House scuttles Democrats’ attempt to force release of Gaetz ethics report

The House on Thursday shut down two Democrats’ attempts to force the House Ethics Committee to release its report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz, instead letting the panel decide the matter.

Democratic Reps. Sean Casten of Illinois and Steve Cohen of Tennessee both introduced dueling privileged resolutions that required House Speaker Mike Johnson to put the measures on the House floor for a vote, repeating a move that both lawmakers made before Congress left Washington for Thanksgiving.

Their measures failed 206-198 and 204-198, respectively, with one Republican, Rep. Tom McClintock of California, voting with all Democrats against killing the measures. Every Democrat on the ethics panel also voted against killing the resolutions.

Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, and Rep. Michael Guest, Mississippi Republican and the ethics panel chairman, previously argued that because Mr. Gaetz resigned from the House after being tapped by President-elect Donald Trump last month to be attorney general, the panel no longer had jurisdiction over him.

They also contended that precedent was on their side in not releasing the report, arguing that the panel does not release reports on members who leave Congress before investigations against them end.

Mr. Gaetz’s nomination to lead the Justice Department put a spotlight on the long-simmering report, with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in both chambers calling for its release, or at the very least, shared with the Senate Judiciary Committee.

But his subsequent withdrawal from consideration for the post put into question whether the push to release the report died with his nomination.

The ethics investigation into Mr. Gaetz began in 2021 over allegations that he engaged in sexual misconduct with a minor, illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and accepted a bribe, improper gratuity or impermissible gift.

That inquiry took a backseat when the Justice Department opened its own two-year sex-trafficking probe, though it concluded with no charges against the Florida lawmaker.

The panel’s investigation continued after the Justice Department’s ended, this time looking into some of those charges, including underage sex and graft, plus new ones of obstructing government investigations.

Mr. Casten’s resolution listed instances throughout the last three decades where the panel has released reports on lawmakers after they resigned, in an attempt to poke holes in Mr. Johnson’s and Mr. Guest’s precedent argument.

His resolution also would have required that the panel release the latest draft of its report, whether it’s finished or not, and a “summary of its findings” to the public that includes “any conclusions, draft reports, recommendations, attachments, exhibits and accompanying materials, with such redactions as may be necessary and appropriate to protect sensitive information, including witness identities, related to its investigation into allegations” against Mr. Gaetz.

Mr. Cohen’s resolution similarly called for the report to be released publicly, and also would have required the panel to “preserve all documents and investigative materials” related to its probe of Mr. Gaetz.

The full House vote came after the Ethics Committee met earlier Thursday for a closed-door meeting, but made no progress on whether to release its report.

The committee said in a statement that members were “continuing to discuss the matter” after hours of back and forth.  

“There will be no further statements other than in accordance with Committee and House Rules,” the statement read.

The top-ranking Democrat on the panel, Rep. Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, did not attend the meeting, though it’s unclear whether her absence halted Democratic efforts to release the report.

Her absence followed a dispute between her and Mr. Guest on the characterization of their meeting last month. Like last time, members of the panel walked out of the meeting refusing to comment on what happened behind closed doors, while others were stone silent.