Tag: Sex Scandals

Categories
GOP Ron DeSantis

DeSantis Allegedly Attended Party With Underage Girls And Alcohol While Teaching At High School

Shortly after he graduated from college and prior to attending law school, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis took a job as a history teacher at the Darlington School in Rome, Georgia. His hiring was announced in a 2001 newsletter published by the school:

Ron DeSantis is joining the Upper School history department. DeSantis earned bachelor’s degrees in history and political science from Yale University, New Haven, Conn. While at Yale, he worked for the political science department, the athletic department, and the university sports camp. He has work experience with the Sonic Corporation and the office of Senator Connie Mack.

But it turns out that DeSantis was more than just a teacher while at Darlington, according to Hill Reporter:

His students would have been high school co-eds, teenagers, some of whom would have been living on-campus. According to our whistleblower, he had a reputation among students for being a young “hot teacher” who girls loved, and the girls in the photo are believed to have graduated in 2002, making them seniors at the time.

The photo shows a person purported to be DeSantis, in a group embrace with several young girls, one of whom is holding what appears to be a glass beer bottle. The source who provided the photo says that it was taken prior to graduation — meaning the young girls would still have been DeSantis’ responsibility at the time. It is not clear whether any of them were legal adults, though they would have been too young to purchase alcohol.

Of course, DeSantis isn’t the only Florida politician who seems to have an affinity for young girls. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is current the subject of a wide-ranging federal investigation that reportedly involves the congressman taking underage girls across state lines and paying them, which is sexual trafficking of a minor. And that investigation could also wind up ensnaring the governor, who is up for reelection next year:

Still, the investigation may be moving uncomfortably close to the governor’s office. Besides Gaetz himself, the influential Florida political figures under federal scrutiny include Jason Pirozzolo, a hand surgeon and DeSantis campaign donor, and DeSantis’ political appointee Halsey Beshears, the state’s former top business regulator.

DeSantis has yet to respond to the photo or other revelations from Hill Reporter.

Categories
Congress Crime Sex Scandals

Matt Gaetz’s Interview With A Florida TV Station Has Made His Legal Situation Much Worse

The best thing anyone who is under investigation for a federal crime can do is keep their head down and mouth shut, especially if they’re facing the prospect of spending the rest of their life in prison.

So it’s safe to say that attorneys for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) are probably pulling out their hair after the Florida congressman gave an extensive interview to Pensacola television station WEAR in which he commented on the accusations of sexual trafficking that have been leveled against him.

Regarding a report that he had traveled to the Bahamas with a lobbyist and his connections to Jeffrey Greenberg, the former Florida tax collector who has pled guilty to sex trafficking and other felonies, Gaetz remarked:

“I’ve never been to the Bahamas with a lobbyist. That’s not accurate. I was on a trip as many Floridians do to go to the Bahamas. Nothing about that’s criminal. I didn’t do anything criminal while I was there.”
“As for the optics going to a tax collectors office, I’ve never used the tax collectors office in Seminole County or anywhere else for anything improper. I believe there may have been a time where Greenberg swung by the office but it certainly didn’t have anything to do with any bad acts on my part.”

Gaetz also insisted that he’s no longer friends with Greenberg, who is cooperating with prosecutors investigating the congressman:

“When I became aware of some of Greenberg’s misdeeds, I deeply regretted my friendship with him,” he explained. “I do believe that it’s fair for the people of northwest Florida to judge me based on the associations that I’ve had. And I deeply regret my association with Joel Greenberg politically, socially and otherwise.
“But when folks evaluate that, I hope they evaluate it alongside the good work that I’ve done to advance our military mission, to fight for our values and to be a representative in Congress who never fears the battle and is always in the arena for these great folks.”

Every word that Gaetz said during that interview can now be used against him in a court of law to impeach his credibility and prove that he has absolutely no regrets about what he’s allegedly done with underage girls.

Matt Gaetz just made it even more certain that he’s going to be charged, convicted, and sent away for a very long time.

 

Categories
Congress Crime Sex Scandals

Florida Bar Suspends Matt Gaetz From Practicing Law

 

The bad news just keeps rolling in for embattled Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who is reportedly under investigation for sexually trafficking underage girls.

