A Republican senator on Sunday called for the House of Representatives to share its report into alleged sexual misconduct with a 17-year-old girl by Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general.
Speaking on NBC News Meet the Press on Sunday, Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin told the network’s Kristen Welker that the Senate should “absolutely” have access to the House Ethics Committee’s findings, adding that whether the report should be released to the public would “be a part of the negotiations.”
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The committee spent years probing allegations against Gaetz—which also include claims of illicit drug use. The Department of Justice separately investigated Gaetz over sex trafficking allegations involving the adolescent girl, but ultimately chose not to file charges. Gaetz denies any wrongdoing.
The House investigation was halted after Gaetz’s abrupt resignation from Congress last Wednesday following his nomination as attorney general.
Mullin has made little secret of his animosity for Gaetz in the past, having publicly aired rumors circulating about the Florida congressman showing fellow representatives on the House floor naked images of the women he had slept with. Gaetz denied the claims.
“There’s no question that Matt Gaetz and I have had our differences, and that’s – that’s no secret,” Mullin said during his Sunday interview. “Moving forward, I do respect President Trump’s right to appoint these individuals, but underneath Article 2, Section 2, Congress has to advise and consent, and Matt Gaetz is going to get the same scrutiny as every other individual, and I’m going to give him a fair shot, just like every other individual.”
“I’ve got to set my personal situation with Matt to the side and look at the facts. If he’s qualified, he’s qualified,” Mullin went on, adding he was not in fact aware that Gaetz had even passed the bar until after news of his nomination broke.
Mullin is himself, however, no stranger to controversy either.
A MAGA loyalist in his own right, he has staunchly defended perpetrators of the Jan 6. Capitol Riots, as well as sparking ridicule for bating union leaders into brawls and suggesting Congress ought to bring back duels and canings as a means of settling disputes.
