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[-] baltakatei@sopuli.xyz 35 points 15 hours ago

Fixed: Matt Gaetz, former Trump AG pick, ha~~d sex with~~ raped an underage girl while in Congress, House Ethics report says

A minor cannot consent.

[-] JeeBaiChow@lemmy.world 19 points 15 hours ago

So why did it take so long to release the report? From well before the election iirc. How is this not in the publics interest? Release the 'vote to release the report' vote also?

[-] SkyezOpen@lemmy.world 1 points 11 hours ago

Evidently DOJ was investigating, so the ethics committee back burnered it. Then of course it went nowhere, and gaetz wasn't pissing any republicans off at that moment so it wasn't reopened right away.

[-] gift_of_gab@lemmy.world 83 points 19 hours ago

... had sex with an underage girl...

So, rape? Underage people can't consent, it's rape. He's a pedophile.

[-] nimble@lemmy.blahaj.zone 31 points 17 hours ago

Yup. The report specifically found he violated FL statutory rape law, among other laws, but headlines continue to not call it what it is.

[-] gift_of_gab@lemmy.world 10 points 12 hours ago

America's willingness to elect pedophiles/rapists to the highest positions in their country is... baffling. To then have their news not even use those words just makes me worry so much for women in the US. Like seriously, 'sex with underage girl,' we have specific words for that. Embarrassing.

[-] NikkiDimes@lemmy.world 9 points 18 hours ago

inb4 the weirdos come saying "well she was 17, so he's acktually a hebo whatever blah blah" as if it matters

[-] usualsuspect191@lemmy.ca 3 points 15 hours ago

It matters only in that it gives cover to the extra extra sick ones that go after young children.

[-] thedeadwalking4242@lemmy.world 33 points 17 hours ago

Ok so now put him in jail wtf?

[-] Nightwingdragon@lemmy.world 38 points 20 hours ago

You know, I'm willing to believe that Gaetz genuinely didn't know the girl's age the first time they had sex. The report acknowledges as much. And I'm unwilling to accuse anybody, even someone as detestable as Gaetz, of something that they didn't do especially when there's evidence supporting their claim. And right now, there is plenty of evidence that he did not know she was underage when they had sex.

The first time.

Then he went back for seconds. Anyone who has ever been in an FWB relationship knows how it works. You don't just sit there and make an appointment for every Tuesday afternoon to just get together and quietly fuck like you're in a clinical trial or something. You don't get into an FWB relationship without getting to know someone. There's going to be small talk involved. Playful banter. Genuine conversation. And at some point in that conversation, age is going to come into play. Even if she doesn't directly say "I'm 17!!!", she's going to mention how much she hates the classes she's taking. Or her plans after she graduates. Or what she plans on being when she grows up. Or the fact she still lives at home. Something. Something is going to give away her age, or at the very least cause a reasonable person to at least start asking questions like "So what college do you go to?" to attempt to figure out how old she is.

And even if she's just being paid by an intermediary or something, small talk is still going to be involved. Even the most highly paid prostitute is going to engage in casual conversation to break the ice.

However it ended up, if it just happened once, I'd be willing to bet he genuinely didn't know her age. Then he went back for seconds. At that point, any reasonable person is going to believe he knew, and just didn't care.

[-] Glide@lemmy.ca 40 points 19 hours ago

Hot take: the difference between 17 and 18 doesn't actually matter, and the real problem is Matt Gaetz abused his position of power to coerce young, relatively powerless women into sex with him. Crossing the line of 17 vs 18 is so unimportant in this particular case. Matt Gaetz fights to maintain a system where young women have no power, and utilizes his socio-economic position in that system to sexually abuse those women. Whether she's just finishing up high school, or in her first year of university, we're still talking about a young women who feels like she needs that money to step forward in her life, and Matt Maetz, and many others like him, are responsible for creating that need. To then use that need to get sexual gratification from those same young women is fucking disgusting, whether or not she's crossed the socially dictated line of "adulthood."

[-] Nightwingdragon@lemmy.world 17 points 19 hours ago

Hot take: the difference between 17 and 18 doesn’t actually matter

Oh it absolutely matters in 12 states in this country, including Florida.

[-] affiliate@lemmy.world 10 points 16 hours ago

i think the person you’re replying to is making a normative claim. they’re talking about how there really isn’t much difference in maturity/development between a 17 year old and an 18 year old. both ages are way too young for this guy, not to mention the power imbalances, etc. but you’re right that as far as the law is concerned, there is a big difference between 17 and 18 year olds.

[-] Nightwingdragon@lemmy.world 5 points 16 hours ago

i think the person you’re replying to is making a normative claim.

That much I agree with. There's little to no practical difference. And in his defense, if anyone has been to a drug-fueled party, they can tell you how common anonymous (and sometimes public) sex happens. Say what you will about him being at a drug-fueled sex party in the first place, but if you're at a drug-fueled party with a whole bunch of wealthy and well connected adults and engage in sexual activity, it's not unreasonable to assume that the person you're screwing is an adult.

The difference between 17 and 18 can't be brushed off, though, when that difference almost singlehandedly makes the difference between you getting the side-eye and getting a prison sentence.

[-] wizblizz@lemmy.world 149 points 1 day ago

The correct phrasing is raped. He raped a child.

[-] lemmylommy@lemmy.world 38 points 23 hours ago

No, he is influential and rich. So the most damning phrase can be „had sex with“. The alternatives were „seduced“ or „was seduced by“.

[-] socsa@piefed.social 33 points 20 hours ago

The pedophilia is coming from inside the party?!

Also I love how every conservative is sprinting backwards with the goalposts here.

[-] breadsmasher@lemmy.world 49 points 22 hours ago

matt gaetz, confirmed pedophile

[-] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 24 points 20 hours ago

Where are all the pizzagate dipshits now?

[-] EleventhHour@lemmy.world 4 points 12 hours ago

About to take elected office.

[-] eran_morad@lemmy.world 66 points 1 day ago

And bitches wonder why we’re cheering Luigi, when shit like this doesn’t even matter?

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[-] Atelopus-zeteki@fedia.io 59 points 1 day ago

Arrest him like the criminal he is.

[-] SarcasticMan@lemmy.world 35 points 23 hours ago* (last edited 23 hours ago)

Sorry, you must have missed the meeting, we do not do repercussions for anyone worth more than $1 million and a light skin tone. As punishment, we will just give him a high-paying political pundit job on OAN. Thank you for your concerns and please get fucked. Sincerely, United States Judicial System.

Edit: I can't spell

[-] CharlesDarwin@lemmy.world 44 points 23 hours ago

I seem to recall this asshat and his best buddy ~~Fred Flintstone~~ MTG going on about "groomers" all the time.

Looks like we found the actual groomer.

And as usual, it's ALWAYS projection with the qons. Always.

[-] EleventhHour@lemmy.world 3 points 12 hours ago

Every accusation is a confession

[-] circuitfarmer@lemmy.sdf.org 12 points 19 hours ago

These are the people the modern Republican party puts forth. These are the "values" we are told we need.

[-] Freefall@lemmy.world 17 points 20 hours ago

Breaking News: Thing we all knew. In other news, GoP says facts presented are fake and they don't believe them. Nothing changes.

[-] Rozz@lemmy.sdf.org 10 points 20 hours ago

I'm sure justice will be done swiftly and fairly

[-] AbidanYre@lemmy.world 4 points 20 hours ago
[-] ubergeek@lemmy.today 1 points 8 hours ago

But I was told by someone here on lemmy that there wasn't possibly time to lay charges, since we only learned about last month!!

[-] xc2215x@lemmy.world 3 points 19 hours ago

Knowing Matt I am not shocked.

[-] Jumpingspiderman@lemmy.world 2 points 20 hours ago

Tell us something we didn't already know for a change.

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this post was submitted on 23 Dec 2024
543 points (99.3% liked)

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