Rep. Matt Gaetz Questions Why The Atlantic Has Not Retracted False Tweet

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 27: U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) speaks to members of the media o
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Kristina Wong

Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz questioned Sunday why an Atlantic reporter has not yet retracted a tweet about him despite it being debunked by a Politico reporter and an on-record statement by the Florida Governor.

Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted: “How has @TheAtlantic not demanded retraction of this tweet from its reporter?
1 – it didn’t happen
2 – no sourcing
2 – contradicted on-record by me & @GovRonDeSantis, confirmed by @MarcACaputo
3 – contradicted by phone records reported by @anaceballos_ #FakeNews @HowardKurtz”

The Atlantic reporter, Edward-Isaac Dovere tweeted Thursday, February 28, that President Donald Trump had called Gaetz from Hanoi on Wednesday evening to discuss Michael Cohen’s testimony. He claimed that Gaetz told Trump: “I was happy to do it for you. You just keep killing it.”

Dovere’s tweet suggested that Gaetz was referring to his tweet in which he asked Cohen if his wife knew about his mistresses. Democrats had slammed that tweet as “witness intimidation.”

Dovere followed up his first with another that said the call happened just before 9 p.m. on Wednesday. Nearly a dozen mainstream and leftist news outlets reported on the alleged call between Trump and Gaetz, citing that tweet.

https://twitter.com/IsaacDovere/status/1101132009966063616

However, since those claims, reporters with Politico and News Service of Florida have confirmed that Gaetz was talking to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) when he said those words, not Trump.

Politico reporter Marc Caputo tweeted Friday that he has confirmed with DeSantis’s office that the governor called Gaetz on Wednesday evening to discuss a state appointment.

Furthermore, Caputo tweeted that a DeSantis spokesperson said, “The governor can confirm those were the words that were spoken to him” by Gaetz.

News Service of Florida reporter Ana Ceballos also confirmed with DeSantis that he was speaking with Gaetz on Wednesday evening.

Ceballos tweeted that DeSantis’s spokesperson said the call took place about 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday and lasted ten to 15 minutes.

The spokesperson said the conversation was about the appointment of Randall Hunt to the Orlando Airport Board. She also obtained a screenshot from Gaetz showing that DeSantis called him at 8:37 p.m. on Wednesday.

Ceballos noted that DeSantis’s office rarely speaks about personal conversations but felt the need to “correct the record.”

Gaetz has also questioned the Atlantic’s Editor in Chief Jeffrey Goldberg on whether he stood behind Dovere’s reporting.

Goldberg has not responded to Gaetz, and the Dovere’s tweets remains up, with more than 9,500 retweets and 17,900 likes.

Gaetz, who is a staunch Trump supporter, has increasingly become a target of the left.

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