Ex-Rep. Katie Hill says Gaetz, who defended her in scandal, should resign if allegations are true

Former Democratic Rep. Katie Hill says GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz should resign from Congress if the sex-trafficking allegations about him are true and suggests the hypocricy in him purportedly showing pictures of nude women to fellow congressmen.

"If there is even a fraction of truth to these reports, he should resign immediately," Hill said in a "Vanity Fair" magazine essay published Monday.

Hill resigned from Congress in 2019 over reports that she had sexual relationships with a male staffer and female campaign staffer. She denied the relationship with the male staffer but admitted to being "inappropriate" with the female. The revelations about the relationships were sparked by nude photos of Hill posted on news sites without her consent, a situation she attributes to her divorce.

"If true, Matt had engaged in the very practice he’d defended me from," Hill wrote. "Sharing intimate images or videos of someone without their consent should be illegal, plain and simple. It shouldn’t matter if it was done to hurt someone, as with revenge porn, or to brag about your sexual conquests, like Matt has been accused of doing."

The 38-year-old Gaetz is part of a Justice Department investigation over allegations he had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl and that he was involved in potential violations of sex-trafficking laws.

He has also reportedly shown naked photos and videos of women to other members of Congress on the House floor, prompting then-House Speaker Paul Ryan's office to tell him the need for him to act professionally.

Gaetz has denied the sexual allegations brought against him on several different occasions. He wrote an op-ed in the Washington Examiner Monday stating that he will not resign as a result of the accusations and that these reports are an attempt by "the swamp" to silence a pro-Trump congressman.