WASHINGTON \u2014 Republican Rep. Nancy Mace plans to force a House vote next week on her resolution to release sexual misconduct and harassment reports involving members of Congress, she told NBC News on Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The South Carolina congresswoman\u2019s resolution would require the House Ethics Committee to release all sexual misconduct or harassment reports involving members or their staffers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She introduced it after numerous outlets, including NBC News, revealed that GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, sent sexually explicit text messages to a former aide with whom he allegedly had an affair. The aide later died by suicide and an attorney for her husband confirmed the authenticity of the texts to NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gonzales denied last year that he had an affair with the aide and has suggested he is a victim of blackmail by the widower and of a a political attack as he faces a competitive primary March 3 in Texas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He has been defiant, telling reporters, \u201cI will not resign.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When asked Tuesday whether the affair allegations were true, he responded: \u201cWhat you\u2019ve seen is not all the facts and there\u2019ll be ample time for all of that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asked about the text messages, Gonzales did not address them, instead saying he would not resign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mace said that she has been in contact with the parliamentarian about her resolution and that she has one tweak to make before she can file it as \u201cprivileged.\u201d She is planning to make that motion March 4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once she does, the House Republican leadership will have two legislative days before it must schedule a floor vote. That could be a vote on Mace\u2019s resolution itself \u2014 which would put members on the record on releasing sexual harassment and assault reports involving colleagues \u2014 or another vote to table the legislation or send it to committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mace expressed doubt about whether enough lawmakers would vote in support of her resolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen are we going to start policing our own? We haven\u2019t done that yet because both sides protect each other from embarrassment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Office of Congressional Conduct, a nonpartisan and independent body, has conducted and completed an investigation into Gonzales, as NBC News previously reported. It is expected to send its findings to the House Ethics Committee next week. It\u2019s unclear whether the House Ethics Committee has opened its own probe into the Gonzales allegations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mace has called for Gonzales to resign, joining a handful of other House Republicans in doing so \u2014 many of them fellow GOP women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., told reporters that Gonzales was a \u201cdisgusting pig,\u201d as she left the Capitol on Wednesday. She added that House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., \u201cshould do something about it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Johnson, who is contending with a razor-thin majority, has called the allegations \u201cserious\u201d but said it\u2019s up to Gonzales to address the issue with his constituents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, meanwhile, said that stepping down \u201cwould be the stupidest thing he could ever do\u201d when asked by NBC News about the resignation calls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDoes it look good? No. I don\u2019t like the appearance of it,\u201d Nehls said. \u201cHe\u2019s got a problem here. Don\u2019t get me wrong, the optics are horrible, but I would in no way ever resign right now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., is among those backing Mace\u2019s effort and said Tuesday: \u201cI don\u2019t think he brings honor to the House of Representatives and if I had the votes tomorrow, I\u2019d kick him out of office.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Luna has also taken aim at a congressional fund that members can use to cover sexual harassment or workplace discrimination claims, as allowed under the Congressional Accountability Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCongressional ethics is a joke. They have so much dirt on members of Congress, and they do nothing,\u201d she wrote on X. \u201cThere is even a slush fund they use to pay people off with your tax dollars. … It pisses me off because while some of us are actually working and busting our asses, these clowns are sexually harassing their own staff, doing illegal crap, insider trading etc.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mace told NBC News she\u2019d be \u201cfine\u201d with expelling Gonzales, but also said: \u201cMy problem is that we don\u2019t do it for everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is a good old boys club, and women that come to work on the Hill need to be respected, whether you\u2019re a member of Congress and a female or you\u2019re a female staffer,\u201d she said. \u201cWe all should be treated with respect and with dignity and professionalism, and it shouldn\u2019t be about a quid pro quo or sexual advances. You can\u2019t be doing that, and we\u2019ve got to police our own in order to restore trust in the institution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mace has shared personal stories about being sexually assaulted and was one of the Republicans who helped force the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last year, Mace tried to force a vote on censuring another Republican \u2014 Rep. Cory Mills of Florida \u2014 who was accused of misconduct against women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mills allegedly threatened to release sexually explicit videos and images of a former girlfriend, according to a police report obtained by NBC News. A federal judge granted a restraining order against Mills that was requested by the woman. Mills denied wrongdoing and the speaker has also stood by him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mace\u2019s resolution against Mills failed, but eight Republicans voted in support of it; six of them women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Johnson\u2019s handling of these allegations surrounding some of the male lawmakers has deeply frustrated some of the Republican women in the conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe sweep everything under the rug,\u201d Mace told NBC\u2019s Tom Llamas on Tuesday evening. \u201cI understand due process and all of that, but at some point, people have to be accountable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEveryone on the Hill has known this has been going on for months now,\u201d she said of the Gonzales allegations, \u201cand no action has been taken.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n