Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz allegedly broke the law when he failed to list how much he profited from sales of his book, Firebrand, according to recent reports.
Gaetz's office defended the politician, claiming they needed "additional documentation" from the publisher.
When pressed for comment, a spokesperson said his office was "in the process of receiving that information and amending the Congressman's financial disclosure."
Firebrand was published over a year ago and it is only now that Gaetz's financial disclosures have been updated.
His office claims he made $25,000 off a memoir that sold fewer than 6,000 copies, and he gave 30% of that profit to Sergio Gor, his agent.
As The Daily Beast, which broke the story, noted:
"Hardcover copies were originally listed for $27—new ones now go for less than $10—and you can still pick up an ebook for $14.99. To match his disclosure, a $27 price tag would come out to about 2,200 units sold."
"But even at the low end of $10 a pop, Gaetz would have sold fewer than 6,000 copies of Firebrand across several months."
Gaetz's failure to disclose how much he made from the sales of Firebrand is a campaign finance violation.
It has attracted the attention of governmental watchdog group Citizens for Ethics in Washington (CREW).
Amid a Justice Department investigation into alleged sex crimes and a related House Ethics probe, Rep. Matt Gaetz appears to have committed at least one more straightforward federal violation: failure to disclose how much money he made from a book.https://www.thedailybeast.com/matt-gaetz-failed-to-properly-disclose-his-abysmal-book-sales?ref=home\u00a0\u2026— Citizens for Ethics (@Citizens for Ethics) 1630008017
What makes the book's failure all the more embarrassing for Gaetz is that he spent so much time promoting it, at one point receiving endorsements from former President Donald Trump.
Gaetz was harshly criticized––and many have questions about whether entities might have profited from the sales of his book.
Oops On the other hand, who would buy a book from @mattgaetz unless it was the @RNC?https://twitter.com/CREWcrew/status/1430983459183505435\u00a0\u2026— MollyJack26 (@MollyJack26) 1630010452
But let\u2019s keep paying him his exorbitant salary that he doesn\u2019t do anything for by all meanshttps://twitter.com/CREWcrew/status/1430983459183505435\u00a0\u2026— GossipGirlxoxo (@GossipGirlxoxo) 1630013496
The GOP seems to forget to disclose their income a lot. Maybe they should update their Grifters handbook now that we have a competent President with qualified appointments .https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1430907899954532352\u00a0\u2026— Grannylovesall (@Grannylovesall) 1629993369
Well this made my day. I do believe it cost more to publish that trash than was made in profits. What an idiot.\n\nThe sales figures for Matt Gaetz\u2019s crappy book are finally in and OMG how embarrassing / Queertyhttps://www.queerty.com/sales-figures-matt-gaetzs-crappy-book-finally-omg-embarrassing-20210826\u00a0\u2026— Lori B (@Lori B) 1630072389
Would be real sad if @mattgaetz\u2019s timeline today was just reminders no one wants to pay for his drivel.https://twitter.com/MEPFuller/status/1430548823638781956\u00a0\u2026— Joseph is gay af \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08 (@Joseph is gay af \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08) 1629904492
What a stupid idiot. Money is money no matter how low or high you earned.https://twitter.com/realTuckFrumper/status/1431310053080899585\u00a0\u2026— DianeBjorklund (@DianeBjorklund) 1630088586
Glad to see public corruption is still news. \n\nBut it's more than just hiding abysmal royalties, @RepMattGaetz has been using his official comms office to promote his book & podcasts. If there's an honor system, Gaetz will abuse it. @CongressEthicshttps://www.thedailybeast.com/matt-gaetz-failed-to-properly-disclose-his-abysmal-book-sales?ref=home\u00a0\u2026— Homefront Fidelity Project (@Homefront Fidelity Project) 1629919523
The controversy over Gaetz's book sales only adds to his legal woes.
Federal authorities are investigating Gaetz on child sex trafficking charges after it emerged the Department of Justice (DOJ) launched a probe into whether he paid a 17-year-old girl and took her across state lines for sexual purposes.
Gaetz denied allegations he violated sex trafficking laws and engaged in other sexual misconduct while in office by citing the age of consent.
Nor is Gaetz the only politician to have run afoul of campaign finance laws in recent weeks.
Colorado Republican Representative Lauren Boebert has drawn the ire of the feds for not disclosing her husband's income from an energy firm.
Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz's financial disclosures are also under scrutiny after findings from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) suggested his campaign spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to land his own book on the bestseller lists.