Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales says he will not resign amid affair allegations
By Manu Raju, Sarah Ferris, Alison Main, CNN
(CNN) — Embattled Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales told CNN on Tuesday he would not resign amid allegations that he had an affair with a senior staffer who later died by suicide, while he declined to answer repeated questions about whether the accusations are true.
The Texas Republican would not say whether he had an affair with the staffer or sent sexually explicit text messages that appeared to show him pressuring his staffer to share images of herself.
“I am not going to resign. I work every day for the people of Texas,” Gonzales told CNN when pressed whether he had a relationship with his staffer or on whether the text messages were real. He has previously said he’s being blackmailed.
“There will be an opportunity for all the details and facts to come out,” Gonzales said. “What you’ve seen is not all the facts. And there will be ample time for all of that to come out.”
The Texas Republican — who is one week out from a difficult primary fight that could end his tenure in Congress — is facing mounting calls from his GOP colleagues to step down after reports surfaced of his alleged affair.
He faces a fellow Republican, Brandon Herrera, in a primary on March 3 — a rematch of last year’s close election.
Gonzales’ comments to CNN are his first public remarks since news reports about lewd text messages he was alleged to have sent to the staffer. They included one exchange, provided to CNN by the staffer’s husband, that showed Gonzales asking for a “sexy pic.”
Gonzales is set to speak later with Speaker Mike Johnson about the matter, which is also being investigated by an internal House ethics commission.
“I’m not going to talk about our prior conversations. We haven’t spoken yet but I will,” Johnson told CNN when asked about what he plans to say to Gonzales.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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