Breaking: Matt Gaetz says DOJ investigating him for sexual misconduct, claims extortion plot



Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz said Tuesday that he is under investigation by the federal government for sexual misconduct, but says the allegations against him are completely false and "rooted in an extortion effort" against his family.

What are the details?

Gaetz, 38, told Axios, "The allegations against me are as searing as they are false," adding, "I believe that there are people at the Department of Justice who are trying to criminalize my sexual conduct, you know when I was a single guy."

Gaetz told Axios that he was "absolutely" confident that none of the women he dated were underage.

The GOP congressman told the outlet during his 13-minute interview that the claims against him are "unclear," and that he has been told "very little."

Less than an hour before the Axios report, The New York Times reported that Gaetz "is being investigated by the Justice Department over whether he had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old and paid for her to travel with him, according to three people briefed on the matter."

The newspaper noted that "investigators are examining whether Mr. Gaetz violated federal sex trafficking laws."

Gaetz told Axios, ""I have definitely, in my single days, provided for women I've dated. You know, I've paid for flights, for hotel rooms. I've been, you know, generous as a partner. I think someone is trying to make that look criminal when it is not."

Following his comments to Axios, Gaetz explained on Twitter:

"Over the past several weeks my family and I have been victims of an organized criminal extortion involving a former DOJ official seeking $25 million while threatening to smear my name.

We have been cooperating with federal authorities in this matter and my father has even been wearing a wire at the FBI's direction to catch these criminals. The planted leak to the FBI tonight was intended to thwart that investigation.

No part of the allegations against me are true, and the people pushing these lies are targets of the ongoing extortion investigation. I demand the DOJ immediately release the tapes, made at their direction, which implicate their former colleague in crimes against me based on false allegations."

Gaetz's name had already been trending on Twitter prior to bombshell reports on the sexual misconduct and purported trafficking allegations, because Axios reported earlier in the day that Gaetz "privately told confidants he's seriously considering not seeking re-election and possibly leaving Congress early for a job at Newsmax."

This is a developing story....

Feds investigating NY Gov. Cuomo and administration over nursing home deaths amid claims of cover-up



The FBI and the Brooklyn U.S. attorney's office have launched investigations into New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) and his administration amid allegations that officials intentionally underreported nursing homes deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic in an effort to avoid political fallout.

What are the details?

The Times Union first reported the news Wednesday, citing a source who confirmed that the investigation by the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York "is apparently in its early stages and is focusing on the work of some of the senior members of the governor's [coronavirus] task force."

Members of that task force include the governor's secretary, Melissa DeRosa, who was caught on audio last week admitting to top Democratic leaders in New York that the administration hid the full data on nursing home fatalities during the Trump administration over fears that the president would call them out.

A spokesman for Cuomo dismissed the revelation as nothing new but confirmed it.

"As we publicly said, [the Department of Justice] has been looking into this for months," the spokesman said. "We have been cooperating with them and we will continue to."

According to The Daily Mail, Cuomo defended his administration earlier this week, saying, "The New York state (Department of Health) has always fully and publicly reported all COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes and hospitals."

"They have always been fully reported," he insisted. "I don't think there's anything to clear here. … There is nothing to investigate."

The outlet reported that "more than 15,000 people have died in New York state's nursing homes and long term care facilities from COVID-19, but as recently as last month, the state reported only 8,500 deaths."

What else?

Meanwhile, Cuomo continues to face heavy scrutiny after enjoying his role as a media darling and possible future Democratic presidential candidate earlier in the pandemic — when he wrote a book about leadership during the crisis and enjoyed lighthearted air time particularly on CNN where he was given multiple promotional interviews conducted by his own brother, Chris Cuomo.

But CNN said Wednesday that Chris Cuomo would no longer be allowed to use his "Prime Time" show to host his politician brother, and even fellow New York Democrats have condemned the governor over the nursing home scandal and demanded transparency.

Also on Wednesday, one of those Democrats, Assemblyman Ron Kim, told The New York Post — who broke the news of the original cover-up allegations — that Cuomo threatened him in the aftermath and warned the lawmaker, "You will be destroyed."

SEC investigating social media posts about GameStop in search for evidence of fraud: report



The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has deployed agents to investigate social media posts about GameStop and other companies that hit the news for wild stock rallies over the past few weeks, searching for evidence that fraud was committed, according to a new report.

What are the details?

According to Bloomberg, sources say "the scrutiny is being done in tandem with a review of trading data to asses whether such posts were part of a manipulative effort to drive up share prices," and "the regulator is specifically on the hunt for misinformation meant to improperly tilt the market."

The outlet reported:

The prevailing narrative is that Wall Street short-sellers were caught flatfooted over the past two weeks as retail traders banded together via Reddit message boards and bought up stocks that hedge funds were betting against. But some market participants, including famed short-seller Carson Block, have started to speculate that the short squeezes that drove GameStop, AMC and other stocks to exorbitant heights might have also involved professional investors who either took advantage of the Reddit-fueled frenzy or helped hype it.

Indeed, one influential Reddit user has already caught the eye of regulators. Keith Gill, 34, know as "Roaring Kitty" on some social media accounts and operates under the username "u/DeepFu*kingValue" on Reddit, is currently being probed by officials in the commonwealth of Massachusetts, according to The New York Times.

Gill is a registered securities broker who has hyped GameStop on various social media platforms through posts and videos. He recently left his former employer, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, giving the company notice on Jan. 21.

The Times noted:

Mr. Gill had not posted on his YouTube channel since Jan. 22, but he still posts on the Reddit WallStreetBets forum. On Wednesday, his account posted an image that put the value of his GameStop holdings at more than $8.6 million. The image also showed cash holdings of nearly $14 million.

