there is now a new house ethics investigation into him. hared some sexually explicit or nude photos with folks while on the house floor. had you heard of that before this, by the way? >> no, i haven't. >> okay. and would you join some of the other democrats calling for his resignation? >> well, he is in a difficult situation. it's a tragedy for him and a tragedy for the united states congress, but particularly for the republican caucus. matt gaetz has gotten in trouble before when he was a state senator for criminal allegations, and he avoided a conviction in all of them. he might think that the united states justice department is like the florida attorney general's office or the sheriff's office office down there and this is "smokey and the bandit" part four. he is going to find out it isn't. it's going to come to a bad condition collusion for him. >> you are not necessarily calling for his resignation? >> well, i think he should resign. that's up to him to decide. i think he is much like trump and he will not resign. he will fight it to t

and as you noted the house ethics committee is now putting forward their own investigation, on top of that federal probe that is looking into whether or not he violated sex-trafficking laws. so, this investigation from a health ethics committee is coming to both matt gaetz and also congressman tom reid but the scope of the investigation for gaetz. we saw a statement come out from the ethics committee seeing some of what they are looking into. quote, the committee is aware of allegations that representative matt gaetz may have shared inappropriate images on the house floor, misused state-identification records, converted campaign funds for personal use, and accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift, in violation of house rules, laws, and standards of conduct. this is not assumed that there is wrongdoing. but keep in mind, house investigations tend to take a lot of time. we expect this to drag on for a bit. however, the office of matt gaetz came out with a scathing statement vehemently denying these allegations. once again, the office will reiterate these allegations ar

he is under investigation from the house ethics committee. >> can you hear me? are you guys for america first? we have learned that with president trump. so when there is somebody that stands up and fights for this american people and put america who finally put americans in the america first agenda proud tonie to our barbecue boots and bluegrass, a congressman who has been a fearless freedom warrior for america first and the america first agenda. you know him well, he has been all over tv, all across this country fighting for america. i'm proud to welcome to the stage, congressman matt gaetz. s. [applause] >> thank you for having me. i love you with all of my heart and the best is indeed yet to come. heart and the best is indeed yet to come. keep fighting. after a russian hoax, and an election that was stolen, we need to reestablish both parties, and i would not have it any other way. we have your back, is a sentiment i have heard from thousands of americans. i cannot tell you how much it means to me. this past week has been full of encouragement from president

the house ethics committee investigation is a separate matter. that was announced yesterday and more of an internal personnel thing. that is congress investigating one of its own. the more serious investigation, because he could face legal consequences, is by the justice department's public integrity section. host: you mentioned his name but tell us who joel greenberg is and what he has to do with his entire allegation investigation. guest: joel greenberg is the former tax collector, elected tax collector, of seminole county and he was a friend of gaetz. you can see pictures of them together on twitter. he is a colorful character. he got in a lot of trouble when he was the tax collector, generating a lot of controversy over allegations of misspending the office's money. he was eventually charged with that a campaign opponent in the tax collector race. stalking is a misleading word. he fabricated evidence of misconduct that he alleged his opponent committed. it was all a lie. he created a facebook and twitter to get this on the radar of the oppone

committee is launching an investigation of house ethics allegations against him. paula reed has the latest on those allegations, including an alleged sex trafficker, money and young women. >> reporter: tonight, florida congressman matt gaetz about to make his first public appearance in days as new details into the scandal emerge. the congressman, set to speak at an event organized by a conservative women's group, while at the same time beefing up his legal team, adding two new york attorneys, including one who representated the trump organization. now "the daily beast" offering new insight into the trail of money. venmo records show how in may of 2018 gaetz paid friend and then seminole county tax collector joel greenberg $900. greenberg then transferred the same amount to young women, according to the report. >> when joel greenberg paid them to these girls, it said school and tuition. >> reporter: cnn has not confirmed the details of allegations in this story. at this point there is no indication the payments were related to any illegal activity. >> it really is

he could be in some serious trouble here. >> he's got legal exposure for sure and the house ethics committee got some serious charges. i will go through some. he may have engaged in sexual misconduct or elicit drug use and shared inappropriate images on the house floor and accepted a bribe or gifts all in violation of the house and rules of conduct. let's just say guilty. >> that's as we saw the combination of the big lie and now we see his perpetuation through people like matt gaetz. >> he failed to get a second term and incited the insurrection. lo loyalists like matt gaetz and marjorie taylor greene are speakers there. why is the gop doubling down on what did work? >>> they're in a demographic call -- all that in my view is digging the ditch deeper. and you know they're clawing their way at the bottom. the recent polling reflects the long range issue, don. they'll make a lot of noise in the fox news ecosystem but as of this week whether or not they'll identify with the democratic party, people identifying by the democratic party by 9 points more than republicans. that's a historic number.

