Rep. Matt Gaetz declares he's "not going anywhere" amid sex trafficking probe
10 April 2021
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) doubled down Friday night, saying he's not "going anywhere," and vowing, "I have not yet begun to fight," amid a federal investigation into sex trafficking allegations.
What he's saying: “I’m built for the battle, and I’m not going anywhere,” Gaetz, who denies the allegations, said at the Trump National Doral Miami resort, where the former president is hosting the “Save America Summit” this weekend.
- Gaetz has not been charged with any crimes and has repeatedly denied allegations of being sexually involved with a 17-year-old and claims that he shared naked images of women with other Congress members.
- He told Axios in an interview last month that the investigation is "rooted in an extortion effort against my family for $25 million."
- “The smears against me range from distortions of my personal life, to wild — and I mean wild — conspiracy theories," Gaetz said Friday.
- "I won’t be intimidated by the lying media, and I won’t be extorted by a former DOJ official and the crooks he is working with. The truth will prevail,” he added, speaking to The Women for America First group.
The big picture: The House Ethics Committee announced earlier Friday it has launched a probe into the Florida congressman.
- The panel said it is aware of allegations that Gaetz "may have engaged in sexual misconduct and/or illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift."
Go deeper:GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger calls for Rep. Matt Gaetz to resign
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.