Rep. Matt Gaetz defends himself in op-ed, says he's 'not a monk' but 'certainly not a criminal'



Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz has come out swinging back amid the Department of Justice's investigation into allegations that the congressman engaged in sex trafficking of a minor, penning an op-ed saying that he is "not a monk" but also "certainly not a criminal."

What are the details?

In a piece published in The Washington Examiner on Monday titled, "The swamp is out to drown me with false charges, but I'm not giving up," Gaetz wrote, "Let me first remind everyone that I am a representative in Congress, not a monk, and certainly not a criminal."

"Nancy Pelosi once defended President Bill Clinton after he got an intern to fellate him in the Oval Office," he continued. "But when it comes to the allegation that I, a grown man, paid for an adult girlfriend's expenses? Well, consider that a bridge too far for the power-hungry hypocrites."

The congressman went on to write, "I want to be clear about something as we process the leaks and lies from the past week. To this point, there are exactly zero credible (or even non-credible) accusers willing to come forward by name and state on the public record that I behaved improperly toward them, in the manner by which Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo has ten accusers."

Gaetz predicted in his op-ed that "anti-Trump cheerleaders such as Meghan McCain" and others would call on him to resign. Sure enough, McCain did so Monday on "The View."

He further noted that he "defended Rep. Katie Hill's 'throuple' when her own Democratic colleagues wouldn't." Also on Monday, Vanity Fair published an op-ed by Hill where she acknowledged that Gaetz was one of the few people who defended her after nude photos of her were leaked online, but said now he is "accused of doing just that" and should resign "immediately" if any of the allegations are true.

Katie Hill resigned after she was hit with an ethics investigation over allegations that she was sleeping with one of her legislative staffers, which violates House rules that were implemented after the #MeToo movement.

In his op-ed, Gaetz continued to deny any wrongdoing and reiterated — as he has since the initial allegation that he slept with a 17-year-old and subsequent claims that he paid for drug-fueled hotel romps — that he is "absolutely not resigning." He vehemently denies the claims.

Anything else?

Gaetz's congressional office also held a news conference Monday where his former military director, Nathan Nelson, expressed his doubts that the Justice Department's investigation into Gaetz has any merit.

Nelson left Gaetz's office in late October of last year, The New York Post reported, in what he called a "planned departure" in order to support "the military missions in a private capacity" in the Florida Panhandle.

Nelson explained that the FBI showed up at his home and interviewed him shortly after the allegations against Gaetz hit the news, and agents claimed media sources had contacted them asserting that Nelson left Gaetz's office because of the accusations surrounding the congressman.

The former Gaetz staffer told the media, "I'm here this morning to state that nothing could be further from the truth. Neither I nor any other member of Congressman Gaetz's staff had any knowledge of illegal activities."

He added, "This baseless claim against me leaves me further convinced that the allegations against Congressman Gaetz are likewise fabricated and merely an attempt to discredit a very vocal conservative."

'I'm not making new law. I'm eliminating bad policy': Biden defends high number of executive orders



President Joe Biden made a point Tuesday to defend the breakneck flurry of executive orders he has churned out since taking office nearly two weeks ago, asserting, "I'm not making new law. I'm eliminating bad policy."

What are the details?

Biden signed three executive orders on immigration issues Tuesday in the Oval Office, telling the media:

"I want to make it clear: There's a lot a talk with good reason about the number of executive orders that I have signed. I'm not making new law. I'm eliminating bad policy. What I'm doing is taking on issues that 99% of them that the president — the last president of the United States — issued executive orders I thought were very counterproductive to our security, counterproductive to who we are as a country. Particularly in the area of immigration. This is about how America is safer, stronger, more prosperous when we have a fair, orderly, and humane legal immigration system."
President Biden: "There's a lot of talk, with good reason, about the number of executive orders that I have signed.… https://t.co/1wNwNivGXR
— CSPAN (@CSPAN)1612306194.0

Fox News reported that the immigration executive orders were "part of a sweeping push by Biden to roll back" policies put in place by former President Donald Trump, who took heat for imposing aggressive measures regarding immigration and border security.

Biden added Tuesday, "We are going to work to undo the moral and national shame of the previous administration that literally, not figuratively, ripped children from the arms of their families ... with no plan, none whatsoever to reunify the children who are still in custody and their parents."

According to The Washington Post:

Although officials described in broad terms their intent to repudiate the previous administration's policies, they acknowledged that some of Trump's border control measures will remain in place for the time being, in one sign of their concern about a new migration wave building in the middle of the pandemic.

While campaigning ahead of the Nov. 3 election, Biden argued that circumventing Congress through executive orders was no way to legislate, and likened such actions to those of "a dictator." But by the end of his first week in office, he signed an eye-popping number of orders in comparison to his last eight predecessors.

Biden signed 24 executive orders over his first seven days in the White House, far more than President Barack Obama (5), President Trump (4), President Bill Clinton (2), President George H.W. Bush (1), and President Jimmy Carter (1). Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush did not sign any executive orders in their first week of office. He also signed 37 presidential actions in his first week in power.