Texas Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales has faced increasing pressure from his party to resign or drop out of his race after allegations of an affair with a staffer.
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Texas representative Tony Gonzalez failed to get a majority on Tuesday’s Republican primary. He’s now in a runoff, a second round. As soon as that voting was done, the House Ethics Committee announced an investigation into widely reported allegations about him. They involve his relationship with a former staff member who later died by suicide, which is something we’re going to talk about. And Representative Gonzalez made a confession. Texas Public Radio’s David Martin Davies has been following the story this week. David, good morning.
DAVID MARTIN DAVIES, BYLINE: Good morning, Steve.
INSKEEP: OK. So as I understand, the committee couldn’t make its announcement before the voting, by their rules. Voting is over. They make an announcement. What are they doing?
DAVIES: In a statement, the committee said it voted to create an investigative subcommittee to examine whether Gonzalez may have violated the House code of official conduct. According to the committee, they will focus on allegations that he may have, quote, “engaged in sexual misconduct involving an employee in his office.” That employee was Regina Santos-Aviles, and last September, she took her own life. Recently, the San Antonio Express-News obtained screenshots of explicit text messages where Gonzalez appears to be pressuring Santos-Aviles for sex. NPR has not independently verified those text messages.
INSKEEP: Well, what was Gonzalez saying before, and what is he saying now?
DAVIES: Well, Gonzalez had been denying that the reports that he had an affair was true. He said it wasn’t true. But yesterday he appeared on the syndicated right-wing talk radio program, “The Joe Pags Show,” and he said he made a mistake. Here’s what he said.
(SOUNDBITE OF RADIO SHOW, “THE JOE PAGS SHOW”)
TONY GONZALEZ: I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment, and there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions. Since then, I’ve reconciled with my wife, Angel. I’ve asked God to forgive me, which he has, and my faith is as strong as ever.
DAVIES: Also, in the interview, Gonzalez said the scandal was a coordinated political attack designed to flip his congressional district to the Democrats, and Gonzalez said he had nothing to do with Santos-Aviles’ death.
(SOUNDBITE OF RADIO SHOW, “THE JOE PAGS SHOW”)
GONZALEZ: This whole notion that I had anything to do with her death, I had absolutely nothing to do with her tragic passing.
DAVIES: The congressional ethics investigation is not related to Santos-Aviles’ death. They are investigating if he had engaged in sexual misconduct with the staffer, and that is against House rules. And just because the House Ethics Committee opens an investigation does not imply guilt.
INSKEEP: David, this is an interesting situation because Gonzalez ran in the first round of the primary with no investigation and denying everything. And now he goes into the second round of the primary with an investigation and admitting a lot. So what is the basic situation?
DAVIES: Well, Gonzalez is seeking a fourth term representing the Texas 23rd Congressional District. It’s massive. I know you’ve been there, Steve. It runs from San Antonio to El Paso, includes 800 miles of the border. Brandon Herrera is running against Gonzalez. He is a YouTube pro-gun influencer. Herrera won about 43% of the vote, and Gonzalez got 42%, so they’re in that runoff. President Trump is endorsing Gonzalez. Trump was in Corpus Christi last Friday at a rally, and he called out to Gonzalez.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Congressman Tony Gonzalez is here. Tony, congratulations.
DAVIES: So far, he’s sticking with his endorsement for Gonzalez, and that carries a lot of weight.
INSKEEP: You just said pro-gun influencer is in the race. This congressional district includes Uvalde where there was a mass school shooting a few years ago. How does that affect this race?
DAVIES: Well, Santos-Aviles was from Uvalde. She was Gonzalez’s Uvalde office coordinator. She was well-known and beloved in this tight-knit community. I went to Uvalde last week. I heard from voters about the race and the scandal. Most were upset by this, but said it was a private matter. After that school shooting, Gonzalez was one of the few Republicans who helped with the passing of a limited gun safety bill. His challenger, Herrera, is all about gun rights, and that’s been his main issue until this scandal.
INSKEEP: David Martin Davies at Texas Public Radio. Thank you so much, sir.
DAVIES: Thank you, Steve.
INSKEEP: And we’ll note, if you or anyone you know is in crisis, text or call the National Suicide Crisis Lifeline, 988.
(SOUNDBITE OF BONOBO’S “SECOND SUN”)
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