Following the damning report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz from the House Ethics Committee, conservatives have pointed out three apparent falsehoods that appear in it. Republicans have blasted the report as a “political hit job” following the investigation that was led by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-CA) 117th Congress.
The Tribune previously reported on the House Ethics report, which concluded that “there is evidence that Representative Gaetz paid women to travel to New York and Washington, D.C. for commercial sex” while supposedly presenting “substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz used cocaine, ecstasy, and marijuana.” However, a lawyer representing Chris Dorworth, a friend of Gaetz’s, sent a letter to the House committee demanding corrections for several errors about his client.
U.S. Army Colonel and CEO of OurCountryOurChoice Douglas Macgregor wrote, “BOMBSHELL: Document reveals ethics committee lied 3 times on Matt Gaetz final report findings.” One person commented, “Becoming increasingly clear it was just a political hit job and the fact that Republicans were some of the ones responsible for it just demonstrates that the uniparty is alive and well in Washington.”
Another person said, “The ethics committee needs investigated. The Hammer of Justice needs to come down HARD!! We can’t let them get away with this or it will keep happening and nothing will change.” One user said, “This is not good in that we have many in our government who feels they can create harmful lies against others. This needs to be addressed, ruled upon and made consequences for those actions. Make public who lied.”
According to reports, the first error was that the reported claimed, “Mr. Dorworth believed that Representative Gaetz invited people to his home on the evening of July 15, 2017.” This date was a critical component of the accusations brought against Gatez. “No, Mr. Dorworth did not and has never believed that Representative Gaetz invited people to his house on July 15, 2017,” it read.
“To support your claim that Gaetz ‘invited’ people to my client’s home, you cite, in footnote 97, a gate log that doesn’t include Gaetz’s name on it and reference an affidavit and deposition transcripts that say nothing about Gaetz inviting anyone to my client’s home,” the letter continued, before adding, “Mr. Dorworth’s deposition transcript does not support this statement in your report, and it should be retracted immediately.”
Furthermore, a second allegedly incorrect claim of the reports stated that Dorworth was presented with incontrovertible evidence that he was in attendance the night of July 15, 2017. “Mr. Dorworth was deposed and confronted with cell phone records showing that he was in fact at his residence during the party,” the letter from Dorwoth’s legal counsel continued.
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“As an attendee at Mr. Dorworth’s deposition, I can assure you he was never ‘confronted with any cell phone records,” he added, while asserting the records “were deemed ‘Attorneys Eyes Only’ at the time of Mr. Dorworth’s deposition.” He further noted that he was “mortified that the Committee on Ethics would include such a ridiculous conclusion.”
Additionally, a third inaccuracy of the report suggested that Dorworth’s counsel had never responded to the requests for testimony in the House. “The Committee requested, through counsel, that Mr. Dorworth clarify his testimony regarding his whereabouts on the evening of July 15, 2017; his counsel did not respond,” before explaining that, being Dorworth’s legal representation, the lawyer had responded in September of this year.
Watch Sunny Hostin read out a legal note about Gaetz, gritting her teeth while doing so, here: