(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) A defeated Democratic congresswoman has been exposed as the alleged leaker behind a smear campaign against former Rep. Matt Gaetz, whom President-elect Donald Trump had chosen to be his attorney general.
Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa., the top Democrat on the House Ethics Committee formerly investigating Gaetz, has been identified as the individual behind the countless media hits that ultimately thwarted Gaetz’s nomination to be AG.
The Hill first reported on Wild’s role in the leaks on Monday. She is set to leave Congress in January after losing her seat to Ryan Mackenzie, a Republican state representative. Mackenzie won the seat by 5,000 votes.
As reported by the outlet, two anonymous sources claim Wild admitted to funneling private information to the media. She was notably absent from the Ethics Committee’s meeting last week, though it remains unclear if her absence was voluntary or tied to her exposure as the leaker.
It is unclear whether Wild will preside over future meetings before her term expires. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., called on Wild to be reprimanded for her leaks, which appeared to be an ironic and grave violation of the Ethics Committee rules.
“In my opinion, there ought to be repercussions for that,” Johnson said on Tuesday, according to Axios. “We can’t set that as a precedent. It’s dangerous.”
Gaetz echoed Johnson’s sentiments via X: “Wild leaked false allegations about me which were so unfounded that they were rejected by the Biden DOJ.” He also pointed out that Wild was “rejected by her own voters in November,” while he won re-election with two-thirds of the vote.
Susan Wild was rejected by her own voters in November. She lost.
I was re-elected by mine. 2/3 of the vote.
Then, Wild leaked false allegations about me which were so unfounded that they were rejected by the Biden DOJ. https://t.co/wnRnBthX3N
— Former Congressman Matt Gaetz (@FmrRepMattGaetz) December 10, 2024
Gaetz, a Republican firebrand who represented Florida’s 1st Congressional District since 2017, resigned after Trump announced his intent to nominate him as attorney general.
Gaetz later withdrew his name from consideration after reports suggested he lacked the votes for confirmation in the Republican-led Senate. This withdrawal followed smear campaigns fueled by the House Ethics Committee’s investigation into his alleged ties to sex trafficking.
Gaetz was never charged with any wrongdoing. Despite this, the House Ethics Committee pursued a years-long investigation that only intensified after he led Kevin McCarthy’s ouster as House speaker.
McCarthy has since claimed Gaetz orchestrated his ouster because McCarthy refused to shut down the Ethics Committee’s investigation.
