A House Democrat is attempting an end-run around strategy to make the findings of the House Ethics Committee’s report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., public, as Republicans are blocking its release.
Rep. Sean Casten, D-Ill., moved on Wednesday to force a vote on his resolution calling on the panel to release its report. Since it is a privileged resolution, it forces leadership to act on the measure within two legislative days. Leadership could either stage a vote on the resolution or move to table it.
“The allegations against Matt Gaetz are serious. They are credible. The House Ethics Committee has spent years conducting a thorough investigation to get to the bottom of it. This information must be made available for the Senate to provide its constitutionally required advice and consent,” Casten said in a statement.
The move came hours after the committee finished a meeting without releasing its report. The release of the report has been opposed by Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who supports keeping the panel’s work private.
Gaetz resigned from Congress shortly after he was nominated to be the next attorney general. Many are interested in the panel’s findings since they are relevant to the Senate nomination process, but Johnson and others believe that the Ethics Committee’s jurisdiction over the Gaetz case ended with his resignation from the House.
They also say that releasing the report after the fact sets a bad precedent.
According to The Hill, the committee members met behind closed doors and voted on party lines on whether to keep the report private or release it. All Republicans voted for keeping it private and all Democrats voted for its becoming public.