I’m just telling you guys right now that at some point, the Florida shenanigans are going to be too much for me and I’m going to end up tapping out of this completely bonkers Matt Gaetz story. That’s not happening today, but if it continues to be this insane, I will totally start ignoring it because holy sh-t, I have such a low tolerance for this kind of tomfoolery. As we discussed, Rep. Matt Gaetz is under investigation for trafficking a 17-year-old girl across state lines and putting her up in a hotel so he could abuse her. In his media blitz following the news, Gaetz tried to take down Tucker Carlson and claim that he and this 17-year-old girlfriend (??) went to dinner with Tucker and Tucker’s wife and Tucker was like “the f–k you say?” Reportedly, Gaetz’s “taking everybody down with him” vibe has “pissed off” Carlson. LOL. But that brings up a larger point, which is that it honestly looks like Gaetz has been trafficking teenagers for a while, and the investigation – which began during the Trump administration – is more far-reaching than we originally thought:

The federal investigation into Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz is focused on allegations that the junior congressman had a sexual relationship with at least one minor, and is scrutinizing the Republican’s conduct not only in Florida but outside the politician’s home state too, three sources familiar with the investigation tell ABC News.

The investigation, first reported by the New York Times Tuesday and confirmed by ABC News, has sent shockwaves through Republican circles, particularly among close associates of former President Donald Trump, who considered Gaetz a staunch ally and loyal friend.

“I have not had a relationship with a 17-year-old. That is totally false,” Gaetz told Fox News’ Tucker Carlson in an interview Tuesday night. “That is false and records will bear that out to be false.”

Sources told ABC News the investigation has been going on for months and began during the Trump administration. Former Attorney General Bill Barr was briefed on the investigation’s progress several times, the sources said. One source told ABC News that federal authorities have already interviewed multiple witnesses as part of their probe.

Gaetz has reportedly told confidants he is considering retiring from Congress and possibly joining the right-wing media outlet Newsmax, according to an Axios report earlier Tuesday. Yet within the last several weeks Gaetz started reaching out to prominent attorneys, according to one source. The source said that one of the attorneys Gaetz asked to represent him was Washington attorney Bill Burck, who represented Steve Bannon, Reince Priebus and Don McGahn during the Mueller probe. Burck turned down the case, according to a person familiar with the decision.

[From ABC News]

Talk to Nestor too. Include all of the Nestor stuff in the investigation too. Because Gaetz is still “living” with a very young Cuban immigrant named Nestor and Gaetz refers to Nestor as his “son” and it’s shady as hell. But I also believe Gaetz has been trafficking teenage girls for a while, and I believe that’s what the investigation will reveal too. As for Gaetz’s claim that there’s some kind of extortion scheme against him and his father, here’s one small part of that:

Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican known for his fierce allegiance to former president Donald Trump, had been under Justice Department investigation for months for a possible sex crime when two men approached his father with a proposal, people familiar with the matter said. The men had learned of the investigation, they wrote to Don Gaetz, and wanted to offer an opportunity to help his son, the people said. He could give a huge sum of money to fund their effort to locate Robert A. Levinson — the longest-held American hostage in Iran, whose family has said they were told he is dead. If the operation were a success, he would win public favor and help alleviate Matt Gaetz’s legal woes.

But Don Gaetz, a prominent Florida Republican who once led the state Senate, viewed the communication suspiciously, the people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe a continuing and politically sensitive probe. The investigation into Matt Gaetz’s alleged crime — he is suspected of having sex with a 17-year-old girl, as well as funding her travel — was not public knowledge. Fearing his family was being extorted, Don Gaetz contacted the FBI.

The messy political drama has in some ways diverted attention from a grim reality for the congressman. He remains under investigation for possible sex crimes, leaving him vulnerable to potentially serious legal jeopardy.

The men who approached Don Gaetz, people familiar with the matter said, had no apparent connection to the sex-crimes investigation of his son, other than having somehow learned about it before it was publicly reported. But when news of law enforcement’s interest in Gaetz surfaced Tuesday, the congressman asserted that the allegation was “rooted in an extortion effort against my family for $25 million,” and he identified by name a former federal prosecutor who he said was part of the effort.

While the Justice Department investigates Gaetz, the FBI is separately examining whether the request to his father about Levinson might constitute extortion, with Gaetz and his family as possible victims. A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment.

[From WaPo]

OK. So… there was some kind of extortion scheme but it sounds separate from the legitimate investigation into Gaetz’s trafficking and abuse of children. Florida politics, man. This is like “tell me you’re from Florida without saying you’re from Florida.” “Well, the congressman is under investigation for trafficking and abusing teenagers but his powerful Republican father is also the victim of a strange blackmail scheme involving a dead hostage in Iran.”

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.