GOP rabble-rouser Matt Gaetz was kicked out of closed-door testimony from former National Security Council staffer Fiona Hill on Monday by Adam Schiff.
The reason Gaetz was ejected from the deposition should be obvious. Gaetz is something of a scoundrel, and we don’t necessarily say that with any malice – it’s a point of pride for Matt.
Prior to Michael Cohen’s testimony in February, for example, Gaetz literally suggested Cohen’s wife might turn into a vengeful prostitute while he serves a prison term for misdeeds committed while working for Donald Trump. “Do your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends? Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat”, Gaetz tweeted to Cohen, prior to his testimony. “I wonder if she’ll remain faithful when you’re in prison”, Gaetz added.
That laughably flagrant broadside was widely decried by some of Matt’s fellow lawmakers as potential witness tampering.
For his trouble, Gaetz was investigated by the Florida Bar. Luckily, they found no reason to believe that Matt violated any of the rules regulating members.
“The Florida Bar has informed me that the Grievance Committee found ‘No Probable Cause’ that I violated the rules of my profession”, he proudly tweeted in August, along with a thumbs-up emoji. “They are taking no disciplinary action against me & are sending a letter of advice”.
That’s indicative of Gaetz’s personality, so it comes as absolutely no surprise that he tried to effectively spy on the Fiona Hill deposition for the White House.
Schiff was having none of it, though.
“I went into the committee room and Mr. Schiff told me I had to leave”, the Florida Republican said, after leaving the secure room where Hill was in the process of being deposed.
If you’re wondering whether Matt had a right to be there in the first place, the answer is not really. He’s not a member of any of the three House committees conducting the impeachment probe. He left voluntarily on a ruling from The House parliamentarian.
“And we waited for a ruling from the parliamentarian. And at that time, I had to depart”, he said.
Gaetz – who is most assuredly an expert on “clown shows” – delivered a farcical statement while donning his signature smirk.
“This morning we see further evidence that Adam Schiff’s clown show of an impeachment proceeding continues”, Gaetz said.
That’s annoying until you remember that unlike Jim Jordan and Mark Meadows, Matt doesn’t necessarily expect you to take him seriously.
“Adam Schiff lied when he said that he [and] his team had not had contact with the whistleblower. He lied when he read a false transcript into the record”, Gaetz went on to remark.
Maybe. But Marie Yovanovitch didn’t “lie” when she said that Rudy Giuliani worked with outside parties to undermine official State department business.
And Fiona Hill wasn’t expected to do any “lying” on Monday, when multiple sources said she would tell Congress about what she perceived to be “an egregious abuse of the system” by Trump allies looking to “remove a perceived obstacle” to potentially illegal activities in Ukraine.
Read more: Fiona Hill, Gordon Sondland Seen Telling Congress The Truth. And That’s Not Good For Trump, Giuliani
