CNN’s Erin Burnett Stops Lawyer After He Reveals Client Had To ‘Please’ Gaetz After Fox News Interview: Don’t ‘Get More Graphic’
CNN anchor Erin Burnett stopped attorney Joel Leppard after he revealed his clients felt the need to “please” ex-congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL) in between a Fox News appearance and another event, telling him not to “get more graphic.”
Leppard is an attorney representing two women who claim Gaetz paid them for sex, and who is trying to get their story out as President-elect Donald Trump seeks to elevate Gaetz to attorney general.
On Tuesday night’s edition of CNN’s OutFront, Leppard revealed more details — but Burnett didn’t want things to get too gory:
BURNETT: So just to give everyone a sense of how constant and embedded this was, according to what your clients say, you mentioned last night a trip to New York in January of 2019 that that you say Gaetz took your clients on. They say that they were there.
He paid them to travel with him. He paid them to have sex with him on that trip. So first, though, apparently, according they say he took them to fox news and that they were basically offset set like this, but they’re offset waiting for him to do his interview. And let me just play a clip from that particular interview.
So Gaetz is going to New York. He does this interview in part says this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): I know the president likes to call her Pocahontas, but now that eastern seaboard into the center of the country, maybe Sacajawea would be more appropriate. But instead of bringing Louis and Clark, she’s bringing the most liberal policies of the Democratic Party.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Okay. So that was their show “Outnumbered”, and then after that, he leaves the interview with your clients. And then what happens?
LEPPARD: Yeah. So they went to the show a pretty woman and I believe that my clients went to an EDM show later on that night.
BURNETT: And, and an EDM show. What’s that?
LEPPARD: An electronic dance music. They had a show that they wanted to see that night, and the House was — the reason why it came up. Actually, the House was asking my clients if they ever felt pressured by Representative Gaetz, and they indicated at least one of my clients testified to the House that there was a time that they felt that they needed to please Representative Gaetz before going out and going to the show.
BURNETT: Okay. I understand what you’re saying, and that I’m not going to ask you to get more graphic than that, but may I just ask when he’s paying them to come? He’s paying them for sex. When does all this happen? The sex is happening before the Fox News interview, before the show before the?
LEPPARD: The payments would take place before or after the event.
So sometimes. So in this instance, I believe the testimony was that they received payments in part for flights before, and sometimes there would be payments on the back end as well. But it’s not something where were talking about leaving money on the table or anything like that. All the transactions generally speaking, were electronic.
There’s evidence of one check that was provided to my client but generally speaking, it was electronic and those payments would come either before or after. That’s what the testimony was before the House.
Watch above via CNN’s OutFront.
