Florida congressman Matt Gaetz is reportedly being investigated for a potential obstruction of justice violation because of a phone call between Gaetz and a witness in the federal sex trafficking investigation he’s embroiled in. According to sources who talked to Politico, the embattled lawmaker was talking to a woman he had met through his former friend, Seminole County tax collector Joel Greenberg. Greenberg pleaded guilty last month to various crimes related to the sex crimes probe, and reportedly cut a deal to cooperate with prosecutors.
The questions about obstruction come from a phone call the witness had with Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend.
Another complication for the congressman? The ex-girlfriend who was on that call has reportedly agreed to cooperate with the feds in their investigation.
Gaetz has denied doing anything wrong as his legal problems grow.
The concerns over the sex trafficking probe, which include allegations that he and Greenberg had sex with a 17 year-old girl, have made him a virtual pariah in Congress. Even allies such as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former president Trump, whom Gaetz continues to defend relentlessly, has kept him at arm’s length in recent weeks.
Meanwhile, Gaetz continues to have a seat on the House Judiciary Committee, despite his being under federal investigation by the very department the committee supervises. That does not sit well with Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu.