This is an opinion article piece. Tavishi Chattopadhyay is a sophomore who writes for the Global and Domestic News Section. All opinions expressed in the following editorial are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of  The Patriot.

As Women’s History Month passes and we enter into Sexual Assault Awareness month, more disturbing investigations into political figures. Among them, Matt Gaetz is accused of sex trafficking, paying for sex with women, and having a relationship with an underaged girl.

But who is Representative Matt Gaetz? Buckle in. Matt Gaetz is a Republican House of Representatives member from Florida. He’s a firm Trump supporter and that is part of the reason that he was elected in the first place. As a political figure, some things that he has done have been the following. He worked with other Republicans to barge into Capitol Hall during Trump’s impeachment in 2019. He invited a Holocaust denier to the State of the Union address and said that the Proud Boys provided security. He organized efforts to challenge Biden’s election results and defended ex-Apprentice star, Donald J Trump’s, baseless claims of election fraud. He also went to a rally against a senator that voted to impeach Trump the second time. He also was the only person to vote against a law that would give the government more power and money to deal with trafficking. He’s gained popularity within his own party. Why? Well BBC states that Gaetz is,“blessed with good looks, better hair and a sharp tongue.” Truthfully, his increased popularity in the right due more to his connections to the previous President and less to his appearance. In terms of personal life,  New York Times writes, “Last summer, he announced that he had a son, Nestor Galban, 19, though Mr. Gaetz said he was not Mr. Galban’s biological father, nor had he adopted him. Mr. Galban had been 12 when they met and had come to the United States from Cuba; Mr. Gaetz was at the time dating Mr. Galban’s sister.” Now that that’s out of the way, onto Gaetz’s investigation itself. 

Allegedly he was in a relationship with a 17 year old and paid for her to cross state lines. Which is called interstate trafficking of underage children for sex. Which also is a federal offense. The investigation itself is part of a larger investigation to press charges on Gaetz’s friend, Joel Greenberg. It’s stated that both men sought sex from women on sugar daddy websites. Greenberg is currently awaiting a trial for trafficking, identity fraud, and stalking charges. He is pleading not guilty. Gaetz has written an op-ed Monday on how he is not a criminal and will not be resigning. NBC states that the night this story was released, “Gaetz said ‘no part of the allegations against me are true.’ “ The investigation is still continuing as of the publishing of this article.