Matt Gaetz admits to womanizing and partying too much as he slams House’s move to release ethics report: Live
Former Florida congressman says ‘not criminal’ that he partied in his thirties, and now lives a different life
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The results of an ethics investigation into now-former congressman Matt Gaetz will be made public after a secret vote to share the report in the final days of 2024.
Members of the House Ethics Committee voted again earlier this month, reversing a decision to withhold the findings of a long-running probe into allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use.
The report is expected to be made public as lawmakers prepare to leave Washington for the holidays, CNN reported. Gaetz, 42, responded on X, arguing his actions in his thirties were “not criminal” and he now leads a different life.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump has claimed ex-Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney “could be in a lot of trouble” after a House GOP subcommittee called for her to be investigated by the Justice Department over her stewardship of the panel that examined the Capitol riot of January 6, 2021, accusing her of witness tampering by “colluding” with Cassidy Hutchinson on her testimony.
The president-elect posted the taunt on Truth Social, thanking Congressman Barry Loudermilk, who led the subcommittee and produced the interim report, for “a job well done”.
Cheney herself has already rubbished Loudermilk’s report as “a malicious and cowardly assault on the truth”.
Trump-backed lawmaker roasted after apparently mistaking Star Wars prop for captured drone
Trump backs idea to make the Postal Service – which is included in the Constitution – private
Trump sues Des Moines Register and top pollster for survey released the day before the election
Judge refuses to toss out bribery charge against NYC mayor
‘We live to fight another day’
After losing the ranking member spot on the House Oversight Committee to Rep. Gerry Connolly, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote on BlueSky: “Tried my best. Sorry I couldn’t pull it through everyone - we live to fight another day.”
TikTok ban in numbers: Why the block could change the world even more than we thought
After amassing more than 170 million users in the country in less than seven years, TikTok is now facing an outright ban in the US.
On 19 January, just one day before Donald Trump is set to be inaugurated as president, the country is set to become the latest to completely ban the Chinese-owned app.
TikTok’s parent company ByteDance is still attempting to reverse the ruling, and has three potential ways to avoid the nationwide ban. The first is to ask the US Supreme Court to intervene, which it did on Monday. The second is to convince Trump to reverse the decision when he comes into office, with TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew reportedly meeting with the incoming president on Monday. And the third – though this appears increasingly unlikely – ByteDance can abide by the ruling and sell TikTok to a US-based owner.
Read more:
TikTok is about to be banned – it could change the world even more than we thought
More than 3 billion people are already blocked from using the app, writes Anthony Cuthbertson
Live: Immigration activists call on Congress to oppose Trump deportation plans
Don Jr insists he will always ‘care for’ Kimberly Guilfoyle
Donald Trump Jr has said he will always “care for” Kimberly Guilfoyle and that the couple retain “a special bond” amid reports that they have ended their four-year engagement and parted ways.
While the couple has still not officially confirmed the split, the president-elect’s eldest son, 46, was recently pictured with Florida socialite Bettina Anderson celebrating her 38th birthday at Buccan, an exclusive Palm Beach restaurant, and enjoying a romantic evening stroll along the beach.
The photos, published by The Daily Mail, coincided with Guilfoyle, 55, being picked by President-elect Donald Trump to be his next US ambassador to Greece, leading to jokes from the likes of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel that she had effectively been exiled to Athens to avoid an embarrassing break-up.
Now, Don Jr has told Page Six he and Guilfoyle “will never stop caring for each other” – though he stopped short of confirming their relationship is over.
“Kimberly and I will never stop caring for each other and will always keep a special bond,” he said.
Don Jr insists he will always ‘care for’ Kimberly Guilfoyle
President-elect’s eldest son has still not officially confirmed the split but was pictured last week with Florida socialite Bettina Anderson
US embassy damaged in Vanuatu earthquake
The US embassy was damaged Tuesday in an earthquake striking Port Vila, the capital of the South Pacific Ocean nation Vanuatu.
The 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck at about 12.53 p.m. and there were following “aftershocks,” an embassy alert said.
“There are also reports of landslides in the Port Vila area. People are advised to avoid entering buildings as they may be damaged or unstable,” the embassy added. “The U.S. Embassy in Port Vila has sustained considerable damage during the earthquake and is closed until further notice.”
Electoral college certification today
Presidential electors are meeting in all 50 states and Washington D.C. to ratify President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
In a mostly ceremonial voting process, 538 electoral votes will be handed down. Thirteen of the electors are Republicans who took part in the fake electors plot in 2020, and some of them face criminal charges.
Connolly beats AOC in race for ranking member slot on Oversight Committee
Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly has beaten Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for the ranking member spot on the House Oversight Committee.
Connolly received 131 votes to Ocasio-Cortez’s 84.
RFK Jr and Tulsi Gabbard head to the Hill for meetings with senators
HHS secretary nominee Robert F Kennedy Jr. and the nominee to serve as the director of national intelligence, former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard are on the hill Tuesday to drum up support for their respective nominations.
Congressional Republicans say government funding deal reached, report says
Congressional Republicans have reached a deal in principle to fund the federal government, according to CNN.
Speaker Mike Johnson has said he hopes to release the on Tuesday afternoon. It reportedly includes almost $100 billion in disaster aid and another $10 billion in banking relief for farmers.
The deal also includes an extension of the farm bill for one year, a provision aiding biofuels, a measure extending telehealth flexibilities, and another measure for pharmacy benefit managers, the network noted.
Leaders of both parties remain confident that a government shutdown will be averted before Friday.
Trump lashes out at New York justice: ‘A completely illegal, psychotic order’
Donald Trump lashed out at Acting Justice of the New York State Supreme Court Juan Merchan after he rejected the president-elect’s attempt to throw out his hush-money case conviction based on the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity.
“In a completely illegal, psychotic order, the deeply conflicted, corrupt, biased, and incompetent Acting Justice Juan Merchan has completely disrespected the United States Supreme Court, and its Historic Decision on Immunity,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Tuesday.
Calling Merchan a “radical partisan,” the former president went on to claim that he wrote, “an opinion that is knowingly unlawful, goes against our Constitution, and, if allowed to stand, would be the end of the Presidency as we know it.”
“I am the only Political Opponent in American History not allowed to defend myself,” Trump added in a subsequent post after nominating some of his own defense lawyers to top roles at the Department of Justice.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments