Things are getting worse and worse for three-term U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz, especially now that we know the federal government is reportedly going through its iPhone for evidence in its underage sex scandal. Understandably, his re-election campaign is in panic mode and new documents show just how panic they are.
The 38-year-old Florida Republican’s latest campaign finance report is a pretty revealing document, detailing a PR blitz dating even before he admitted he was the subject of a federal investigation.
Between January and March of this year, Gaetz fundraised continuously during what is usually a slow period. He also spent $ 170,000 on a direct mail campaign to save his rapidly eroding image. $ 116,000 was spent in a single day – March 31 – the day after The New York Times reported that the Department of Justice was investigating his relationship with a 17-year-old girl and whether or not she had paid for her to surrender to him.
Another important detail in the documents shows that Gaetz paid $ 5,000 to summary Republican agent Roger Stone. Stone and his wife, meanwhile, are now being sued by the DOJ, which claims the couple did not pay millions in taxes and used their business, Drake Ventures, to hide money.
We also already knew he had made several donations to other Republican candidates, none of which reciprocated.
GOP lawmakers announced they were donating campaign funds Gaetz gave them to charity.
Rep. John Katko from New York says he donated Gaetz’s $ 4,000 to a local charity. Representative Brian Fitzpatrick from Pennsylvania says he donated $ 2,000 from Gaetz to a women’s shelter. And California Representative David Valadao said he plans to donate $ 4,000 from Gaetz to a domestic violence center.
Further spending on fundraising consultants and TV commercials against the allegations against him cost Gaetz several hundred thousand dollars. He clearly thinks he can buy his way out of this mess.
And then there’s the legal fees, which he’s already racked up around $ 85,000, according to the Daily Beast.
Of course, he can certainly simplify things and alleviate all those expenses if he ends up in jail.
