House Ethics chair: Panel held final meeting this week, signaling end of Gaetz talks

Rep. Michael Guest (R-Miss.), the chair of the House Ethics Committee, told The Hill on Tuesday that the panel met this week and does not have any more gatherings scheduled for the 118th Congress, signaling that it is done deliberating on its report into former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.).

“We met earlier this week and we don’t have any additional meetings currently set right now,” Guest said.

Guest did not disclose whether the committee met on Monday or Tuesday, nor what they discussed, since the panel aims to conduct its business in secrecy. He declined to comment when asked if the committee held another vote on releasing the Gaetz report. Guest did, however, say the panel could schedule an additional meeting if something comes up and the need for one arises.

The Hill spoke with Guest after he met with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) in his office. Guest would not detail what they discussed. The Speaker’s office and a spokesperson for the Ethics Committee declined to comment.

News of this week’s Ethics Committee meeting, and no additional gatherings on the schedule, signal that the panel is finished with its work for the 118th Congress, which in recent weeks has been dominated by the heated debate regarding whether the group should release its report into Gaetz. The last week of scheduled session for the House in the 118th Congress is next week.

The Ethics Committee has been investigating Gaetz for roughly three-and-a-half years, looking into allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing.

That probe, however, came to an abrupt halt after Gaetz resigned from Congress to be President-elect Trump’s attorney general, which he later withdrew his name from consideration for. Gaetz has said he will not take the oath of office for the 119th Congress.

His nomination sparked bipartisan pressure on the panel to release its body of work on the Florida Republican.

The Ethics Committee met twice in the past month to discuss the Gaetz report, breaking from the gatherings without releasing the report. The group held a vote on releasing the report during the first of the two meetings, which failed.

After last week’s huddle, the panel wrote in a statement that it was “continuing to discuss the matter,” and Guest told reporters that meeting was not the group’s last.

On Tuesday, however, Guest told The Hill that the group held its final gathering this week, though he noted that the panel could arrange an additional meeting if something were to rise to their attention.

“There are no meetings scheduled right now. If there is a need for an additional meeting then we can in short order get the members together and meet. But with next week being the last week in session, we don’t have any additional, regular scheduled meetings,” Guest said.

The apparent end of the panel’s deliberations over the Gaetz report comes after House Republicans last week torpedoed an effort by Democrats to compel the committee to publish its findings into Gaetz.

Reps. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) and Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) forced votes on their resolutions calling on the committee to release its information on Gaetz, which the chamber voted to refer to the committee.

Guest’s comments also cap off what has been a noteworthy few weeks for the Ethics Committee: Rep. Susan Wild (Pa.), the top Democrat on the panel, was absent from last week’s meeting after being traced as the source of leaks to the press regarding the Gaetz investigation, The Hill previously reported. Guest would not comment if Wild was present at this week’s meeting.

Updated at 8:10 p.m. EST.