that will be a bipartisan inquiry in the house ethics committee. the office put out a statement saying allegations against him that are investigated by the committee are all false. never the less the circle of people involved in the gaetz scandal is becoming both more clear and also seemingly

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the house ethics committee announced friday it will launch an investigation into republican congressman matt gaetz over allegations that he, quote, "may have engaged in sexual misconduct, and/or elicit 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." or as republicans call it, "running for re-election." new york city mayoral candidate andrew yang marked national pet day yesterday by tweeting that his family had to give away their dog after one of his sons became allergic. whoa, i can't wait to see what he posts for mother's day. [ light laughter ]

>> lindsay, we're getting a sense of what the scope of the investigation will be from the house ethics as they hone in on sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. the committee is aware of public allegations that representative matt gaetz may have engaged in sexual misconduct and shared inappropriate videos and converted campaign funds to personal use and/or accepted a bribe, improper grat youity violation of the standards of conduct. they will look into these potential charges and note just because they're looking into this doesn't mean there is a violation at play. he is vehemently denying any wrongdoing issuing yet another statement in light of the house ethics committee saying, quote, once again the office will reiterate these allegations are blatantly false and have not been validated by a single human being willing to put their name behind them. this comes as not many republican lawmakers are speaking out in support of congressman gaetz and at least one gop lawmaker that is saying he should resign his seat entirely and that's congressman adam kinzinger who said he should quit cong

it comes as a new house ethics investigation is announced.> reporter: good morning, eva. so these are serious, serious allegations, but overnight, florida congressman matt gaetz was in his home state, he publicly thanked his fiancee and assured the crowd that the best is yet to come. overnight, embattled congressman matt gaetz at former president trump's club in doral, florida, before a crowd of mostly women doubling down. >> i'm not going anywhere. the smears against me range from distortions of my personal life to wild and i mean wild conspiracy theories. >> reporter: fiercely denying allegations including sexual misconduct and refusing calls to resign. >> i can assure you the best is, indeed, yet to come. keep fighting. >> reporter: gaetz is already under federal investigation. over allegations he had sex with a 17-year-old girl and paid for her travel, possibly breaking sex trafficking laws. now the house ethics committee is examining illicit drug use launching a bipartisan investigation and whether gaetz shared inappropriate images or vi

. >> earlier today the house ethics committee announced their own investigation into gaetz for sexual misconduct and his office responded with this statement. once again the office will reiterate, these allegations are blatantly false and have not been validated by a single human being willing to put their name behind them and hired two new york white collar defense attorneys. the white house is looking to the future of the supreme court. the president ordering a 180-day study on potentially adding more seats and whether there should be term limits for justices. the president is asking congress to sign off on a $1.5 trillion spending plan concentrating largely on domestic programs on top of his $1.9 trillion stimulus package and a separate plan to spend another trillion on infrastructure. jurors heard from the medical examiner who conducted the autopsy on george floyd. >> as a medical examiner we applied the term homicide when the actions of others were involved in an individual's death. in my opinion the law enforcement restraint and neck compression was just more than mr. floyd coul

that's like leaving your wallet at a crime scene but wiping your finger prints off it the house ethicsday it will launch an investigation into republican congressman matt gaetz over allegations that he, quote, "may have engaged in sexual misconduct, and/or elicit 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." or as republicans call it, "running for re-election." new york city mayoral candidate andrew yang marked national pet day yesterday by tweeting that his family had to give away their dog after one of his sons became allergic. whoa, i can't wait to see what he posts for mother's day. [ light laughter ] he's the new scollins. he's ruining days. [ light laughter ] two weeks off, i felt like days were safe. britain's prince harry is reportedly set to travel back to the uk this week for his grandfather prince philip's funeral apparently as a latch ditch effort to revive him "why you little piece of --" i don't know if we

