House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told reporters on Friday that he does not think the House Ethics Committee should release its report on its investigation into former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.).
He says that it isn’t House tradition to issue reports on members after they leave Congress.
“I’m going to strongly request that the Ethics Committee not issue the report, because that is not the way we do things in the House,” Johnson told reporters at the Capitol. “I think it’s a terrible breach of protocol and tradition and the spirit of the rule.”
On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee demanded the House Ethics Committee release the documents and records related to its probe, so the Senate can review all the information necessary to consider Gaetz’s nomination for U.S. Attorney General.
Gaetz was the center of a probe into sex trafficking allegations but resigned from Congress on Wednesday, following his nomination. His departure means that the committee’s investigation ends and the report on its probe will not be issued. Gaetz has long denied the accusations.
The Senate Judiciary Committee, led by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill), said that the timing of Gaetz’s resignation “raises serious questions” about the House’s report and findings.
“We cannot allow this critical information from a bipartisan investigation into longstanding public allegations to be hidden from the American people, given that it is directly relevant to the question of whether Mr. Gaetz is qualified and fit to be the next Attorney General of the United States,” senators wrote in a letter to the House Ethics Committee.
However, Johnson indicated on Wednesday that he doesn’t believe the timing of his resignation is suspicious.
“I think that happened organically,” Johnson told reporters. “I think President Trump and Matt Gaetz have had a close relationship for a long time. He respects his legal acumen, and I think, I think they decided that together. It has to do more with Trump’s administration’s timing than anything else.”
The House Ethics Committee was scheduled to meet this week to vote on releasing the report.
The panel’s probe into Gaetz began in April 2021, when it announced that it was made aware of the public allegations against him. This includes alleged sexual misconduct and possible illicit drug use, the sharing of inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, and the misuse of state identification records. The House Ethics Committee was also reviewing allegations that Gaetz may have violated House rules and other codes of conduct, such as accepting bribes.
In June 2024, the committee announced that it determined that some of the allegations merited continued review. At that time, it also revealed that it identified additional allegations, including that Gaetz sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.
The committee noted that “the mere fact of an investigation into these allegations does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred.”
President-elect Donald Trump announced this week his intent to nominate Gaetz for the position of the nation’s top law enforcement officer, describing him as a “deeply gifted” and “tenacious” lawyer.
One of the challenges now posed to incoming Senate GOP leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is making sure that Trump’s nominees are successfully voted through, including Gaetz. Thune vowed not to allow the Democrats to obstruct or block Trump and the will of the American people through the confirmation process.
As part of its role to ensure checks and balances in the government, the Senate must participate in confirming or rejecting high-level officials, such as Cabinet positions, judges, and ambassadors. While this process is outlined in the U.S. Constitution to ensure that presidents don’t have a unilateral rule, there’s also a clause that allows presidents to fill out their administrations while the Senate is in recess. Trump has publicly demanded that Republican leaders in the upper chamber agree to allow recess appointments.
Thune pledged to make sure Trump’s team is installed as quickly as possible, suggesting it would consider recess appointments if the Democrats present challenges in the Senate confirmation process.
“All options are on the table, including recess appointments,” Thune said on Thursday. “Hopefully it doesn’t get to that, but we’ll find out fairly quickly whether the Democrats want to play ball or not.”