CNN
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House Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday that he doesn’t believe the House Ethics Committee’s report on allegations related to Matt Gaetz should be made public, and that he “strongly urges the Ethics Committee not to issue the report.” I intend to do so.”
Johnson asked the Ethics Committee on Thursday, shortly after returning from a visit with President-elect Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, to withhold the report, and the Ethics Committee Chairman, Republican Michael・He said he plans to speak with Congressman Guest. Gates, who resigned from Congress this week after President Trump announced his intention to nominate him as attorney general, has repeatedly denied wrongdoing.
“I’m going to urge the Ethics Committee not to issue a report, because that’s not the way we operate in the House of Commons. I think that would set a terrible precedent,” Johnson told reporters on Friday. The comments are a significant move by House Republican leaders to block the release of the report from the investigative agency, which is supposed to be independent of the Speaker’s office.
Johnson’s comments also mark a reversal from Thursday, when he said “speakers have no stake in what happens with ethics.” There are many important reasons for that. ”
With Gaetz’s resignation, the investigation is closed because the committee has jurisdiction only when a member is a member of Congress. Lawmakers have been debating whether the committee still has the authority to release the report even if Gaetz is no longer a lawmaker.
After saying he would ask the Ethics Commission not to publish the report, Johnson again spoke to reporters on Friday, declining to say whether he had spoken to Trump about the issue, but not saying whether the Ethics Commission would release the report. I tried to clarify my position on not doing so.
“I have not told anyone about what I said to Trump,” Johnson said, stressing that the chairman’s office “has no involvement or understanding” of the ethics committee’s internal affairs.
“Let me say this: I believe it is very important to maintain the House’s tradition of not issuing ethics reports on people who are no longer members,” Johnson said. “I think that would open up Pandora’s box. It’s a very important rule to follow. It’s broken once or twice, but it’s not supposed to break.”
Mr Johnson continued: “My point is, if someone is no longer a member of Congress, we are not in the business of investigating and issuing reports on people who are not part of this body. If you think about it, the jurisdiction of the House Ethics Committee rests with sitting members.I think this makes sense to everyone.”
A spokesperson for the Senate Judiciary Committee denied Johnson’s comments in a statement to CNN.
“There is long-standing precedent for members of Congress, whether in the House or Senate, to release ethics investigation materials after they have resigned, especially when nominated to be our nation’s top law enforcement officer,” the former congressman said. , should not be able to recuse himself from an ethics investigation involving serious allegations of misconduct,” said Josh Sorbet, a spokesman for Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin. A Democrat who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.
“There is bipartisan support for the Senate Judiciary Committee to have access to this information. Chairman Durbin is committed to ensuring that committee members fulfill their constitutional duty of advice and consent regarding this highly problematic nominee. We will continue to pursue this issue.”
The ethics committee was scheduled to meet this week to vote on releasing a report that would address numerous allegations about Gates, according to people familiar with the discussions. But Republicans on the committee canceled a meeting with Democrats scheduled for Friday after meeting behind closed doors Thursday night.
The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday ordered the House Ethics Committee to “immediately preserve and transmit all relevant documents regarding Mr. Gaetz, including the report,” as the Senate prepares to scrutinize the nomination in a contentious confirmation process. He asked them to do so.
“The Senate certainly had the right to request (the Gaetz report). I can’t speak to our internal deliberations, but I think the information they requested was completely reasonable for them to have. And in fact, I think it’s essential that they have that kind of information before they make a decision about something of this magnitude,” said Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey, who serves on the Ethics Committee. .
The Ethics Committee said in June that Gates had “engaged in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, accepted inappropriate gifts, granted special privileges and benefits to individuals with whom he had personal relationships, and obstructed the government.” The company announced that it is investigating the suspicion that “there may have been an attempt to do so.” Investigate his actions. ”
At the time, the committee said Gaetz “categorically denied all allegations before the committee.”
Democrats have begun to openly question the timing of Gaetz’s resignation and whether it has anything to do with the impending release of the report.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who served on the Ethics Committee for seven years, told reporters: “Some people wonder if the timing is questionable because the committee was hours away from releasing its report.” I guess so,” he said. And I don’t know what the committee’s tradition is that they can’t let anyone exploit the timing of the report because a lot of work goes into the report. ”
Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin told CNN, “Anyone can become the highest law enforcement officer in the United States if they have a good House Ethics Committee investigative report that is not made public related to potential misconduct.” It goes against that idea,” he said.
Asked whether the public has a right to know more about the allegations now that Trump has chosen Gaetz as attorney general, Johnson said, “House rules state that former members are outside the jurisdiction of ethics.” “Yes,” he answered. So I don’t think it matters. ”
CNN’s Lauren Fox contributed to this report.