. >>> also, defiance from congressman matt gaetz in the face of a new house ethics probe and criminal investigations into his conduct. >>> and republicans flocking tonight to a party featuring donald trump as the manhattan d.a. gathers new evidence in his probe of the former president. >>> plus, we're following the fallout from medical testimony in the trial of the police officer in the death of george floyd. >>> all of that and more but we do want to begin with the breaking news from the uk where just a short time ago, prince charles made an emotional statement on the loss of his father, prince philip. this is the first time that we have heard from the heir to the throne about the late duke of edinburgh's passing. take a listen. >> my dear papa was a very special person who i think above all else would have been amazed by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him. and from that point of view, we are, my family, deeply grateful for all that. >> all right, i want to bring in nbc's raf sanchez, standing by for us at windsor castle. just take us through what else

more detail on the house committee ethics investigation. they've launched two, one into congressman matt gaetz and then tom reed of new york, potentially looking at matt gaetz for sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, converting campaign funds to personal use and possible acceptance of a bribe as far as tom reed goes, allegations of sexual misconduct. now, gaetz's office did respond to this latest house ethics committee investigation saying that once again, these allegations are blatantly false. they have not been validated by a single human being willing to put their name behind them. when he takes the stage here at the save america summit here at 7:00 p.m. tonight, we'll see if he addresses that and anything else, wolf. >> we'll stay in touch with you, clearly. thank you very much. randi, joined by cnn political dir dir dir director david chalian. how do you expect gaetz will try to navigate this scandal and this new investigation from the house ethics committee when he speaks publicly later tonight? >> well, i'm not sure if he'll address

. >> the house ethics committee announced it has launched an investigation into congressman gaetz for a laundry list of potential violations. >> i'll bet unless he's actually convicted and behind bars, this will be a badge of honor for him. >> they aren't really coming for me. they're coming for you. i'm just in the way. ♪ >>> this is "new day weekend" with victor blackwell and christi paul. >>> beautiful morning here in atlanta, even with the low clouds it still looks pretty, doesn't it? welcome to saturday morning, we're grateful to have your company. gop congressman matt gaetz says, guess what, he's not going anywhere. the florida congressman is defiant in the face of two separate allegations. last night, he denied all allegations of sex trafficking and prostitution. he said this in his first public speech since the allegations came to light. >> the smears against me range from distortions of my personal life to wild, and i mean wild conspiracy theories. i won't be intimidated by a lying media. and i won't be extorted by a former doj, officials and the crooks he is working with. th

now the house ethics committee is opening an investigation into the allegations. >>> and the second week of testimony in derek chauvin's murder trial wrapping up with the medical examiner telling george floyd's death was a homicide caused -- a pathologist also testifying that floyd died from a lack of oxygen, not from drugs or heart problems. i want to get right now to the dramatic testimony today in the trial of derek chauvin. cnn's omar jimenez is on the ground in minneapolis for us this evening. good evening, omar. today we heard from the medical examiner who conducted george floyd's autopsy and ruled his death a homicide. tell me about his testimony. >> reporter: today was arguably about the most important part of this trial, the cause of george floyd's death. this was a highly anticipated day because we heard from dr. andrew baker, the chief medical examiner in hennepin county and the one who conducted george floyd's autopsy. he ruled floyd's death a homicide. he went back and forth over what it means to be a factor in someone's death and what it means to be the cause of death, spec

now the house ethics committee is opening an investigation into the allegations. >>> and the second week of testimony in derek chauvin's murder trial wrapping one the medical examiner telling jurors that george floyd's death was a homicide caused by police officers restraining him on the ground and chauvin kneeling on his neck. a forensic sigh come sift said that he died from a lack of oxygen. not from drugs. right to the trial of derek chauvin. good evening, omar. today we heard from the medical examiner who conducted george floyd's autopsy and ruled his death a homicide. tell me about his testimony. >> reporter: yeah, don. so today was all about maybe arguably the most important part of the trial. that comes down to george floyd's cause of death. this was a highly anticipated day because we heard from dr. andrew baker. the chief medical examiner here and critically the one who conducted george floyd's autopsy. he ruled george floyd's death a homicide which he stuck to today. a lot of it today was going back and forth over what is a factor in someone's death and what is the cause of som

the house ethics committee opened an investigation of matt gaetz over a list of allegations from sexrters in miami firebrands don't retreat the derek chauvin murder trial resumes monday prosecution expected to rest its case early next week now you know the news of this friday, april 9, 21.02 follow us on twitter and instagram. have a great weekend these are the people who work on the front lines. they need a network that's built right. that's why we created verizon frontline. the advanced network and technology for first responders. built on america's most reliable network. built for real interoperability. and built for 5g. it's america's #1 network in public safety. verizon frontline. built right for first responders. are you managing your diabetes... ...using fingersticks? with the new freestyle libre 2 system, a continuous glucose monitor, you can check your glucose with a painless, one-second scan. and now with optional alarms, you can choose to be notified if you go too high or too low. and for those who qualify, the freestyle libre 2 system is now covered by medicare. ask your

