Former Rep. Katie Hill (D-Calif.) on Friday denounced Rep. Matt Gaetz’s (R-Fla.) invocation of her name while defending himself in the face of allegations of his involvement in a sex trafficking scheme.
“I think it is gross,” Hill said during on CNN. “Knowing now that that could have been just because he was trying to cover up for whatever his own indiscretions were … is just gross.”
When questioned by CNN anchor Erin Burnett about her view of Gaetz’s character, Hill said she might not be the best judge, but noted that she didn’t realize Gaetz had formerly opposed an anti-revenge porn law in Florida.
The revelation made her skeptical of Gaetz’s motives in standing up for her in 2019 after nude photos of her were leaked on the internet, which Hill has attributed her estranged husband. Additionally, part of the allegations against Gaetz are that he showed nude images of women whom he claimed he had sex with to colleagues in the House.
“This is a classic example of where men’s behavior is far and a way treated differently than women’s is” she said, noting how long it took the ethics committee to begin an investigation into the allegations against Gaetz.
On Thursday night during an interview with MSNBC host Chris Hayes, Hill said she felt “betrayed” by Gaetz and called on him to resign.
Gaetz has denied the claims against him.