House Dems offer dueling motions to force release of Gaetz report

• The committee was investigating allegations of sexual misconduct, illicit drug use and accepting improper gifts — all of which Gaetz denies.
• Gaetz's abrupt resignation last week put a sudden end to the probe, which only has jurisdiction over current members.

The intrigue: Reps. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) and Sean Casten (D-Ill.) both rushed to the House floor on Wednesday to offer competing motions to force votes on releasing the report.

• Casten had telegraphed his plans in advance, saying in a statement ahead of House votes on Wednesday that he would make the motion "if the Ethics Committee chooses to withhold this information."
• But Cohen beat him to the punch, telling Axios: "I did call Casten, who I like, and I said, 'do you want to work on this together?' And he just kind of said, 'We can do that later.'"
• Another House Democrat, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that dynamic, saying that Casten "said no because he had already put in all the work. Steve raced to the floor to do it first."

Zoom in: Casten previously led a letter with 96 other House Democrats urging the panel to release the report to allow senators to consider it as they consider Gaetz's nomination.

• Some Senate Republicans have said they hope the panel makes the report available for them to review.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.