The saga of Matt Gaetz continues apace. Last night, it was reported that he was under FBI investigation for sleeping with a 17-year-old and paying for her travel. Later, Gaetz would appear on Tucker Carlson’s show to deny the charges and claim that a man named David McGee had tried to extort him and his father in exchange for favorable treatment.

Today, Gaetz’s father provided an email proving he was, indeed, working with the FBI. Here’s the text of that.

“I can confirm that your client is working with my office as well as the FBI at the government’s request in order to determine if a federal crime has been committed. This has been discussed with, and approved by, the FBI as well as leadership in my office and components of main justice.”

“The government thanks you for working cooperatively with the FBI,” the email concludes.

Given these latest revelations, the mainstream media had to shift their talking points, which is a common strategy. They will obscure details or not look into them until other sources force them to admit they exist. At that point, the next drop happens. The New York Times didn’t originally mention any extortion attempt or similar in their report, though they almost certainly knew of the allegation. Yet, now The Washington Post is doing so.

Well, they are sort of doing so.

Sex-crime investigation of Rep. Matt Gaetz complicated by proposal made to his father to fund search for missing ex-FBI agent https://t.co/4bOUXyNw77

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) March 31, 2021

Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican known for his fierce allegiance to former president Donald Trump, had been under Justice Department investigation for months for a possible sex crime when two men approached his father with a proposal, people familiar with the matter said.

The men had learned of the investigation, they wrote to Don Gaetz, and wanted to offer an opportunity to help his son, the people said. He could give a huge sum of money to fund their effort to locate Robert A. Levinson — the longest held American hostage in Iran whose family has said they were told he is dead. If the operation was a success, he would win favor with the U.S. government and help alleviate Matt Gaetz’s legal woes.

But Don Gaetz, a prominent Florida Republican who once led the state Senate, viewed the communication suspiciously, the people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe a continuing and politically sensitive probe. The investigation into Matt Gaetz’s alleged crime — he is suspected of having sex with a 17-year-old girl, as well as funding her travel — was not public knowledge. Fearing his family was being extorted, Don Gaetz contacted the FBI.

How do you admit that Gaetz was telling the truth (in this specific instance) without giving credence to his charges? You do so by calling what appears to be an extortion attempt — or a solicitation of a bribe — as just a “proposal.” To be clear, we can’t know for sure what happened here, but the Post’s sources describe the event as Gaetz’s father being propositioned for a “huge sum” of money, in exchange for favor with the U.S. government, in order to help the younger Gaetz with his legal troubles.

What does that sound like to you? It was the Post’s editorial decision to downplay this incident, and perhaps what took place does or doesn’t meet the legal definition of extortion, but it’s certainly not just a harmless proposal and would almost certainly constitute a crime.

As RedState reported earlier, though, David McGee denies the accusation that he was trying to extort Gaetz’s father. Regardless, if he made the proposal alleged by the Post here, it’s a big deal, and it won’t matter how he personally chooses to characterize it. What will matter is how the FBI and DOJ view it, and then if they choose to pursue it. Something smells way off here, and McGee’s involvement is going to become a huge point of contention going forward.

Lastly, to further complicate matters, it is possible that Gaetz is both guilty and still telling the truth about the extortion attempt.

There’s a lot we don’t know yet, and it would help if the DOJ would be more transparent, given what is already out in the open. I realize protocols are in place, but those have been broken before when dealing with political figures. Is Gaetz under investigation? Is McGee under investigation? Inquiring minds and all that.