Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz says he will not cooperate with a House Ethics Committee investigation of a cryptic tweet he posted in February about Michael Cohen, the former Trump lawyer.
The committee revealed in a letter released on Friday that it opened an investigation of Gaetz’s tweet on March 13, after receiving a complaint from an unidentified member of Congress. Gaetz, a Republican ally of President Donald Trump’s, ignored the committee’s request for a response on May 13.
In a Feb. 26 tweet that tagged Cohen, Gaetz asked the former Trump fixer whether “your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends?”
“Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if she’ll remain faithful when you’re in prison. She’s about to learn a lot…,” he added.
Cohen, who is serving a three-year prison sentence, testified the next day before the House Judiciary and House Oversight & Reform Committees about his 10-year stint working for Trump. He called Trump a “racist” and accused the former real estate mogul of unethical business and political practices. (RELATED: Matt Gaetz Threatens Michael Cohen With Dirt On Alleged ‘Girlfriends’)
Michael Cohen, the former personal attorney to President Donald Trump, speaks to the media before departing his Manhattan apartment for prison on May 06, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
The Ethics investigation centers on “allegations that Representative Gaetz sought to threaten, intimidate, harass, or otherwise improperly influence” Cohen prior to his testimony, the letter says.
Gaetz later apologized for the tweet. The allegations were not brought up in Cohen’s congressional hearing the next day.
Gaetz said in response to the Ethics panel’s letter that he still has no plans to cooperate with the investigation.
“If members of Congress want to spend their time psychoanalyzing my tweets, it’s certainly their prerogative,” he told Politico.
“I won’t be joining them in the endeavor. Too busy.”
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.