Now, House Financial Services Committee Chair Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) wants to speak to Gill, too, at a hearing on the GameStop matter slated for Feb. 18.

Waters told Cheddar of Gill on Wednesday that he is on her "list to be present," adding, "I want him. I want him here. I want him here, I want absolutely to have RobinHood here, I even want to have GameStop here."

BREAKING -- @RepMaxineWaters tells me/@HenaDoba that she is calling on Keith Gill (aka u/DeepFu*kingValue on… https://t.co/FxevPiELBc
— j.d. durkin (@j.d. durkin)1612391089.0

What's the background?

Users on Reddit carried out an uprising of sorts against hedge funds last month, launching an online campaign to buy up shares of GameStop (and other struggling firms such as AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc.) in an effort that sent the stocks soaring and "squeezed" short sellers — costing big fish billions of dollars.

The situation sparked debate over financial regulations and whether the Reddit rebellion should be considered market manipulation. Meanwhile, popular stock market app RobinHood — which branded itself as an accessible tool for the retail investor—fueled outrage by restricting users from purchasing GameStop and other stocks as the prices continued upward.

Government investigators now want to get to the bottom of what happened, to find out what crimes — if any — were committed in the volatile affair that took Wall Street by storm.

FBI investigating threats against Georgia election officials: Report



The FBI and the Georgia Bureau of Investigations are investigating threats lodged against the state's top election officials according to a report, after leaders became targets of ridicule over the handling of the general election.

President Donald Trump continues to allege that widespread voting fraud and irregularities occurred in Georgia, even placing blame on fellow Republicans despite a recount confirming tallies that indicated Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won the state.

What are the details?

Georgia Deputy Secretary of State Jordan Fuchs told Forbes on Sunday that federal and state law enforcement agencies were investigating threats against Raffensperger and his team, but she did not provide further details. The GBI issued a statement confirming it was looking into alleged threats against the state's election officials.

Last week, Raffensperger told The Washington Post that he and his wife, Tricia, had received death threats while he was overseeing a second recount of the state's votes from the Nov. 3 election. The secretary of state said that one text message he received read, "You better not botch this recount. Your life depends on it."

Over the weekend, Georgia's voting system manager, Republican Gabriel Sterling, also said that he had been threatened and harassed.

"So this is fun," he tweeted, sarcastically. "multiple attempted hacks of my emails, police protection around my home, the threats. But all is well...following the the law, following the process...doing our jobs."

So this is fun...multiple attempted hacks of my emails, police protection around my home, the threats. But all is w… https://t.co/jMSNQDL0Kj
— Gabriel Sterling (@Gabriel Sterling)1606011811.0

The New York Post reported that "despite calling himself a 'proud' supporter of President Trump, Raffensperger has also found himself repeatedly under attack over the handling of the state's election process after declaring Joe Biden the victor after a hand recount."

President Trump has led the charge on blaming Raffensperger for his performance on the election oversight, and Republican Georgia Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue — both up for re-election in runoffs races slated for January — have called for the GOP secretary of state to resign.

Days ago, the president also attacked Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, another Republican and Trump supporter, claiming he and Raffensperger "refuse to let us look at signatures which would expose hundreds of thousands of illegal ballots."

...Why won’t they do it, and why are they so fast to certify a meaningless tally?
— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1605901114.0

Raffensperger pushes back

But Raffensperger refuted the president's claims, writing in a Washington Post op-ed that "in Georgia, signatures for absentee ballot voters are verified twice to ensure that each voter gets one vote — and only one vote."

He added:

The truth is that the people of Georgia — and across the country — should not have any remaining doubts about who was elected governor two years ago or who won the presidential election earlier this month. The presidential outcome was remarkably close, but the new paper-ballot system, the strong election security and integrity mechanisms in place, and the audit and hand recount should combine to put to rest any doubts about the final outcome.

Anything else?

Georgia's vote tallies will be counted a third time, with a second recount set to begin Tuesday morning at the request of the Trump campaign, the Associated Press reported.

The outlet noted that according to Sterling, "counties are to give public notice of when during that period they will be counting so monitors from political parties and any interested members of the public can be there to observe."

The election results, certified last week by Raffensperger, showed Biden winning by 12,670 votes out of about 5 million cast.

AG William Barr confirms ‘multiple criminal investigations’ to find Russia probe leakers are under way

In his first congressional appearance since the release of special counsel Robert Mueller's report on his investigation into Russian election interference, Attorney General William Barr told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that his department is actively looking for officials who made unauthorized leaks to the media.

"We have multiple criminal leak investigations under way," Barr said when asked by former committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, what his team is doing to address leaks to the media from sources within the FBI and Department of Justice throughout the course of the Russia investigation.

Barr, however, did not explain which leaks from the 22-month investigation are currently being investigated.

Grassley's question followed up on a letter he sent to Barr last week asking whether or not the attorney general was looking into "whether DOJ or FBI officials had unauthorized contacts with the media" during the course of the Russia investigation.

"Much of DOJ's work involves non-public, sensitive matters," a Department of Justice outline of the agency's confidentiality and media contacts policy states. "Disseminating non-public, sensitive information about DOJ matters could violate federal laws, employee non-disclosure agreements, and individual privacy rights; put a witness or law enforcement officer in danger; jeopardize an investigation or case; prejudice the rights of a defendant; or unfairly damage the reputation of a person."

"DOJ personnel should presume that non-public, sensitive information obtained in connection with work is protected from disclosure, except as needed to fulfill official duties of DOJ personnel, and as allowed by court order, statutory or regulatory prescription, or case law and rules governing criminal and civil discovery," the DOJ document continues.

In April, House Intelligence ranking member Devin Nunes, R-Calif., sent a letter to Barr outlining eight criminal referrals in relation to the Russian interference investigation, which included "global leaks" among several other allegations.

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