. >> the house ethics committee has announced an investigation into misconduct by congressman gates. the committee writes, it is aware that congressman gates has misused state identification records, in proper gratuities, and impermissible gift, in violation of house rules, and that was a written statement that notes the existence of an investigation does not indicate a violation has occurred. saturday, on the communicators, michael powell, the ceo of the internet and television association. watch the communicators saturday at 6:30 a.m. on saturday. this is the -- >> this is the podcast, the weekly. >> president biden announced he has submitted his fiscal priorities for the

the house ethics committee opened an investigation of matt gaetz over a list of allegations from sexay prosecution expected to rest its case early next week now you know the news of this friday, april 9, 2021. follow us on twitter and instagram. have a great weekend ♪ ♪ ♪ hey google, turn up the heat. ♪ ♪ ♪ hey lily, i need a new wireless plan for my business, but all my employees need something different. oh, we can help with that. okay, imagine this... your mover, rob, he's on the scene and needs a plan with a mobile hotspot. we cut to downtown, your sales rep lisa has to send some files, asap! so basically i can pick the right plan for each employee... yeah i should've just led with that... with at&t business... you can pick the best plan for each employee and only pay for the features they need. we started with computers. we didn't stop at computers. we didn't stop at storage or cloud. we kept going. working with our customers to enable the kind of technology that can guide an astronaut back to safety. and help make a hospital come to you, instead of you going to it. so when it c

normally it's pretty hard to get an ethics committee investigation to stick because the house ethics committee doesn't have subpoena power. but in this case, what you may have are a lot of people who witnessed bad behavior by matt gaetz who are willing to talk. i mean, we've seen the news reports as reported by cnn that he was flashing nude pictures in the house floor of women. if members of congress are willing to talk to the media about that, i think they need to talk to the house ethics committee because i'm sure sure there are other staffers who saw that as well that did indeed take place. so this can go a lot of different directions, but matt gaetz doesn't have to be convicted of criminal activity to be in trouble. this is a bigger problem for the republican party because let's say he does get stripped of his committee assignment. that would be the third member in my recent memory of getting stripped of committee assignments. steve king, marjorie taylor greene, and possibly gaetz. it's just a really bad look for the republican party. >> right. after the media began reporting gae

now the house ethics committee is also investigating its own set of allegations. here's mary bruce. >> reporter: already under federal investigation, tonight another probe into embattled republican congressman matt gaetz. the house ethics committee launching a bipartisan investigation examining allegations of sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, and whether gaetz shared inappropriate images or videos on the house floor. the florida republican is also being investigated by the justice department over allegations he had sex with a 17-year-old girl and paid for her travel, possibly breaking sex trafficking laws. gaetz has denied any wrongdoing and is refusing calls for his resignation. >> it is a horrible allegation, and it is a lie. >> reporter: today the congressman hiring a new legal team with ties to his close ally, former president trump. it comes as abc news has learned that gaetz's friend and associate, joel greenberg, a local florida politician, could be cooperating with federal investigators. sources tell abc the justice department is zeroing in on whether g

the house ethics committee investigation is a separate matter.hat was announced yesterday and more of an internal personnel thing. that is congress investigating one of its own. the more serious investigation, because he could face legal consequences, is by the justice department's public integrity section. host: you mentioned his name but tell us who joel greenberg is and what he has to do with his entire allegation investigation. guest: joel greenberg is the former tax collector, elected tax collector, of seminole county and he was a friend of gaetz. you can see pictures of them together on twitter. he is a colorful character. he got in a lot of trouble when he was the tax collector, generating a lot of controversy over allegations of misspending the office's money. he was eventually charged with that a campaign opponent in the tax collector race. stalking is a misleading word. he fabricated evidence of misconduct that he alleged his opponent committed. it was all a lie. he created a facebook and twitter to get this on the radar of the opponent

