Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz relished in retelling stories of Hunter Biden’s drug troubles during Thursday’s impeachment hearing, as a Democratic member alluded to Gaetz’s previous brush with the law.
Gaetz read from the July 2019 New Yorker article that details Biden buying crack from dealers in a Los Angeles homeless encampment, and crashing a Hertz rental car, leaving drug paraphernalia inside.
‘The pot calling the kettle black is not something we should do,’ said Georgia Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson, who spoke after Gaetz, in what was widely interpreted to be a reference to Gaetz being arrested in October 2008 for driving under the influence – a charge that was later dropped.
Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz pounced on Hunter Biden’s drug use as outlined in a story by the New Yorker in July
Rep. Hank Johnson, a Georgia Democrat, clapped back by saying ‘the pot calling the kettle black is not something we should do’
Rep. Hank Johnson was alluding to Rep. Matt Gaetz’s (pictured) DUI arrest in 2008, for which he was never convicted
Rep. Hank Johnson said he didn’t think it was ‘proper’ to bring up substance abuse problems during the impeachment hearings, as it was off topic
Johnson gave himself a little wiggle room with his comments, adding, ‘I don’t know what members, if any, have had problems with substance abuse, have been busted with DUI.’
‘I don’t know,’ he continued. ‘But if I did, I wouldn’t raise it against anyone on this committee, I don’t think it’s proper.’
Later when asked if he knew about Gaetz’s DUI arrest Johnson wouldn’t say.
‘I’m not going to comment on that,’ he told DailyMail.com. ‘My message was that we should keep our proceedings on a high level and people who are in glass houses – you can’t throw rocks in a glass house.’
Rep. Matt Gaetz read sections of a New Yorker article about Hunter Biden (pictured) wrecking a rental car, leaving a crack pipe in it, and later trying to find drugs from homeless people in Los Angeles
Gaetz went full throddle when attacking Hunter Biden for his drug use.
The Florida Republican read directly from the New Yorker article, which said Hunter Biden, after having not slept for several days, wrecked his Hertz rental car and requested another.
‘The Hertz rental office “told me that he found a crack pipe in the car and, on one of the consoles, a line of white-powder residue. Beau Biden’s attorney-general badge was on the dashboard,”‘ Gaetz said, reading from the article. Police officers said they found ‘a white powdery substance, a Secret Service business card, credit cards and Hunter Biden’s driver’s license,’ the congressman went on.
‘That is what we would call evidence,’ Gaetz told the room. ‘And I don’t want to make light of anybody’s substance abuse issues. I know the president’s working real hard to solve those throughout the country. But it’s a little hard to believe that Burisma would hire Hunter Biden to resolve their international disputes when he could not resolve his own dispute with Hertz rental car over leaving cocaine and a crack pipe in the car.’
Gaetz then turned to another anecdote contained in the New Yorker article.
Hunter Biden, still in Los Angeles, trying to buy crack from the homeless, first asking around for it in Pershing Square.
‘Hunter said that the man took him to a nearby homeless encampment, where, in a narrow passageway between tents, someone put a gun to his head before realizing that he was a buyer,’ Gaetz said, reading the article verbatim. ‘He returned to buy more crack a few times that week.’
Gaetz then rehashed his main point.
‘Again, not casting any judgement on any challenges someone goes through on their personal life, but it is just hard to believe that this was the guy, wandering through homeless encampments buying crack, that was worth $86,000 a month to Burisma holdings,’ the Republican said.
Republican lawmakers have tried to vouch for President Trump’s behavior by characterizing Hunter Biden’s Ukrainian business dealings as shady.
The president is accused of holding up $400 million in military aid and an Oval Office meeting to Ukraine in order to pressure the country’s new president to announce he was investigating Hunter and Joe Biden.
Vice President Joe Biden is a top Democratic rival of President Trump.
As a Florida legislator Gaetz talked about his 2008 DUI arrest when he was pushing for a law that would keep Floridians’ mug shots off the internet until they are convicted.
Rep. Matt Gaetz brought up his 2008 DUI arrest – charges that were later dropped – when he was pushing for a law as a state legislator that would keep mug shots offline until suspects were convicted
Gaetz’s booking photo from his Halloween eve arrest is available online.
‘I made bad decisions that resulted in an arrest, and that is sort of something that we all live with,’ he explained to the Tampa Bay Times in 2014.
The night he was arrested, according to the paper, Gaetz was driving back from a nightclub called ‘The Swamp’ on Okaloosa Island when he was pulled over for going 13 miles over the speed limit. The arresting officer described Gaetz of fumbling for his license and registration, having watery and bloodshot eyes and swaying when he got out of the vehicle.
The officer smelled alcohol. Gaetz eventually admitted he had consumed two beers, but he refused a breath test.
Less than two weeks later, the arresting officer would get in trouble for grabbing a suspect around the neck. He resigned shortly thereafter.
The prosecutor for Gaetz’s case also asked to be reassigned, saying his stepson was friend’s with Gaetz.
Gaetz, himself, was the son of a Florida state senator.
By December 2008 the charges had been dropped by the prosecutor who took over the case.
Politifact found no evidence that Gaetz’s father ‘got him off.’