Politics
- Florida congressman Matt Gaetz appeared on CNN Wednesday night to discuss the recent revelation that the FBI was unable to save thousands of missing texts critical to the ongoing Russia investigation.
- During the interview, host Chris Cuomo asked about a previous analogy in which Gaetz compared the missing texts to the Immaculate Conception.
Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz went on CNN Wednesday night to make the case that investigations by the FBI and the Department of Justice are biased against President Donald Trump.
The Florida congressman previously said that the thousands of missing text messages exchanged between two FBI officials who criticized Trump "would be the greatest coincidence since the Immaculate Conception."
During their interview, the host Chris Cuomo pressed Gaetz on the analogy.
"Where is the analogy?" Cuomo asked. "That's what I don't understand. What do you think happened with the Immaculate Conception?"
After some back and forth, Gaetz hinted that he didn't want to talk about his religious views, but said that he's a Christian who believes "the Immaculate Conception was how Jesus was born."
Cuomo interjected to clarify the congressman's apparent misunderstanding.
"It was Mary's conception. It was the mother's conception without original sin. It was not the conception of Jesus," Cuomo said. "Facts matter, congressman. If you're going to make an analogy, at least know what you're talking about because you've got to have a basis for these things."
The discussion about Immaculate Conception was part of a larger conversation about the recent revelation that the FBI was unable to save thousands of texts between FBI employees Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, who had been critical of Trump in other messages, apparently due to a software glitch on Samsung phones.
Republicans suspicious of the FBI's motives in the ongoing Russia probe have cited the missing texts as evidence that top law enforcement officials are trying to cover up anti-Trump bias and corruption within their ranks.
On Wednesday, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson fueled further scrutiny of the integrity of the FBI and Department of Justice when he said, without evidence, that there is a "secret society" within the FBI that plots to undermine Trump.
His claim appears to stem from texts between Strzok and Page that were reviewed by some congressional lawmakers. One of the texts, ABC News reported, mentions a "secret society," but the context is unclear. These texts are unrelated to those the FBI reported missing.
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