A chief witness and onetime friend of Representative Matt Gaetzis cooperating in an unfolding House Ethics Committee investigation into whether the Florida politician had sex with an underage girl while in Congress, a lawyer for the witness said Friday.
Fritz Scheller, who represents Joel Greenberg, said that he had provided documents to the committee and that Greenberg “has and will cooperate with any congressional request,” The New York Timesreported.
In May of 2021, Greenberg pled guilty to several charges, including sex trafficking, and is currently in his second year of an 11-year sentence. The former Florida tax collector was able to secure a more lenient punishment by agreeing to cooperate with a Justice Department investigation into Gaetz. In February of 2023, the department announced that it was closing the investigation without charging the Florida Representative with any crimes.
At the time of Greenberg’s December 2022 sentencing, Scheller said he was “disappointed” that the department hadn’t charged anyone else, and, though he didn’t name Gaetz, urged prosecutors to “pursue others,” including more “higher-level” figures, CNN reported. When the DOJ ultimately declined to prosecute Gaetz, Scheller claimed that the move was evidence of “two systems of justice,” adding, “Why prosecute the privileged when defendants of limited culpability and means provide an easier target?”
[…]
The House committee originally opened the investigation into whether Gaetz “may have engaged in sexual misconduct and/or illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift” in 2021, when Democrats controlled Congress.
But the ethics inquiry remained largely dormant until it was revived last year under GOP control.
The committee began reaching out to witnesses in July, but it appeared sidetracked by its investigation into disgraced former New York Representative George Santos. The committee asked to interview a witness soon after it released a bombshell report on Santos, signaling that it was beginning to turn its attention back to Gaetz. More recent reporting from CNN suggests that the inquiry is starting to look into possible sex crimes.
So far, Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing. In private communications reported by The Daily Beast in late January, he claimed that his push to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy was driven by a desire to retaliate against the California Representative, whom Gaetz blamed for the ethics probe. On Friday, McCarthy told a media gaggle that the Florida congressman was afraid of the inquiry. “In the end, Gaetz would have a hard time being a member of Congress with staying out of jail too,” he said.
Trump’s been channeling Hitler so I guess this is just par for the course. It’s still startling:
Anthony D’Esposito, a congressman from New York, posted a picture on X last week of an undocumented immigrant flashing two middle fingers after being arraigned for allegedly assaulting two NYPD officers. “We feel the same way about you,” D’Esposito wrote. “Holla at the cartels and have them escort you back.” But Republican Congressman Mike Collins took it a step further: “Or we could buy him a ticket on Pinochet Air for a free helicopter ride back.” His post was flagged as violent speech, but it was allowed to stand on the grounds that “it may be in the public’s interest for the Post to remain accessible.”
Collins probably considers his statement a joke intended to communicate his views of migrants, and it is best not to overreact to behavior that is designed to provoke. But his post also reflects the mainstreaming of authoritarianism in the GOP. Since at least 2016, members of the Proud Boys—the extremist group that Trump told to “stand back and stand by” in the event he lost the 2020 election—have worn shirts with slogans like “Pinochet did nothing wrong” or “Pinochet’s Helicopter Rides.” Now a Republican in Congress is repeating them.
During Augusto Pinochet’s rule in Chile, more than 1,000 people were “disappeared”: abducted by the state, never to be seen by their families again. More than a hundred of those were drugged, hooded, and tossed from helicopters to sink into the ocean. Given the debate about whether Trump and his movement are fascist—a debate Trump has fueled by describing immigrants as “poisoning the blood” of the country and promising that he would be a dictator on “day one” who would “root out the Communists, Marxists, fascists, and the radical left thugs that live like vermin”—you might expect comparisons to Pinochet to come from his critics. That they come from admirers instead reflects the unsettling and bizarre ways that Trump is seen by his supporters (as Pinochet was by his) as the savior of Western, Christian civilization against its enemies from within.
I’ve heard some of the fringe MAGAs talking about the “helicopter” option but I didn’t realize that elected Republicans were doing it too. Like I said: psychos.