and new today, an escalation as the house ethics committee weighs in. >>> and for more than 150 years, the supreme court had nine members with lifetime appointments will it stay that way? a new executive order today from president biden paymay hold the key. ♪ ♪i've got the brains you've got the looks♪ ♪let's make lots of money♪ ♪you've got the brawn♪ ♪i've got the brains♪ ♪let's make lots of♪ ♪uh uh uh♪ ♪oohhh there's a lot of opportunities♪ with allstate, drivers who switched saved over $700. saving is easy when you're in good hands. allstate click or call to switch today. ♪♪ allstate ♪ i will stand for you ♪ ♪ would you stand for me? ♪ ♪ everybody deserves ♪ ♪ to be free ♪ ♪ and i will lend ♪ ♪ a hand to you ♪ ♪ would you lend a hand to me? ♪ ♪ everybody deserves ♪ ♪ to be free ♪♪ >>> an evacuation frenzy that's what the government in the tiny caribbean island of st. vincent is saying tonight after two massive volcanic eruptions the first one happened early this morning video shows it spewing ash almost six miles into the air. authorities say at least 20,000 people close to the volc

. >> the house ethics committee announced an investigation into representative gaetz after recent allegations against the florida congressman including illegal drug use and sexual misconduct. the committee writes, it's aware of public allegations that the congressman gaetz may have engaged in sexual misconduct, drug misuse, misused state identification records, and accepted a bribe or impermissible gift in violation of house rules, laws, or other standards of conduct. that from a written statement from the terror of the committee, ted deutch. the statement notes the existence of the investigation does not indicate that any violation has occurred. ♪ >> c-span is your unfiltered view of government. created by america's cable television companies in 1979. today, we are brought to you by these television companies who provide c-span2 viewers as a public service. ♪ >> michael -- some industry anae saying that up to 55 million people, by next year, will have cut their cable cord.

the house ethics committee opened up a probe against gaetz. they're going to investigate these allegations that came out in the past couple of days on cnn and other outlets. gaetz in a state denied through his office all of these allegations has he's been doing through his lawyer and office and publicly himself. the statement he sent from his office read -- once again the office will reiterate these allegations are blatantly false and have not been validated by a single human being willing to put their name behind them. actually, fred, right now congress has been in recess two weeks and they come back next week for the first time, this will be the first time we might see gaetz in washington since these allegations around him arose for the first time. but he has a proxy letter to vote remotely so it's unclear whether he will actually come to washington in person. we will be keeping an eye out to see if he actually comes. >> that's an interesting little tidbit as well. daniella diaz, thank you so much on capitol hill. >>> coming up -- the royal

and pfizer taking a big step toward vaccinating kids >>> the house ethics panel launching an investigation into congressman matt gaetz as he faces a sex trafficking probe. now the first fellow republican to call on him to resign. >>> the massive volcanic eruption forcing thousands to evacuate a four-mile-high plume of smoke and ash cruise ships sent to help people escape >>> and the grammy-nominated rap star being celebrated tonight. >> announcer: this is nbc "nightly news" with lester holt >>> good evening they were one of the most famous couples in the world. their fairy tale story befitting their royal status tonight, the death of queen elizabeth's husband of more than 70 years, prince philip, has rocked the united kingdom and left much of the world reflecting on their enduring marriage and now crushing loss. on this side of the atlantic we woke up to the news of philip, the duke of edinburgh's passing, at the age of 99 a war veteran who married a princess, before long living in her shadow when she became queen prince philip's death leaving a deep hole in the collective hearts of the ro

he may be facing real questions from the house ethics committee. let's bring in someone who n understands that pressure well, charlie dent. he used to chair that committee. good to see you. >> good to be with you, chris. >> let me play you a little bit of what is a page right out of the trump playbook of how to deal with political allegations to the extent that gaetz is in political trouble. listen. >> big government, big tech, big business, big media, they would all breathe a sigh of relief if i were no longer in the congress. when you see the leaks and the lies and the falsehoods and the smears, when you see the anonymous sources and insiders forecasting my demise, know this. they aren't really coming for me. they're coming for you. i'm just in the way. >> we both know this is right out of a playbook. the question is, does it work as a good play here? what's your take? >> i don't think this is a good play. they aren't coming for them. they are coming for him. he has big problems. he cannot talk his way out of this one. these allegations are so se

