ABC’s “The View,” co-host and ABC News Senior Legal Correspondent and Analyst Sunny Hostin issued a “legal note” after Attorney General nominee Matt Gaetz issued a statement to the network regarding allegations against him.
During a discussion of the Cabinet picks, Hostin said: “Matt Gaetz has long denied all allegations, calling the claims ‘invented’, and saying in a statement to ABC News that this false smear, following a three-year criminal investigation, should be viewed with great skepticism.”
“The DOJ investigation was closed with no charges being brought.”
We don’t know what was better, the statement or the expression on Hostin’s face.
Watch:
Regardless of what anyone thinks about Gaetz, he is entitled to the presumption of innocence.
It’s worth noting that the FBI and DOJ spent years investigating the allegations against Gatez but never found anything.
Gaetz has long asserted there was a conspiracy against him, and that was proven correct.
In 2021, Stephen Alford was indicted for attempting to extort Gaetz’s father in a scheme related to the sex-trafficking allegations.
“A Florida developer and fraud convict was arrested Tuesday on a charge that he tried to extort $25 million from the father of Rep. Matt Gaetz in exchange for a presidential pardon that would shut down a high-profile, criminal sex-trafficking investigation into the Republican congressman.
Stephen Alford, 62, of Fort Walton Beach, was indicted on charges of wire fraud and destruction of property subject to a seizure warrant.”
The DOJ investigation has now ended, meaning any pointed claims that Gaetz did what Hostin said could be defamatory.
The “The View” legal team obviously realized their mistake and wrote a correction to be read on-air, citing a statement provided by Gaetz.
The best thing about this was that Hostin was visibly upset by having to read it.
