Matt Gaetz denies CNN report about Trump refusing to meet him
Rep. Matt Gaetz, who faces allegations of sexual misconduct, pushed back at CNN for claiming that former President Donald Trump refused to meet with him — calling the report a lie and demanding a retraction.
“This is a total lie. I am on a pre-planned vacation with my fiancée. I was welcomed at Trump Doral days ago,” Gaetz posted on Twitter Sunday evening.
“No such meeting was denied nor sought. … When can we expect a retraction?” he continued.
CNN reported that Trump refused to meet with the Florida Republican at his Mar-a-Lago resort in the Sunshine State, suggesting that the former president and other Republicans are distancing themselves from Gaetz now that he reportedly is under investigation by federal prosecutors over whether he broke sexual trafficking laws by having sex with a 17-year-old girl.
Gaetz has denied the claims, saying they are part of an attempt to extort $25 million from his family.
CNN’s report, citing two people familiar with the matter, said Gaetz, one of Trump’s most vocal supporters in Congress, tried to arrange a meeting after news of the investigations first broke, but aides for the ex-commander-in-chief advised against it.
The news channel reported that a spokesman for Gaetz, Harlan Hill, said Gaetz, 38, was “with his fiancée this week during recess.”
In addition, Jason Miller, a top aide to Trump, tweeted on Sunday that the CNN report was “made up.”
“This @CNN story is complete fake news. No such scheduling or meeting request was ever made, and therefore, it could never have been declined. Take note that this story has zero on-the-record sources. It’s literally made-up,” Miller said in the tweet.
“We are demanding a full retraction. #FakeNews,” he said.
Gaetz, who is also under investigation by the House Ethics Committee, spoke Friday night at Trump’s Doral golf club in Miami and called the allegations an effort by the media to smear him.
“I’m built for the battle and I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “The smears against me range from distortions of my personal life to wild — and I mean wild — conspiracy theories.”