. >> earlier today, the house ethics committee announced its own investigation into gaetz. his office responded that once again, they will reiterate, these allegations are blatantly false. he's hired two new york defense attorneys, including one who has also represented the trump organization. the white house is looking to the future of the supreme court. the president ordering a 180-day study on potentially adding more seats, and whether there should be term limits for justices. the president today also unveiled parts of his first budget proposal. this would be on top of his $1.9 trillion package, and a separate plan to spend $2.3 trillion on the nation's infrastructure. >> i look toward to working with congress to advance these. hopefully we'll have some bipartisan support. >> this was also day ten of the derek chauvin trial. jurors heard from the medical examiner who conducted the autopsy on george floyd. saying floyd's death was a homicide. >> as a medical examiner we apply the term homicide when other individuals were involved in another person's death. >> but under cr

the house ethics committee is la launching its own probe now.committee is aware of public allegations that gaetz may have engaged in sexual misconduct and/or elicit drug use, converted coampaign funds o personal use and/or accepted a bribe or impermissible gift in violation of house rules, laws or other standards of conduct. gaetz has repeatedly denied any wrong doing but his phones problems don't stop there. kaitlin, normally when someone is under legal scrutiny like this, we don't hear much from them publicly. that is the opposite case with gaetz. >> reporter: that's right, pam. the congressman really came out swinging from the moment the news of this investigation and allegations broke. he went out on fox. his office has issued a denial to everything you just read in that house ethics committee statement, and each also gave a speech yesterday to a crowd of supporters. let's take a listen. >>> so let me assure you i have not yet begun to fight. the smears against me range from distortions of my personal life to wild, and i mean wild conspiracy

. >> on the same day the house ethics committee announced it was opening a probe into florida republican representative matt gaetz, allegations of sex trafficking and other misconduct , the congressman addressed the allegations at the save america summit in miami. >> can you hear me? are you for america first? freedom fighters, right, that is what we are, and they are very few of them in washington, d.c. we have learned that with president trump, and so when there is somebody that stands up and fights for the american people and who finally puts americans in the america first agenda, in front, above all else, it is really, really nice, so i am proud tonight to welcome to our barbecue boots and bluegrass, a congressman who has been a fearless freedom warrior for america first and the america first agenda. you know him, you know him well, he has been all over tv. he has been all across the country fighting for america and i'm proud to welcome to the states tonight -- the stage tonight congressman matt gaetz. ,♪ [rap music in background] >> ♪ what the shotgun quota, republican vota, don't b

. >>> in our politics lead today, the house ethics committee just announced it is launching an investigationttled florida republican congressman matt gates. they look into allegations of illegal drug use, sharing illicit photos of naked women on the house floor and more, presumably. the justice department also looking into whether he had an inappropriate relationship with a minor and broke federal sex trafficking and prostitution laws. cnn's paula reed reports. >> reporter: his defense team including mark mckayz who represented the trump organization in the past. a spokeswoman said the two will help him by unfounded allegations. federal investigator looking into his role in alleged prostitution ring part of a wider probe of the congressman and associates. now the daily beast offering new insight into the trail of money. reportedly paid friend $900. the next morning, greenburg transferred money totaling the same amount to three young women according to the report. >> when matt gaetz sent them to joel greenburg, to text and hit up this girl. when he paid them to these girls, it said, school an

house of representatives. it is just impossible to believe that there's any meaning to this general ethical standard about behaving creditably of the house if this kind of conduct doesn't lead to any kind of consequences. in fact, we saw representative katie hill resign a while ago when somebody leaked nude photos of her and she was the victim of that, and then somebody alleged without proof that a member of her congressional staff and she had had an affair. she admitted to one with a campaign staffer, which is not covered by the house rules, but denied the allegation about her congressional staffer. we can remember that that matter was taken very seriously and led to her resignation. if they don't hold gaetz to a similar standard, you have to ask why. >> absolutely. it is also appalling. it demands some kind of action, no question about it. katie benner, thanks for reporting on this. walter shaub, thanks for helping shed light on this. we appreciate it. >>> coming up, the cdc is rapidly releasing highly-anticipated guidance for people who are vaccinated and want to travel. what you need to know before you head ou

now the house ethics committee is launching a probe into many of the allegations against him.sations, gaetz found a supportive crowd at a conservative women's summit held at a florida trump resort last night. with me now, cnn political commentator and former republican senator from arizona, jeff flake. thank you, senator, for joining us to talk about this. so we've got the first republican in congress calling for representative gaetz to resign. his colleague, adam kinzinger, as you see in this tweet. but that was nearly 48 hours ago. why haven't more republicans joined in those calls? are you surprised? >> no, not surprised. i mean, you usually wait until some charges are filed or there's an indictment or something happens. but you don't see a ground swell of support on the other side either. so he hasn't made too many friends in congress, so he's going to have a rough go when it comes down to an indictment or some charges coming down. then he'll face a lot of calls to resign. >> you're right, he hasn't had a lot of outspoken support from fellow republicans except for jim jord

