Embattled Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) was harshly ridiculed on Thursday after allegedly using his public Vemno account to send money to an alleged sex trafficker who then passed on the exact same amount to three young women.
"In two late-night Venmo transactions in May 2018, Rep. Matt Gaetz sent his friend, the accused sex trafficker Joel Greenberg, $900. The next morning, over the course of eight minutes, Greenberg used the same app to send three young women varying sums of money. In total, the transactions amounted to $900," The Daily Beast reported Thursday. "The memo field for the first of Gaetz's transactions to Greenberg was titled "Test." In the second, the Florida GOP congressman wrote "hit up ___." But instead of a blank, Gaetz wrote a nickname for one of the recipients. (The Daily Beast is not sharing that nickname because the teenager had only turned 18 less than six months before.)"
"Gaetz and Greenberg are both connected through Venmo to this then-18-year-old woman—who now works in the porn industry, according to a friend of the girl. And on Thursday, Greenberg's attorney and prosecutors indicated during a court hearing that they expect Greenberg to strike a plea deal, likely meaning he plans to cooperate with investigators," The Beast reported. "That could be potentially disastrous for Gaetz, as investigators look into the connections between these two men. And one particularly damning connection is their financial transactions."
Here's some of what people were saying about the Florida man:
Public-by-default Venmo strikes again? "This week, during the reporting of this story, Gaetz's once-public list o… https://t.co/hLvDVYrzjn— David Ingram (@David Ingram) 1617938842.0
Matt Gaetz using Venmo for sex trafficking is the latest ante in the QOP race for stupidest.— Trish Zornio (@Trish Zornio) 1617931820.0
“You chowderheads forgot to delete your Venmo history? Didn’t they teach you that at Alligator State or wherever?”… https://t.co/iimMP20ubU— TrivWorks (@TrivWorks) 1617939552.0
Very much here for the Matt Gaetz Venmo drama because Venmo is UNDERRATED as a gossip source. I once confirmed an… https://t.co/VCA0oi3XIt— Cassie Kaur Gill (@Cassie Kaur Gill) 1617938503.0
Gaetz - noun or verb: To inflict harm and humiliation upon yourself through sheer, reckless stupidity. Example: G… https://t.co/qSwT9MBB2Z— Wajahat "Butter King" Ali (@Wajahat "Butter King" Ali) 1617932046.0
Matt Gaetz exposing himself as a predator on venmo is not the least bit surprising. Very 2021 story— Cam (@Cam) 1617936623.0
Wait — you are a member of Congress and you had your Venmo transactions on public??! https://t.co/lnhlLxLZj1— Seung Min Kim (@Seung Min Kim) 1617929235.0
Let he among us who has not paid for sex with Venmo cast the first — oh, never mind. Matt Gaetz is trash. “Allegedly.”— Rob Anderson (@Rob Anderson) 1617933288.0
The girl who Matt Gaetz said to "hit up" had only turned 18 about six months before. She was a Venmo friend of Ga… https://t.co/w3lfxwXMlV— Matt Fuller (@Matt Fuller) 1617925486.0
Darkly funny that Matt Gaetz got caught paying for sex by sending money on Venmo to a guy being investigated for Bi… https://t.co/iBLkvknyhV— Jordan Zakarin (@Jordan Zakarin) 1617938498.0
Matt Gaetz get the top of the page at Daily Mail. https://t.co/BCWExYTZh7— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@Yashar Ali 🐘) 1617937477.0
So who will be our next Matt Gaetz? Because Lordy, this country sure loves electing self-important, sub-idiot, greaseball wrestling heels.— Miles Kahn (@Miles Kahn) 1617937813.0
Gaetz is even dumber than he looks. https://t.co/CNUpYJtkdf— Scott Nevins (@Scott Nevins) 1617937647.0
taxpayer funds + govt issues credit card? every detail of this story is 😱 "Greenberg and Gaetz are also connected o… https://t.co/K0lZVCqafJ— Anna Louie Sussman (@Anna Louie Sussman) 1617931918.0
Alleged rumors re @mattgaetz saga include: Sex-trafficking w/a minor Campaign finance violations Political quid pr… https://t.co/uzjG7aLffO— Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@Ana Navarro-Cárdenas) 1617937695.0
Are there multiple new Matt Gaetz scandals just tonight alone?— David Pakman (@David Pakman) 1617937999.0
@Susan_Hennessey I assume Gaetz has been doing dumb things like this his whole life. Until recently, at least, he p… https://t.co/k6qbo9c7hu— Orin Kerr (@Orin Kerr) 1617938308.0
Doesn't it seem like it should be disqualifying for a member of congress being such a dumbass/threat to security th… https://t.co/JA8iiblnk1— Marie Myung-Ok 명옥 Lee (@Marie Myung-Ok 명옥 Lee) 1617932967.0
Does Matt Gaetz leaving venmo transactions public top Rudy Giuliani butt-dialing a reporter? I didn’t think it was possible.— Jody Avirgan (@Jody Avirgan) 1617934617.0
Matt Gaetz is such a gross, moronic, skeezy letch, you forget that he's also a traitor who backed a coup d'état.— Eric Garland (@Eric Garland) 1617935321.0
'Matt Gaetz wants to date your child' billboard goes up in Florida https://t.co/TciYIyHOy8— Insider News (@Insider News) 1617935122.0
I always found it super weird that a money transfer app was also trying to be a social platform but what the hell d… https://t.co/guLPkz3h74— Tom Tomorrow (@Tom Tomorrow) 1617935609.0
BREAKING: Matt Gaetz calls for boycott of Venmo; plans to pay for future sexual encounters with cash, cigarettes, or hard seltzers.— Feodor Chin 🇺🇸❄️ (@Feodor Chin 🇺🇸❄️) 1617936118.0
I bet Matt Gaetz’s Venmo transfer also including these emojis 💵🙍♀️🚘✈️🍆— Dana Goldberg (@Dana Goldberg) 1617932118.0
At this point nothing about Matt Gaetz would surprise me. He’s a 38-year-old manchild who has never suffered a seri… https://t.co/9kVxdXNUrE— Greg Olear (@Greg Olear) 1617930677.0
Matt Gaetz, you idiot. That's why when I use Venmo to buy drugs, I always put "Not for drugs" in the memo.— Matt Fernandez (@Matt Fernandez) 1617935739.0
3. https://t.co/jDHQlXTz1R— Keith Olbermann (@Keith Olbermann) 1617937272.0
1. https://t.co/yFuVvoes2F— Keith Olbermann (@Keith Olbermann) 1617937402.0