more interested in advancing special interests than protecting public health and welfare,” he said.

These are among the dozens of such bills — none of them with significant Democratic support — currently being considered by Congress

the honest act

The bills generating the most anxiety in the scientific community are those requiring federal environmental regulations to be based only on research that is fully available to the public, in particular, the Honest and Open New EPA Science Treatment Act. Passed by the House last week, the bill would limit the science used by the EPA to that which is publicly available and reproducible.

The bill, which has failed to pass the House in the past, was revived by climate change denialist Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas. He aims to discredit peer-reviewed climate science, including research underlying the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change climate assessment reports that he falsely claims was not conducted following the scientific method.

“The goal here is to create the opportunity to better challenge the science underlying agency actions,” Wara said.

The science underlying EPA regulations is vigorously reviewed and transparent, and the bill could prevent the agency from using the best science to substantiate its policies, said Gretchen Goldman, research director at the Center for Science and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists.

The raw data, models and code that form the basis of many studies are often not publicly available because it is proprietary intellectual property or private health data that cannot be legally made public, Goldman said. The EPA would be barred from using research that fell into those categories, she said.

The mandate for the research to be “reproducible” would also prohibit research from being used as the basis of policy, said Ken Caldeira, senior scientist at the Department of Global Ecology at the Carnegie Institution for Science.

“All of the climate science and related environmental science that I read in the peer-reviewed literature is in-principle reproducible,” Caldeira said. “The reason it is not in fact reproducible is that the federal funding agencies rarely provide resources to redo work that someone else has already done.”

The bill is being heard by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act

Scientists are also nervous about the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act, which passed the House with the support of two Democrats on March 30. The act would prohibit the board from “communicating uncertainties” and making policy recommendations to the EPA, while encouraging dissenting board members to speak out. The board provides scientific advice to the EPA administrator.

Most climate science involves uncertainty. For example, it’s impossible to know precisely when human climate pollution will warm the atmosphere to levels scientists consider dangerous — 2°C (3.6°F) — but it’s likely to happen before 2050.

Understanding the uncertainties around climate pollution is key to many climate regulations because it’s necessary for the federal government to understand how deeply emissions need to be cut for climate regulations to be effective.

But the bill, if passed, would bar the EPA administrator from hearing anything about uncertainties, which means the Science Advisory Board couldn’t discuss much science at all.

“Science is all about communicating uncertainty,” Caldeira said. “Science is about expanding the range of what we know to be false. Truth lies in the range of what we don’t know to be false — that is the uncertainty range. People who don’t want scientists to communicate about the uncertainty range are people who don’t understand what science is all about.”

The bill is being heard by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Stopping EPA Overreach Act

The Stopping EPA Overreach Act, if passed, would prevent the federal government from using the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gas emissions — the basis of the Clean Power Plan and other EPA climate regulations.

The bill would overturn the EPA’s “endangerment finding,” a 2009 scientific determination that carbon dioxide pollution is a threat to human health because it causes climate change. The EPA released the finding after a 2007 Supreme Court decision allowing greenhouse gases to be regulated under the Clean Air Act....

Stripping greenhouse gases out of the Clean Air Act would do enormous damage to the prospects of regulating greenhouse gases under a future administration,” Wara said. “This is in part because the Clean Air Act is the only existing tool to do so.”

While the bill has more sponsorship than any climate- or EPA-related bill to pass the House so far — 120 co-sponsors, all of them Republican — legal experts do not expect the bill or any of the others to gain much traction in the Senate if it is passed in the House.

However, the Senate is considering its own limits on federal greenhouse gas regulation.

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., are among the sponsors of the Agency PAYGO for Greenhouse Gases Act. If a proposed greenhouse gas emissions regulation imposes costs to other federal agencies, the EPA must offset those costs with cuts to its own budget.

The bill is being heard in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Other bills that aim to hamstring federal environmental and climate protection, but still have a lot of traction to gain in Congress, include:

• Fracturing Regulations are Effective in State Hands Act. This bill, sponsored in the House by seven Republicans and in the Senate by 12 Republicans, would prevent the federal government from regulating any aspect of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, handing that responsibility to individual states.

Fracking is a method of injecting sand and chemicals to crack open rock formations deep underground to release oil and natural gas. Advances in fracking technology brought about the shale oil and gas boom of the past decade, helping to cause the 2014 crash in oil and gas prices and encouraging electric power plants to switch away from coal. The fracking process also pollutes the atmosphere with methane, a gas about 34 times as strong as carbon dioxide in warming the climate over the span of a century.

The Obama administration attempted to control air and climate pollution from fracking operations, but Trump overturned those efforts with an executive order in March.

• The Recognizing Protection of Motorsports Act, or “RPM Act.” This bipartisan bill exempts emissions from cars used in competition, such as stock car racing, from regulation under the Clean Air Act. The legislation has 112 sponsors in the House and a corresponding bill has 27 sponsors in the Senate. Both bills are being heard in committee.

• The Ozone Standards Implementation Act. This bipartisan Senate bill, sponsored by six senators from coal-dependent states, amends the Clean Air Act to delay implementation of 2015 ozone pollution standards implemented by the Obama administration. The bill requires the EPA’s Science Advisory Board to provide advice about how meeting the ozone pollution standards would have adverse public health and economic impacts. The bill remains in committee.

• H.R. 861. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., with six GOP co-sponsors, would terminate the EPA at the end of 2018. The bill is stalled in the House.

• The Wasteful EPA Programs Elimination Act. Sponsored by a single Texas Republican congressman, this bill would kill nearly all EPA climate programs, and terminate the EPA’s environmental justice programs and state grant programs. The bill is stalled in committee.

matt gaetz 2 12%

Republican senator calls on House to share Matt Gaetz ethics report

CNN Director: Network Hammering Gaetz ‘To Keep Hurting Him’ Because It’s ‘Great’ For Democrat Party

an 12 21

their sphincters will tighten': Matt Gaetz goes after the FBI

Gaetz accuses GOP’s Kelly Loeffler of bribing Trump with $50 million to push out her opponent

Gaetz accuses GOP’s Kelly Loeffler of bribing Trump with $50 million to push out her opponent

Matt Gaetz gets unanimously admonished by House Ethics Committee over conduct codeDavid Badash / The New Civil Rights Movement

Matt Gaetz gets unanimously admonished by House Ethics Committee over conduct code David Badash / The New Civil Rights Movement