Matt Gaetz’s Recent Tweet About Wanting A ‘Gaetzgate’ Scandal Of His Very Own Has Come Back To Bite Him In The Ass

It’s almost like Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) was trying to tempt fate, and it worked. This refers to, of course, the reason why Gaetz imploded during a Wednesday night Tucker Carlson interview. The segment had even left the host astounded at what he heard, and Tucker called it “one of the weirdest interviews I’ve ever conducted.” That’s an understatement, but Tucker’s lack of a trademarked-wallpaper face said a lot. Gaetz, who had supposedly been considering leaving Congress to become a Newsmax talking head, had become the subject of a damning New York Times report that detailed allegations of him having a relationship with a 17-year-old girl. The report revealed how the Department of Justice is probing whether Gaetz had violated sex trafficking laws, given that he allegedly paid for the girl to travel with him, and since all of this involves the crossing of state lines, the crimes could be federal. At this time, Gaetz hasn’t been charged with anything, but his talking (and claims that he’s being extorted by an ex-DOJ official for $25 million) by the FBI) sure isn’t helping to quell the controversy.

Well, things are even stranger considering that, only a few days ago, Gaetz (who, as Orlando Weekly reminds everyone, was the lone lawmaker to vote against an anti-sex-trafficking bill in 2017) literally asked for a “Gaetzgate” label on Twitter. In response to Elon Musk doing his wordplay thing on Twitter with a “If there’s ever a scandal about me, *please* call it Elongate,” Gaetz responded, “Deal. I want Gaetzgate.” That tweet has since been deleted, but screencaps exist for posterity. “Be careful what you wish for” is definitely a thing.

https://twitter.com/Sundae_Gurl/status/1377246595360641030

https://twitter.com/DataDrivenMD/status/1377025474698743814

Before his Tucker Carlson interview, the congressman tweeted, “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.” He added, “We have been cooperating with federal authorities in this matter.”

Gaetz attempting to make this argument to Tucker sounded even more bonkers, and it’s telling that Tucker loves to dig into UFOs and will push almost any right-wing conspiracy theory, but not even Tucker wanted to appear sympathetic to whatever Gaetz was trying to sell. And so far, the Republicans in Congress remain silent on the issue.