Some GOP Senators behave responsibly today. Go figure:
Donald Trump spent the weekend telling senators they should not pass more unconditional U.S. foreign aid. More than a dozen Republicans ignored him Sunday, moving forward on a bill to send $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
The Senate voted 67-27 to advance the foreign aid supplemental spending bill that doesn’t include border provisions, moving it another step closer to passage. That still isn’t guaranteed, as leaders haven’t yet reached an agreement on GOP-demanded border amendments.
The package faces some resistance from Republicans, who say they won’t back further aid to Ukraine unless it’s amended to include border policy changes. Last week, Republicans blocked a bipartisan border-foreign aid package that was negotiated for months, arguing it didn’t go far enough to limit migration. Consideration of border amendments would require unanimous consent from senators, which is still elusive.
“From this point forward, are you listening U.S. Senate (?),” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “No money in the form of foreign aid should be given to any country unless it is done as a loan, not just a giveaway.”
Trump had helped tank the bipartisan border-foreign aid bill, calling for Republicans to block that legislation as well. This time, many GOP senators didn’t seem concerned with his opposition.
“I think that it’s unlikely that we lose any more [members],” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said in response to Trump’s comments. “It’s more likely that we can gain more, particularly of members who … were just wanting to make sure that our members got a chance to file amendments and have them heard.”
Republican support actually gained some ground on Sunday, with 18 voting to move the measure forward.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stumped for further aid in his Sunday floor speech, refusing to back away from his adamant support for foreign aid, particularly Ukraine, that’s highlighted a growing divide within his conference.
“I know it’s become quite fashionable in some circles to disregard the global interests we have as a global power. To bemoan the responsibilities of global leadership,” McConnell said. “This is idle work for idle minds. And it has no place in the United States Senate.”
Check out the spin from some of them on Trump’s NATO comments, though:
Trump had other comments over the weekend that riled lawmakers, suggesting at a rally Saturday evening that Russia should “do whatever the hell they want” to any NATO-member nation that is not meeting its spending commitment. Senate Democrats were expectedly aghast at the comment — but the remarks also elicited mixed responses from Senate Republicans.
Tillis blamed Trump’s team rather than the former president’s long-established beef with NATO, saying “shame on his briefers” for not explaining the U.S. has made a commitment to assist any NATO country that is attacked.
Others were sharper in their criticism. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said it was a “stupid thing to say.” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said it was “uncalled for.” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said he doesn’t take Trump “literally.”
Trump was president of the United States for four years. If he doesn’t know how NATO works by now it’s because he’s an idiot.
Still, good for them. They defied Dear Leader. The bad news is that even if they get past this amendment hurdle, the House is a screaming clown show so who knows if this will ever happen?
Guilt on Bill Clinton's face. Ukraine relied on the United States, to help them if Russia broke its agreement. Ukraine gave up nukes, its only real security, in exchange for a promise. It risked its life for reduced proliferation. For us, for the world. How dare we run now. pic.twitter.com/rRrmrcolBs
Kevin McCarthy was known as a prodigious fundraiser and is as connected as anyone in politics. And he’s pissed:
Donors no longer want to contribute to their campaigns. Primary opponents are lining up to take them out. And some of them have been ex-communicated from caucuses on Capitol Hill.
The eight House Republicans who took the unprecedented step of removing Kevin McCarthy from the speakership are facing blowback, both in Washington and back home. It’s a sign that even four months after the historic move, emotions are still raw inside a GOP conference that is continuing to reel from McCarthy’s ouster.
Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Bob Good of Virginia have arguably received the most incoming fire, with both now facing serious primary threats as they gear up for reelection. And Rep. Matt Rosendale, who recently jumped into the US Senate race in Montana, is facing headwinds in GOP circles — in part because of his vote to boot McCarthy — as top Republicans fear he will cost them a pivotal seat.
A well-connected GOP outside spending group is planning to play in the races against Good and Mace, while McCarthy himself is widely expected to get involved as well, according to multiple Republican sources familiar with the matter.
Meanwhile, the Main Street Caucus and Republican Governance Group, two center-right-leaning groups on Capitol Hill, have both quietly dropped Mace from their ranks, multiple sources told CNN. Neither move was publicized, but sources say frustration with the congresswoman had been brewing for months leading up to her McCarthy vote.
