RNC speakers: What to know about Matt Gaetz

close

Video

Trump expected to push patriotic message during RNC

Republican National Convention kicks off; Mark Meredith reports.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., is one of several Republican lawmakers who secured a speaking slot at the Republican National Convention.

PRESIDENT TRUMP TO PARTICIPATE IN EVERY DAY OF REPUBLICAN CONVENTION

Democrats wrapped up their mostly virtual nominating convention last week. Republicans are preparing for the opening night of their convention on Monday when Gaetz will be one of the featured speakers.

Gaetz steps off Air Force One upon arrival, March 9, 2020, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Republican convention was supposed to take place in Charlotte, N.C., but coronavirus concerns forced the event to go mostly remote as well. President Trump is set to give his acceptance speech from the White House on Thursday, the final day of the 2020 convention.

Here are four things to know about Gaetz:

1. He represents Florida's 1st Congressional District

Gaetz has already made an outsized name for himself despite being one of the newest members of Congress. The 38-year-old has represented Florida's 1st Congressional District since 2017.

His district in Florida's Panhandle borders on Alabama and includes the city of Pensacola, home to the first U.S. Naval Air Station.

2. He says he has helped to raise a 19-year-old described as his "son"

Gaetz revealed in June that he and his family have been raising Nestor Galban, who immigrated from Cuba, for six years.

"Nestor is the light of my life. I couldn't imagine loving him any more if he was my own flesh and blood," Gaetz told "Tucker Carlson Tonight."

3. He was recently admonished by the House Ethics Committee for tweets about Michael Cohen

The House Ethics Committee admonished Gaetz for a 2019 tweet against Michael Cohen that suggested the former attorney to Trump was unfaithful to his wife and had "girlfriends."

Gaetz had already apologized for the tweet that he issued before Cohen's testimony before Congress and said his words were not meant to be construed as threatening to a witness. On Friday, he took the reprimand "with humility" while also noting his big primary election victory.

GAETZ CRUISES TO GOP PRIMARY WIN IN REELECTION BATTLE, SAYS 'VOTERS REWARD FIGHTERS'

4. He's not afraid to break with the Grand Old Party

Gaetz supports legalizing marijuana, a stance that many of his fellow Republicans oppose.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., puts up tweets as he asks questions during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on proposed changes to police practices and accountability on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, June 10, 2020, in Washington. (Greg Nash/Pool via AP)

He was among 34 House members who sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in April asking that the chamber's leaders ensure legal marijuana businesses access future coronavirus-related stimulus relief.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The letter warns that hundreds of thousands of workers employed by legal marijuana businesses are left out of efforts to ease the pain caused by the pandemic and the economic shutdowns meant to slow its spread just because marijuana is illegal federally.

Fox News' Marisa Schultz and Tyler Olson contributed to this report.