Two moderate Republicans on the House Ethics Committee are believed to have colluded with their Democrat colleagues in a secret vote to release the committee’s report on former Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL). Representatives Dave Joyce (R-OH) and Andrew Garbarino (R-NY)—both close allies of ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and named by him to the Ethics Committee in January of 2023—backed the report’s release, according to Axios.
The two Republican Congressmen were among a series of McCarthy lieutenants placed in key committees and tasked with imposing the then-Speaker’s will on the Republican-controlled House. However, it appears their charge changed after Rep. Gaetz toppled McCarthy’s speakership in October of 2023, using a motion to vacate against the California Republican. While both Joyce and Garbarino initially appear to have voted against releasing the ethics report—likely because current House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) weighed in against making the document public—their about-face suggests potential pressure from either McCarthy himself or his allies.
In November, several ex-McCarthy staffers and lawmakers aligned with the former Speaker celebrated when Gaetz was forced to withdraw from consideration for U.S. Attorney General. Rep. Michale Lawler (R-NY) declared in a post on X (formerly Twitter), “Justice has been served.” This was echoed by former McCarthy aide Brittany Martinez.
Meanwhile, Rep. Joyce appears to have serious ethical issues himself. The Ohio Republican is accused of 136 violations of the STOCK Act, which aims to prevent lawmakers from engaging in insider trading. While the House Ethics Committee has jurisdiction to take action against these violations, it appears Joyce has enjoyed an explicit lack of investigation into his stock trading. Even more troubling, Joyce was the lone member of the Ohio Republican Congressional delegation to vote against holding Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress.
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