International
The next attorney general Matt Gaetz manages to stop the report on his sex scandal
The Ethics Committee of the US House of Representatives did not make public this Wednesday due to lack of agreement the report of its investigation into Matt Gaetz, nominated by President-elect Donald Trump, to be the next attorney general and investigated for inappropriate sexual behavior and drug use.
The president of that commission, Republican Michael Guest, told the press at the end of the nearly two-hour meeting at the Capitol that there was no consensus among the members when making that document public.
That body was going to put its decision to a vote last Friday, but Gaetz’s resignation from his seat two days earlier, after being appointed by Trump, delayed that scrutiny and effectively ended the investigations into him.
Although with the departure of the Florida representative of Congress, the commission was left without jurisdiction to investigate him, the publication of the conclusions of his investigation opened in 2021 for alleged inappropriate sexual conduct, irregular use of campaign funds, acceptance of bribes and drug use was still in the air.
Committee interviews
The committee interviewed two women who testified that Gaetz, nominated for attorney general, paid them for having sex at a party in Florida, where prostitution is illegal.
According to the women’s lawyer to the NBC News channel, Joel Leppard, one of them also testified that she saw Gaetz having sex with a minor, although he said that he did not think he knew that he was 17 years old at the time.
Gaetz has denied those accusations and Trump’s transition team considers them unfounded and recalls that the Department of Justice closed a parallel investigation without charges.
Review of the report
Several senators, both Republicans and Democrats, had said that they wanted to review that report before the Judicial Committee of the Upper House examines Gaetz’s nomination next year and then the plenary of that hemicycle validates or stops it.
The authorization of the positions of the future cabinet depends on the Senate, but until then Gaetz has the support of Trump, who has stated that he does not question his own decision, and also of the future vice president, JD Vance, who accompanied him to Congress this Wednesday.
Report on Gaetz next attorney general has had leaks
However, although the House Committee on the House of Representatives stopped the dissemination of the report, there have already been leaks in the national press.
The lawyer of the two women indicated that they provided that committee with numerous photos related to the time they spent with the Republican, who according to that lawyer paid 6,000 dollars to one and 4,000 to another to sleep with them.
The leader of the House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson, had wanted to stay out of the committee’s decision, but at the same time he did not consider it appropriate for it to disseminate his investigation: “That would open Pandora’s box and I don’t think it’s something healthy for the institution,” he said.
International
Caravan of 1,500 migrants depart Mexico amid growing fears of U.S. border closure
A caravan of 1,500 migrants departed from Mexico’s southern border on Monday, defying statements from U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who assured last week that such groups no longer reach the northern border.
The mostly Venezuelan group walked 26 kilometers for about 10 continuous hours, from Tapachula, the largest city on the border with Central America, to Huehuetán, where they split into two groups.
The larger group continued towards the municipality of Huixtla, while the second group stayed behind to rest in Huehuetán’s park.
The caravan also includes migrants from Colombia, Haiti, Cuba, Central America, and regions further away, including the Middle East.
Venezuelan Joswes Linares shared with EFE that they fled due to insecurity, kidnappings, and extortion, which is why they prefer traveling in groups for safety.
Linares explained that they are hurrying due to the incoming presidency of Trump, who last week warned that another migrant caravan was heading towards the U.S.
“We fear that he will close the border, because the asylum appointment takes six to seven months. Some are lucky, but it would be worse for us to wait,” he stated. “We are going to cover about 1,000 kilometers.”
International
ICC prosecutor urges Venezuela to release political prisoners and children detained
International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan urged the Venezuelan government, led by President Nicolás Maduro, to release minors and civilians detained for “political reasons.”
“After this year’s elections, I insisted in my communications with Venezuela and in public statements about the need to protect the rights of civilians, including children, who should be released if detained for political reasons or for peacefully protesting,” Khan said on Monday during his speech at the annual meeting of ICC member countries.
Khan emphasized that the ICC’s independent investigations into Venezuela “remain active,” and warned that Venezuela’s lack of action could hinder progress in the principle of complementarity. “I have not seen the concrete implementation of laws and practices in Venezuela that I had expected. The ball is in Venezuela’s court. The route of complementarity is running out,” he cautioned.
International
José Mujica apologizes for “crude” comments about Cristina Kirchner, urges peronist renewal
Former Uruguayan President José Mujica acknowledged on Monday that his comments about Argentina’s ex-president Cristina Kirchner, made during an AFP interview, were “crude” and “not at all diplomatic.” Mujica criticized Kirchner for not stepping aside to allow new generations to lead but reiterated the need for renewal within the Peronist movement.
“The terminology was not diplomatic at all—it was crude,” Mujica told the Uruguayan newspaper La Diaria. He was referring to remarks about Kirchner, who served as president from 2007 to 2015 and as vice president from 2019 to 2023.
“There’s old Kirchner in Argentina, still leading Peronism. Instead of becoming an elder advisor and letting new generations take over, no, she’s still meddling. How hard it is for them to let go of the cake! Damn it!” Mujica had said in the AFP interview published last Friday.
Mujica, an 89-year-old former guerrilla fighter and global leftist icon who served as Uruguay’s president from 2010 to 2015, emphasized to La Diaria that he respects Kirchner, describing her as “a phenomenon,” with “tremendous subliminal weight,” and “an admirable and exceptional woman.”
However, he doubled down on his call for renewal within Peronism. “I think that major figures—and there’s no greater figure in Peronism than Cristina Kirchner—should use their influence to explore, identify, and promote new generations,” he stressed.
Mujica’s comments to AFP about Kirchner generated significant media attention, though he told La Diaria that “no one has said anything” to him about it because people are familiar with his blunt way of speaking.
This isn’t the first time Mujica’s remarks about Kirchner have sparked controversy. In April 2013, while serving as president of Uruguay, he was overheard saying, “That old lady is worse than the one-eyed man. The one-eyed man was more political; she’s more stubborn,” referring to then-President Kirchner and her late husband, former President Néstor Kirchner, unaware his microphone was on before a meeting in Uruguay.
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