“She really wants to be a caucus of one. So we obliged her,” one House Republican told CNN.
McCarthy has little reason to be faithful to the GOP. And it seems as if he doesn’t care that he’s taking out incumbents in what may be a tough year. Why should he?
If you think any of the last 48 hours of relentlessly negative coverage came out of nowhere, *six months* after Biden was sworn in, reporters were complaining about how boring it was to cover him. @juliaioffe laid it all out there, it's not like they were hiding their contempt. pic.twitter.com/BP7IcYHGd2
Yes, of course. The excitement over the Hur Report was palpable.
Similar to the phrase "dogged by questions," where a thing the press keeps asking about is transformed into that thing the candidate cannot ignore. Agency shifts. For example: "Clinton dogged by nagging email questions," a headline from Politico in 2016. https://t.co/yIDgHZEilxhttps://t.co/gTG8P98PS1
The kewl kidz are very upset that anyone would suggest they aren’t doing their jobs well:
By the way:
On 9/20/1939, NYT published an article about Hitler's charming home; tomato garden; love of chocolate, gooseberry pie & afternoon naps.
This was 9 mos after Kristallnacht, 6 yrs after the Dachau Nazi concentration camp opened, 12 days before he invaded Poland & started WWII. pic.twitter.com/4aJotYivbk
The GOP frontrunner simultaneously disavowed the U.S.’s mutual defense commitment with NATO and disparagingly invited Russia to attack U.S. allies – not unlike his invitation to Putin to hack Hillary Clinton’s emails in 2016. These are consistent rather than spontaneous positions https://t.co/2FJ3C8kqvQ
He is so brain damaged that he still thinks, after all this time, that NATO countries pay some sort of “dues” and if they don’t it means he can refuse to support them. It’s so stupid that it’s hard to even contemplate how dangerous it is to allow this person to be president again.
Joshua: A strange game. The only winning move is not to play. How about a nice game of chess?
Joahua, the artificial intelligence defense computer in War Games (1983), almost launches World War III while playing “Global Thermonuclear War” with itself. A young computer enthusiast played by Matthew Broderick thought it was just a cool game he’d found on a military supercomputer he’d hacked. He invites Joshua to play. Joshua was actually in control of missile launch commands.
In the Broderick role in this year’s War Games reboot, we have the mainstream press. Reporters are busily pecking away at their keyboards trying to coax the American electorate into playing “but her emails” once again … because it was so much fun (and good for clicks and ratings) in 2016. For those with short memories, the press helped Republicans hack the 2016 election by promoting “but her emails.”
In the COVID-19 pandemic response that “but her emails” helped put “I have an uncle who taught at MIT” in charge of, over 1.1 million Americans died. No one died in the Broderick movie.
Mr. Biden’s voice has grown softer and raspier, his hair thinner and whiter. He is tall and trim but moves more tentatively than he did as a candidate in 2019 and 2020, often holding his upper body stiff, adding to an impression of frailty. And he has had spills in the public eye: falling off a bicycle, tripping over a sandbag.
Mr. Trump, by contrast, does not appear to be suffering the effects of time in such visible ways. Mr. Trump often dyes his hair and appears unnaturally tan. He is heavyset and tall, and he uses his physicality to project strength in front of crowds. When he takes the stage at rallies, he basks in adulation for several minutes, dancing to an opening song, and then holds forth in speeches replete with macho rhetoric and bombast that typically last well over an hour, a display of stamina.
Washington Post conservative columnist Jennifer Rubin is aghast.
Post by @jenrubin9
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Lord love a duck. Joshua at least had the capacity to learn. Not so the press corps.
Jason Statler (LOLGOP on your favorite social media platform) asks if the press is trying to reelect Trump with “Biden’s too old.” His conclusion, like Joshua’s is not to play:
You don’t have to pretend that the press actually believes that Biden’s age, memory or trustworthiness with classified documents are actual issues — especially compared to Trump, who is basically the same age, whose speech is so littered with lies and errors you can’t even parse which is which, and who stole a trove national secrets, some of which he probably still hasn’t returned.