. >> the house ethics committee announced it has launched an investigation into congressman gaetz, for laundry list of potential violations. >> i'll bet unless he's actually convicted and behind bars, this will be a badge of honor for him. >> they aren't really coming for me. they're coming for you. i'm just in the way. ♪ >>> this is "new day weekend" with victor blackwell and christi paul. >>> new york city, beautiful at 6:00 a.m. good morning to you. thanks so much for being with us. listen, the coronavirus vaccination race is in a critical stretch. we've got the variant driven rises in cases, particularly in young people. and vaccine hesitancy. those are among other hurdles that the u.s. is still facing. >> yeah, more than 80,000 new covid cases were added just yesterday. the third day in a row that the u.s. has logged 75,000 cases or more. the model from washington institute for health metrics and evaluation forecasts, in 618,000 deaths, by august 1st, that toll jumps to more than 697,000 if fully vaccinated people return to prepandemic levels of mobility. and it drops if people we

if you want something done, hire a woman. >> gaetz, speaking the same day the house ethics committeeed it had opened an investigation into his actions not just on sex trafficking, but also over allegations he showed nude images on the house floor and misused campaign funds. the congressman's heavily pro-woman message comes after a gaetz associate, joel greenberg was arraigned on an array of charges this week, including sex trafficking of a minor which drew the fed's attention to gaetz. federal prosecutors and greenberg's attorney telling the judge they expect a plea and not to go to trial. >> i'm sure matt gaetz is not feeling very comfortable today. >> gaetz, a close ally of former president donald trump, has hired attorneys and outside perk r firm to manage the scandal. gaetz will fight back against the unfounded allegations. gaetz has not been charged with any crime and has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. still, calls for him to leave congress including from republican adam kinzinger who said gaetz needs to resign. while gaetz deploys the trump playbook doubling down in the face

we have a new statement from the house ethics committee speaking to that scope where they say, quote, the committee is aware of public allegations that representative matt gaetz may have engaged in sexual misconduct, 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 violation of house rules, laws and other standards of conduct and the house committee will continue to look into these allegations. they will gather evidence but they noted as part of that statement, if we continued reading, that this is not necessarily a violation. they will look into all these recent reports but that's not necessarily equating something that has been done wrong but nonetheless, congressman matt gaetz's office is out with yet another denial, a strong at the same time that reads, quote, the office will reiterate these allegations are blatantly false and have not been validated by a single human being willing to put their name behind them and there's ver

he is under investigation by the justice department and the house ethic committee. turn into a warner brothers -- and the house ethics committee, and they are investigating allegations of sex trafficking of a minor. gaetz made an appearance at the trump doral resort in miami this weekend for something called the "save america" summit. it's hosted bay group called women for america first, which is hilarious, and their keynote speaker had a dire warning for the ladies at lunch. >> so when you see the leaks and the lies and the falsehoods and the smears, when you see the anonymous sources and insiders forecasting my demise, know this. they are ren't really coming fo me. they're coming for you. >> no, they're coming for you. they're not coming for -- just you. let he who has never venmo'd a prostitute cast the first stone. sadly for matt, that trump hotel in miami was as close as gaetzy got to the t-man. the congressman was reportedly denied a meeting with trump at mar-a-lago, which that has to be a heartbreaker. matt gaetz was like the son donald trump never had. now h

the house ethics committee has opened an investigation into congressman matt gaetz, as you know, for laundry list of allegations. are you going to wait for the committee report, or do you think it is time for him to resign right now? >> it is up to the republicans to take responsibility for that. we, in the congress, in the house, have rule 23, which says in the conduct of our duties, we are not to bring dishonor to the house of representatives. i think there has been a clear violation of that, but it is up to the ethics committee to investigate that. and it is up to the republican leader, mr. mccarthy, to act upon that behavior. but we're hopeful that other things in the congress, rather than that -- wc about what can happen to our economy if we crush the virus. what the president has put forth is quite transformative for our country so that we can, as he said -- help is on the way, help is here. we'll build back better. >> brennan: speaker pelosi, thank you for your time. >> thank you. my please stay with us. >> brennan: "face ththe nanation" willll be back k in a nanation" willll

