Adam Kinzinger becomes 1st GOP member of Congress to call on Gaetz to resign

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) tweeted a short message to Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fl.) on Thursday night: Resign.

The Justice Department is investigating Gaetz, 38, and whether he had sex with a 17-year-old girl and paid for her to travel out of state with him. In his tweet calling on Gaetz to resign, Kinzinger also linked to a new Daily Beast report about the allegations against Gaetz and Joel Greenberg, a Gaetz associate and the former tax collector for Seminole County, Florida. Gaetz has denied having sex with a 17-year-old.

Kinzinger, a moderate, is now the first Republican member of Congress to publicly say Gaetz needs to step down. Kinzinger was one of the few party members who publicly criticized former President Donald Trump. In February, he earned the ire of Gaetz, a staunch Trump supporter, who used expletives to respond to reports that Kinzinger planned on launching a super PAC targeting far-right members of the GOP.

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