Lauren Boebert Blasts Ethics Complaint as ‘Politically Motivated Stunt’ - Newsweek

Colorado U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert has blasted claims made in a House Ethics Committee complaint, which alleged that she had sex with members of her staff.

In an email shared with Newsweek, a spokesperson for Boebert’s office said: “Congresswoman Lauren Boebert rejects these allegations as utterly false and there is no truth to them whatsoever.

“This is nothing more than a politically motivated stunt designed to manipulate the ethics process, create headlines, smear her, and generate clickbait. They come from an activist who has long recycled sensational claims, including numerous baseless accusations previously fact-checked as false.”

The complaint, which has been reviewed by Newsweek, was filed by David Wheeler with the House Committee on Ethics on September 17 and signed under penalty of perjury. Wheeler is an American journalist and political activist who is the president and co-founder of American Muckrackers, a Democrat Super Political Action Committee (Super PAC).

The complaint alleges that Boebert engaged in sexual relations with three current and former staff members. It also alleges that Boebert paid out $200,000 in hush money to one staffer.

Boebert has four children. She filed for divorce from her husband, Jayson Boebert, in 2023, citing “irreconcilable differences,” and the divorce was finalized that same year.

A prominent Republican lawmaker, Boebert has this year been caught in the crosshairs of President Donald Trump. She was one of five Republicans to vote with Democrats to subpoena Attorney General Pam Bondi over the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, and campaigned for the reelection of fellow Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky.

Her personal life has also made headlines this year after her son was arrested in August on five felony counts, including sexual exploitation of a child to induce or entice, sexual exploitation of a child involving video and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

"We take these allegations very seriously and pray for everyone affected during this challenging time," Boebert told Newsweek at the time.

Newsweek has contacted David Wheeler and the House Committee on Ethics outside of regular working hours via email for comment.

In 2018, the House of Representatives adopted rules that bar all members from engaging in sexual relationships with employees that they supervise.

In the “statement of facts” portion of the complaint, it states that the allegations are based on “publicly available official records,” including disbursement records, state court records and published news reporting.

Further to the statement given to Newsweek, Boebert told the news outlet Sources Say News: “I’m not a lesbian or bisexual, and I have never, ever been in any inappropriate relationship, nor have I ever been sexually involved with any staff.”

There are additional claims that Boebert was engaged in intimate relations with the former Florida Representative, Matt Gaetz, and another party. To this, Boebert responded: “Creative, I’ll give him that!”

Gaetz also responded to those claims in a post on X, where he wrote: “I am requesting that anyone with video of me in this alleged “threesome” release said evidence IMMEDIATELY! Unedited, please.”

Wheeler has reported on Boebert for years.

In 2022, Wheeler filed a lawsuit against Boebert in Colorado, alleging that Boebert made “maliciously false statements” about him and American Muckrakers on multiple occasions in 2022, when Boebert was running for reelection.

A year prior, a judge in Garfield County dismissed a complaint made by Boebert, where she asked for a permanent protection order against Wheeler.

Wheeler responded to the Sources Say News article where Boebert rejected the allegations in the story's comment section. “That’s not true,” he wrote, adding: “We have sources with names. We’re not naming them because they are afraid of MAGA repercussions, but they are in the complaint and have been turned over to the House Ethics Committee.”

Filing a complaint with the House Committee on Ethics does not mean an investigation has begun or that any wrongdoing has been found.

The committee will first determine whether a complaint complies with its procedural requirements and then decide what action, if any, to take.

Wheeler’s complaint against Boebert specifically asks the committee to establish an investigative subcommittee and examine the allegations. The timeline of that is yet to be determined.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Daniel Orton and Cristina Diciu.