You don’t even need to pretend these two men are comparable in any way. Biden is a standard 20th century American public servant imbued with all the imperfections that come with that. Trump is the worst president in American history. A demagogue with dictatorial aspirations. A fraud whose greatest accomplishment in life was avoiding any indictments for his first 76 years.
You cannot engage the frames the press traffics in because it knows the best way to reach the maximum audience is to give Republicans what they want and drive liberals to hate reading, hate sharing, and even hate subscribing. Because even by rebutting them, you spread and strengthen them. That’s just how brains work.
Instead, Democrats need to push their own frames. The story here could easily be “Trump loses again, as Biden is cleared.” Democrats could then jump on TV and insist that this is an excellent time for Trump to return any classified documents that he still has at his fraudulent businesses and end this betrayal of America of national security.
These angles are journalistically valid as the story we’re being sold. And they’re far more moral than pandering to narratives Republicans feed, knowing the New York Times and others will play along.
November is still decades away in political years. Every flare up or stumble feels permanent and unfixable. But the truth is the news moves so fast that nothing stays present in the discourse unless there is a concerted effort to keep it there.
Republicans use the press to launder baseless accusations the way Dick Cheney used it to promote invading Iraq.
“We know [Republicans] play pious and law-abiding as their presidents have committed some of the worst crimes in the history of the Republic,” Statler adds. “We know that Republican leadership continually makes America weaker, poorer, and more aligned with the worst authoritarians on earth.”
Where Statler falls short here is that not playing is not enough. The press still wants and needs to be loved to stay afloat financially. It’s not enough to unsubscribe either. Republicans may not be past shaming, but the press is not. Shame away. And shame LOUDLY.
Wicked Witch of the West voice: And your western economy, too!
“The president of a big country stood up, said, ‘Well, sir…” the former president told a MAGAfied crowd in Conway, South Carolina. Here we go. Another bullshit “sir story.”
“One of the presidents of a big country stood up and said, ‘Well, sir, if we don’t pay and we’re attacked by Russia, will you protect us?,’” Trump said during a rally at Coastal Carolina University. “I said, ‘You didn’t pay. You’re delinquent.’ He said, ‘Yes, let’s say that happened.’ No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want.”
“This is crazy. And 8 years later, Trump shows that he STILL doesn’t understand how NATO works! It’s not a protection racket. They don’t pay us to protect them. Geez,” tweeted former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul.
Foreign policy wonks gasped. Why, at this point, who can say? It’s not as if Trump hasn’t advertised he’s an imbecile for decades.
Why not kick off Superbowl Weekend by watching some sports movies? I’ve put together a list of 10 personal faves for you. Hey…save some of that guac for me (no double dipping).
Bend it Like Beckham– Writer-director Gurinder Chadha whips up a cross-cultural masala that entertainingly marries “cheer the underdog” Rocky elements with Bollywood energy. The story centers on a headstrong young Sikh woman (Parminder Nagra) who is upsetting her tradition-minded parents by pursuing her “silly” dream to become a UK soccer star. Chadha weaves in subtext on the difficulties that South Asian immigrants face assimilating into British culture. Also with Keira Knightley and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers.
Breaking Away – This beautifully realized slice of middle-Americana (filmed in Bloomington, Indiana) from director Peter Yates and writer Steve Tesich (an Oscar-winning screenplay) is a perfect film on every level. More than just a sports movie, it’s an insightful coming of age tale and a rumination on small town life.
Dennis Christopher is outstanding as a 19 year-old obsessed with bicycle racing, a pretty coed and anything Italian. He and his pals (Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern and Jackie Earle Haley) are all on the cusp of adulthood and trying to figure out what to do with their lives. Barbara Barrie and Paul Dooley are warm and funny as Christopher’s blue-collar parents.
Bull Durham– Jules and Jim meets The Natural in writer-director Ron Shelton’s funny, sharply-written and splendidly acted rumination on life, love, and oh yeah-baseball. Kevin Costner gives one of his better performances as a seasoned, world-weary minor league catcher who reluctantly plays mentor to a dim hotshot rookie pitcher (Tim Robbins). Susan Sarandon is a poetry-spouting baseball groupie who selects one player every season to take under her wing and do some special mentoring of her own. A complex love triangle ensues.
