While Rep. Matt Gaetz disputes allegations that he was involved in a sex ring, the Florida Republican’s latest campaign finance report reflects a public relations battle that began before he acknowledged it was the focus of a federal investigation.
The filing, covering the three months between January and March, shows that Gaetz incurred unprecedented fundraising costs during a generally quiet period. At the time, Gaetz dropped six figures on a direct mail blitz, spending more money on fundraising services than in all of 2020.
Gaetz also paid $ 5,000 in fees for “strategic advice” to notorious political agent Roger Stone, and gave money to a number of GOP Florida state legislators that he has never supported before. The report also indicates that Gaetz – who cites his lack of friends in Washington as a point of pride – may be becoming increasingly isolated; he has not received any contributions from his GOP colleagues.
More than anything else, the filing reflects a concerted effort to bolster support before the creeping shadow of the research. Gaetz spent about $ 170,000 on direct mail this year, of which $ 116,543 in one day – March 31. The previous day, The New York Times broke news that the Justice Department was investigating whether the third-term congressman had sex with a 17-year-old and paid for her trip, a possible violation of federal sex trafficking laws.
Gaetz has also invested heavily in fundraising, paying Nevada-based Red Rock Strategies nearly $ 160,000 for fundraising advice. That’s about $ 10,000 more than the campaign spent on fundraising services in 2019 and 2020 combined, according to The Daily Beast’s analysis of the FEC database deposits.
Last week, Politico also reported that Gaetz recently spent six figures on TV ads to retaliate against the allegations. The 30-second spots, scheduled to run in his home district and on select national cable networks, ask supporters to “fight back” against “a multi-week fake news cycle” targeting CNN specifically. The ad purchases came after the quarterly submission deadline and are not included in the latest report, but should appear in the next submission, due in July.
However, one issue in particular will raise eyebrows: a $ 5,000 fee for “strategic political advice” to Drake Ventures, the company of longtime GOP defamationist and Gaetz employee Roger Stone. On Friday, the DOJ sued Stone and his wife, Nydia, on the grounds that the couple owes millions in unpaid taxes and used Drake Ventures to house more than $ 1 million.
The campaign paid off Stone’s company on March 24, just days before Gaetz’s father had a face-to-face meeting with a former prosecutor, according to a person familiar with the meeting. In a bizarre March 31 interview with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson, Matt Gaetz alleged that his father recorded that conversation at the behest of the FBI, claiming without evidence that the former prosecutor was central to a complicated plan to extort the congressman . The Gaetz campaign had never paid Drake Ventures until then.
The report also suggests that Gaetz has few friends in Washington. While Gaetz renounced donations from corporate PACs, he kept the door open for donations from candidate committees. But he has so far reported no financial support in 2021 from friends in Congress, such as Jim Jordan and Stephen Scalise, who have both donated to his 2020 campaign. And although he made $ 4,000 donations to Sens in mid-February. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rand Paul (R-KY), Gaetz did not give any money to House colleagues.
However, Gaetz sent $ 1,000 donations to five Florida state senators from the GOP on Jan. 26. Gaetz had not previously donated to any of their campaigns.
One of the contributions reflects Gaetz’s ties to Joel Greenberg, his longtime friend whose federal charge of a series of crimes – including sex trafficking – led to the Gaetz investigation. Contribution went to Jason Brodeur, a longtime Gaetz ally who also had close ties to Greenberg through local GOP circles. Brodeur’s campaign came under scrutiny for nasty tricks, including an alleged bogus candidate scheme. Brodeur has denied his involvement and won that race, now he represents Greenberg’s Seminole County at the state level.
Gaetz has also continued to bring in legal fees, a pattern established last summer around the time the DOJ investigation was reportedly launched. The Daily Beast reported earlier this month that weeks after Greenberg was first charged – in June 2020 – Gaetz paid law firm Venable LLP $ 38,000, nearly four times the combined amount of legal fees from the previous five years. The new filing reveals a $ 21,000 payment to Venable in February, bringing the total legal costs to $ 85,000 since Greenberg was charged.
Caleb Burns, a partner at Wiley Rein who specializes in campaign funding, told The Daily Beast that spikes in legal costs often accompany a parallel spike in fundraising.
“The law allows candidates and office holders to use campaign contributions for legal costs arising from the duties and responsibilities of their candidates and office holders,” explains Burns. But if an official is in a car accident on the way to the grocery store – which has nothing to do with looking for or holding office – the law prohibits the use of campaign funds to cover any resulting legal costs. Therefore, it is not uncommon for candidates and office holders who are under scrutiny for their political activities to raise additional money for their campaigns to help cover the associated legal costs. “
While the thrust of the Gaetz investigation would focus on the sex trafficking allegations, CNN reported earlier this month that federal investigators are also investigating campaign funding irregularities as part of their broader investigation. Gaetz can legally use his campaign cash for those expenses.
The congressman has already raised money from the scandal. On April 7, Talking Points Memo published a fundraising email in which Gaetz’s Extreme Links New York Times“For reporting” scandalous allegations against me in an attempt to end my career by fighting for the forgotten men and women of this country. The email added that it was “a shame that the Left was trying to drag my dating life into their political attacks” and added a donation link asking supporters to “fight back against the fake news.”
Gaetz donor Richard Bell, who gave to Congressman late last month, told The Daily Beast that while he liked Gaetz’s policies since arriving in DC, Gaetz “would have to pay the price” if the allegations are true.
“I know that defending comes at a high cost and I felt like I wanted to help,” said Bell.
Another recent donor, Florida resident Jerry Klinger, told The Daily Beast that he gave to Gaetz because he agreed with the congressman’s “ small government philosophy. ” However, Klinger said that “the shadows that have emerged since then may have given me a pause to reconsider.”
Klinger expressed skepticism about the merits of the DOJ investigation, saying he has “no objection” if Gaetz uses his donation for legal costs. But he pointed out that the congressman comes from a wealthy and influential family.
“If Dad wants to pay for junior, that’s a different story,” he said.