Newly released campaign documents for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) show the scandal-plagued congressman has spent the last month in “full damage control mode,” reports the Daily Beast.
In particular, the documents show Gaetz has been spending heavily on direct mail and TV ad blitzes intended to contain the fallout of revelations that he’s being investigated by the FBI for potential involvement in sex trafficking.
The Florida Republican has been trying to shore up public support in his panhandle district by blanketing the airwaves with ads that urge constituents to “fight back” against “a multi-week fake news cycle” about the investigation into whether Gaetz paid for sex with multiple women, including one who was just 17 years old at the time.
The most curious Gaetz campaign expense, however, was a payment made to infamous right-wing operative and convicted felon Roger Stone.
“One expense in particular will raise eyebrows: A $5,000 ‘strategic political consulting’ fee to Drake Ventures, the company belonging to longtime GOP smear artist and Gaetz associate Roger Stone,” the publication writes. “On Friday, the DOJ sued Stone and his wife, Nydia, alleging that the couple owes millions in unpaid taxes and have used Drake Ventures to shelter more than $1 million.”