Downhill Racer – This underrated 1969 gem from director Michael Ritchie examines the tightly knit and highly competitive world of Olympic downhill skiing. Robert Redford is cast against type, and consequently delivers one of his more interesting performances as a talented but arrogant athlete who joins up with the U.S. Olympic ski team. Gene Hackman is outstanding as the coach who finds himself at loggerheads with Redford’s contrariety. Ritchie’s debut film has a verite feel that lends the story a realistic edge. James Salter adapted the screenplay from Oakley Hall’s novel The Downhill Racers.
Fat City – John Huston’s gritty, low-key character study was a surprise hit at Cannes in 1972. Adapted by Leonard Gardner from his own novel, it’s a tale of shattered dreams, desperate living and beautiful losers (Gardner seems to be the missing link between John Steinbeck and Charles Bukowski). Filmed on location in Stockton, California, the story centers on a boozy, low-rent boxer well past his prime (Stacey Keach), who becomes a mentor to a young up-and-comer (Jeff Bridges) and starts a relationship with a fellow barfly (Susan Tyrell).
This film chugs along at the speed of life (i.e., not a lot “happens”), but the performances are so fleshed out you forget you’re witnessing “acting”. One scene in particular, in which Keach and Tyrell’s characters first hook up in a sleazy bar, is a veritable masterclass in the craft.
Granted, it’s one of the most depressing films you’ll ever see (think Barfly meets The Wrestler), but still well worth your while. Masterfully directed by Huston, with “lived-in” natural light photography by DP Conrad Hall. You will be left haunted by Kris Kristofferson’s “Help Me Make it Through the Night”, which permeates the film.
Hoop Dreams– One of the most acclaimed documentaries of all time, with good reason. Ostensibly “about” basketball, it is at its heart about perseverance, love, and family; which is probably why it struck such a chord with audiences as well as critics.
Director Steve James follows the lives of two young men from the inner city for a five-year period, as they pursue their dreams of becoming professional basketball players. Just when you think you have the film pigeonholed, it takes off in unexpected directions, making for a much more riveting story than you’d expect. A winner.
North Dallas Forty– Nick Nolte and Mac Davis lead a spirited cast in this locker room peek at pro football players and the political machinations of team owners. Some of the vignettes are based on the real-life hi-jinks of the Dallas Cowboys, replete with assorted off-field debaucheries. Charles Durning is perfect as the coach. Peter Gent adapted the screenplay from his novel. This film is so entertaining that I can almost forgive director Ted Kotcheff for his later films Rambo: FirstBlood and Weekend at Bernie’s.
Personal Best – When this film was released, there was so much ado over brief love scenes between Mariel Hemingway and co-star Patrice Donnelly that many failed to notice that it was one of the most realistic, empowering portrayals of female athletes to date. Writer-director Robert Towne did his homework; he spent time observing Olympic track stars at work and play. The women are shown to be just as tough and competitive as their male counterparts; Hemingway and (real-life pentathlete) Donnelly give fearless performances. Scott Glenn is excellent as a hard-driving coach.
Slapshot– Paul Newman skates away with his role as the coach of a slumping minor league hockey team in this puckish satire (sorry), directed by George Roy Hill. In a desperate play to save the team, Newman decides to pull out all the stops and play dirty.
The entire ensemble is wonderful, and screenwriter Nancy Dowd’s riotously profane locker room dialog will have you rolling. Newman’s Cool Hand Luke co-star Strother Martin (as the team’s manager) is a scene-stealer. Perennially underrated Lindsey Crouse (in a rare comedic role) is memorable as a sexually frustrated “sports wife” . Michael Ontkean performs the funniest striptease in film history, and the cheerfully truculent “Hanson Brothers” are a hoot.
This Sporting Life – Lindsay Anderson’s 1963 drama was one of the “angry young man” films that stormed from the U.K. in the late 50s and early 60s, steeped in “kitchen sink” realism and working class angst. A young, Brando-like Richard Harris tears up the screen as a thuggish, egotistical rugby player with a natural gift for the game who becomes an overnight star. Former pro rugby player David Storey adapted the screenplay from his own novel.
