On December 5, 2024 Representatives Nicholas Langworthy (NY-23, representing Western New York and the Southern Tier) and Claudia Tenney (NY-24, representing the Lake Ontario border counties) joined their Republican colleagues in voting to block the release of the House Ethics Committee’s report on former Florida Representative Matt Gaetz.
The Ethics Committee launched its investigation into Gaetz in 2021 after The New York Times reported that he was under federal scrutiny. This followed a 2019 corruption probe into Gaetz’s associate, Joel Greenberg. Greenberg misused taxpayer funds to buy sports memorabilia, harvest Bitcoin, and hire associates. His electronic records revealed that he had paid young women, including a 17-year-old girl, to attend parties involving drugs and sex
Greenberg cooperated with authorities, alleging that Gaetz also had a sexual relationship with the 17-year-old and was aware she was being paid.
In 2022, after a two-year investigation, the Justice Department closed its case against Gaetz without filing charges.
The Ethics Committee paused its inquiry while the Justice Department’s investigation was ongoing, resuming its work after prosecutors completed their review.
Over the past 18 months, the committee investigated serious allegations against Gaetz, including claims he shared explicit photos of women with other members of Congress, used illegal drugs, engaged in a sexual relationship with a minor, and misused campaign funds for personal expenses.
Despite speculation that the committee’s findings were about to be made public, Republicans voted to block two Democratic resolutions seeking to release the report. Instead, both measures were returned to the Ethics Committee, delaying public disclosure, probably permanently.
The votes were narrow and strictly partisan: 206-198 on the first resolution and 204-198 on the second. Republicans closed ranks to keep the report confidential, while Democrats pushed for transparency.
Gaetz resigned his seat in Congress immediately after being nominated for Attorney General by former President Donald Trump and days before the Ethics Committee was to release its report. Speculation is that Gaetz resigned to keep the report from being released.
House Speaker Mike Johnson supported Gaetz’ strategy. He defended keeping the report secret, arguing that releasing findings about someone no longer in Congress would be a “significant breach of protocol” and set a “harmful precedent.” He pledged to ask Ethics Committee Chair Representative Michael Guest (R-MS) to keep the findings sealed.
The Ethics Committee is supposed to operate independently and without partisan interference. Johnson’s interference fueled speculation that the Committee might not be independent or even ethical.
For now, the report remains secret – unless it is leaked.
Langworthy and Tenney are rabid MAGA Republicans beholden to Trump for their political careers. They would never vote against Trump or the Republican Party, no matter how loathsome the issue.
With Trump’s support, Langworthy became head of the state GOP, sidestepping Richard Nixon’s son-in-law. He defeated his Republican opponent in the 2022 GOP primary, benefitting from nearly a million dollars in outside money. That money paid for attack ads against his primary opponent (and former mentor – get in his way at your peril), intimating ties to Nazi ideology.
Tenney, who had trouble maintaining a seat in Congress until she was re-located to a “safe” Republican district, also owes her political career in Congress to Trump. She is frequently seen on FOX News advocating for the MAGA agenda. She’s even played golf at Trump’s Mar-a-Largo. Can’t get much closer than that!!
Rather than working for Trump and the Republican Party, constituents of the 23rd and 24th Congressional Districts would benefit from Representatives who worked for them. Both districts are among the poorest in New York State.
Neither Langworthy nor Tenney has brought much in the way of federal dollars to their districts.
Maybe in the next election, Langworthy and Tenney’s poor performance in bringing federal dollars to their district will be a factor.
It was for Brandon Williams, who was defeated for re-election in the Syracuse district. As a candidate, he actually opposed the Chips Act, which is bringing millions of dollars and thousands of jobs to the NY22 district (assuming it’s not gutted in the next Congress). Maybe Langworthy and Tenney will take William’s defeat as a warning.