the house ethics is now looking into matt gates. how will that unfold? how will that happen? >> the ethics committee meets behind closed doors we do not have a lot of opportunity, but of course these are personnel matters. and a lot of allegations. congressman gates is under scrutiny for his conduct and his relations with some other people including a county assessor who is now facing charges down in florida for his sexual misconduct and to other potential wrongdoing. it appears to be a widening investigation the authorities are looking at a lot of folks in florida that were associated with the congressman. and of course the congressman returns came into congress from florida in 2017. big ally of former president trump. in the ethics committee announced the investigation friday because it is a bipartisan decision. the chairman is a democrat. the top ranking member is republican. they agreed that investigation. that is really the most we've heard from the republican leadership about congressman gates. it is been fairly quiet and not necessarily said much or said he needs to st

how skilled is the house ethics committee at examining this kind of conduct? >> i think i have skilled. i know how the process works. let me just say that ordinarily especially when there is a significant criminal investigation that is going on, that the ethics committee might open an investigation but would actually step back until there is a resolution of those -- that criminal investigation. on the other hand, there may be things that don't turn out to result in criminal liability for matt gaetz but are still unethical under the house rules and they would continue to investigate that. they conduct robust investigations. sometimes people are upset with how slow the process works. but i have seen the process work. and i think that -- they're going to step back until the fbi has had its say, the justice department has had its say before moving forward. and there may not be a need to move forward depending on what happens with matt gaetz in the end. >> so, katie, there is breaking news today about matt gaetz, criminal defense strategy. he has retained white col

. >> reporter: the house ethics committee launching a new bipartisan investigation into gaetz, examining allegations of psexual misconduct, illicit dru use, and accusations that the congressman may have shared inappropriate and explicit images on the house floor. the justice department investigating whether gaetz and his associate joel greenberg paid women who were allegedly recruited online for sex and travel. greenberg is already facing sex trafficking charges. he pled not guilty, but abc news has learned that he is now considering a plea deal and could be cooperating with federal investigators. greenberg's lawyer speaking out. >> i'm sure matt gaetz is not feeling very comfortable today. >> reporter: the congresman's office responding broadly in a another statement out friday saying, these allegations are blatantly false and have not been validated by a single human being willing to put their name behind them. but two members of gaetz's staff have resigned amid the allegations, but still gaetz insisting he's not going anywhere. whit? >> maryalice, our thanks to you tonight. >>> now to

he is facing a house ethics committee investigation as the first member of his own party calls on him to resign. ali vitale is tracking the developments. good morning to you. what's the latest there? >> reporter: good morning, kristin. congressman matt gaetz on home turf in front of a friendly audience. making clear even though he is mired in scandal, he is not backing down. matt gaetz defiant and doubling down in the face of allegations he was involved in sex trafficking and had sex with a 17-year-old girl. >> i won't be extorted by a former doj officials and crooks he is working with. the truth will prevail. >> headlining annie vent for a pro-trump women's group. >> i take words of margaret thatcher to heart. if you want something said, get a man. you want to get something done, hire a woman. >> he spoke the same day the house ethics committee opened an investigation into actions not just on sex trafficking but over allegations he showed nude images on the house floor and misused campaign funds. the congressman's heavily prowoman message after joel greenberg was arraigned on an arra

beyond the federal investigations, what does this now ethics investigation in the house mean for the ssman? >> well, i think the ethics investigation is probably the least of the congressman's concerns, considering how much the federal investigation is allegedly looking into. but this could cause him some problems in the house, he could be censured potentially. but i think the issue, he hasn't been charged with any crime. however, if he is, congressman kevin mccarthy, the minority leader in the house, could remove him from his committees, either temporarily or permanently, pending that investigation. so i think one of the things -- i should go back. when all of these scandals first broke, was the lack of surprise in the house of representatives among gaetz's colleagues. our reporters were speaking to republicans who had sort of said that they were just waiting for something to happen with gaetz, because of his behavior during his tenure in the house. he doesn't have a lot of allies. he doesn't have a lot of friends. and you can see that by the silence. there's no wagons circling. even