The Daily Beast reports that the Florida Bar Association has suspended Gatez from practicing law in his home state:

As of Wednesday, Gaetz had not paid the fees he owes to The Florida Bar, which regulates lawyers there, prompting the organization to deem him “delinquent” and “not eligible to practice law in Florida.”

As you might expect, rather than be forthright about not paying the required money, Joel Valdez, a spokesperson for Gaetz tried to spin the latest humiliation for the congressman:

“Congressman Gaetz is no longer actively engaged in the practice of law. He is focused on representing his constituents in Congress, not the courtroom.”

However, attorneys who spoke to Daily Beast reporter Jose Pagliery said that sounds like a load of bull:

That explanation may sound reasonable enough. But four attorneys who spoke to The Daily Beast noted that it is extremely rare for lawyers to do this. Instead, attorneys taking a step back from their legal duties normally pay a smaller $175 fee to remain “inactive” but still a “member in good standing.

“He clearly doesn’t take his law license very seriously when he doesn’t take the time to pay the $265 dues,” said Daniel Uhlfelder, a Santa Rosa Beach attorney who lives in Gaetz’s district. “He’s not a serious lawyer. He’s not a serious congressman. He’s not a serious person. This is one small but symbolic example of that.”

The real reason Gaetz isn’t paying his dues to the Bar Association is probably so he can avoid having his law license revoked as more evidence continues to come to light regarding his alleged sexual misconduct with minors, according to Cris Dosev, a real estate developer who ran against Gaetz in the GOP primary last year:

“It might be a calculated move. I think he’s preemptively trying to remove a level of scrutiny from the Bar.”

This has been the proverbial “week from hell” for Gaetz, with his former “wingman,” Seminole County, Florida, tax collector Joel Greenberg receiving a four month delay in his sentencing as he continues to cooperate with federal prosecutors as they investigate whether or not the congressman sexually exploited underage girls.

If convicted of sexually trafficking minors across state lines, Gaetz could be sentenced to life in prison.

Categories
Congress Social Media Uncategorized WTF?!

Matt Gaetz Creeps Out The Internet By Posting A Photo On Twitter Of His Fiancé Asleep

What in the hell is wrong with Matt Gaetz?

The Florida Republican is already under investigation for allegedly carrying an underage girl across state lines and paying her to have sex with him, yet he continues to post things on social media that are both ill-advised and downright creepy.

For example, the congressman thought he’d share with the entire internet a photo of his fiancé, Ginger Luckey, asleep next to him:

Is that bizarre, or what? First of all, he didn’t get her consent to take or post the photo, and second, why in the hell would anyone put that on Twitter for the world to see?

It didn’t take long before Gaetz got slapped down for what he’d done:

 

Categories
Congress Crime GOP Sex Scandals

Report: Federal Prosecutors Will Indict Matt Gaetz ‘In The Next Few Weeks’

It’s been a little while since we got any updates on what’s going on with the case against Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who is suspected of sexually trafficking an underage girl and paying her for sexual favors via Venmo, which left a record of those transactions that prosecutors can easily follow.

 

Trump’s longtime “wingman,” Joel Greenberg pled guilty to six federal charges — including sex trafficking of a child, production of a false identification document, aggravated identity theft, wire fraud, stalking, and conspiracy — on May 17 and is now cooperating with federal investigators in the case against Gaetz.

So when can we expect to see Gaetz doing the perp walk in handcuffs as the FBI carries him away?

New information from former New York Assistant Attorney General Tristan Snell suggests that an indictment with Gaetz’s name on it is coming very soon — within “the next few weeks” — and has taken so long because the case against him is so voluminous.

Snell spoke with sources close to the Gaetz investigation and shared what he learned on Twitter, revealing that the “US Attorney’s Office is taking very strong positions with Gaetz and his counsel and is ready to indict Gaetz and others.”

Here’s the full tweet thread Snell posted earlier today:

One of the most interesting tidbits of new information from Snell is the mention he made of prosecutors possibly trying to flip Gaetz and get him to cooperate with their investigation. Who could be a bigger fish than the congressman? Some of the top officeholders in Florida? If so, who might those officials be? Just the thought must be giving some of them sleepless nights.

For now, we continue to wait for the Gaetz saga to play itself out. But it certainly sounds like things are progressing and we won’t be waiting much longer.