Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) introduced a House motion on Tuesday to force a vote on her resolution requiring the House Ethics Committee to publicly release all sexual harassment and inappropriate relationship investigations into members of Congress — a direct swipe at a candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump, Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas).
Mace’s resolution directs the Ethics Committee to within 60 days after its adoption publicly release “all final reports, or in such cases where there is not a final report, the most recent draft report, conclusions, recommendations, exhibits, and attached or accompanying materials, with the personally identifiable information of victims, alleged victims and witnesses redacted, related to the Committee’s investigations into violations or alleged violations” into alleged sexual harassment or misconduct. Leaders must consider her resolution on the floor within two legislative days.
“We have ZERO tolerance for those who abuse their power over others. Zero. It does not matter what party you are in, what title you hold, or how powerful you think you are. You do not get a free pass,” Mace previously said about Gonzales in a statement. “Tony Gonzales should resign immediately and be held fully accountable for what he’s done. She and her family deserved better. And Texans deserve a congressman who does not prey on women.”
Gonzales is alleged to have had a romantic relationship with one of his aides, Regina Santos-Aviles, even though both of them were married. The relationship took a tragic turn last year when Santos-Aviles died after lighting herself on fire in her Uvalde home. Leaked text messages seem to show Gonzales have sexually explicit conversations with Santos-Aviles, including at one point appearing to demand sexually explicit photographs. An attorney working for Santos-Aviles’ widower claims the text messages are authentic.
By contrast, Gonzales denied any romantic ties to Santos-Aviles.
“Ms. Santos-Aviles was a kind soul who devoted her life to making the community a better place,” Gonzales said in a statement. “Her efforts led to improvements in school safety, healthcare, and rural water like never before.” Gonzales then claimed the rumors of him having an affair with Santos-Aviles began with Herrera and a “disgruntled staffer,” adding that he would not “engage in these personal smears and instead will remain focused on helping President Trump secure the border and improve the lives of all Texans.”
In addition to Herrera and the unnamed ex-staffer, Santos-Aviles’ widower Adrian has also accused Gonzalez of having an affair with his wife, claiming the Texas Republican “abused his power” while Adrian Santos-Aviles “couldn’t bear to sit by” as Gonzales continued to “lie on my wife’s name.”
Because Trump has endorsed Gonzales, the attack on the Texan’s seat by his fellow Republicans counts as a major breach within the MAGA movement. It also speaks to a growing tendency among women in the Republican Party to stand up to allegedly predatory males within the House.
“When are we going to start policing our own?” Mace said while joining a handful of mostly House Republican women in calling for Gonzales to resign. “We haven’t done that yet because both sides protect each other from embarrassment.” That was not the only time Mace criticized Gonzales.
“This is a good old boys club, and women that come to work on the Hill need to be respected, whether you’re a member of Congress and a female or you’re a female staffer,” Mace told NBC News regarding Gonzales. “We all should be treated with respect and with dignity and professionalism, and it shouldn’t be about a quid pro quo or sexual advances. You can’t be doing that, and we’ve got to police our own in order to restore trust in the institution.”
Mace was joined by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), who after the Gonzales scandal came out said that “I don’t think he brings honor to the House of Representatives and if I had the votes tomorrow, I’d kick him out of office.”
She later added in a post on X, “Congressional ethics is a joke. They have so much dirt on members of Congress, and they do nothing. There is even a slush fund they use to pay people off with your tax dollars. ... It p—— me off because while some of us are actually working and busting our a----, these clowns are sexually harassing their own staff, doing illegal crap, insider trading etc.”
Similarly Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) referred to Gonzales as a “disgusting pig” and said House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) “should do something about it.”
Trump and his supporters are standing behind Gonzales because their philosophy is that, with such a narrow margin in the House of Representatives, they must support each other no matter what.
"They can’t lose a single vote, and so members almost seem untouchable right now," one anonymous Republican House member told MS NOW.
Another anonymous House Republican told the publication that, "The Gonzales [story] is a really ugly situation," but that governing with a tight majority requires this decision.
"On one hand, you got to be sure that we can govern, and because of the small majorities, you kind of have to let some stuff slide until you can take care of it," they said.
