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A growing number of Republican lawmakers are calling for Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales (R) to resign after damning text messages he apparently exchanged with a now-deceased staffer have come to light.
Gonzales first came under scrutiny in September after one of his district staffers, Regina Santos-Aviles, set herself on fire outside her Uvalde home, passing away from her injuries the following day. The Daily Mail later published an expose alleging an affair between Gonzales and Santos-Aviles, which he repeatedly brushed off as "personal smears."
'I am so sick of people not calling this crap out.'
The scandal recently resurfaced after news broke that back in April, several months before her death, Santos-Aviles apparently messaged a co-worker claiming to have had an "affair" with their "boss."
Despite Gonzales' attempts to shut down the story, another flurry of explicit texts that appear to be from the congressman to Santos-Aviles have only exacerbated the scandal.
The newly released text messages appear to show Gonzales pressuring Santos-Aviles to "send [him] a sexy pic" and asking her to name her "favorite position." Santos-Aviles seemed to push back on his advances, saying she didn't "like taking pictures" of herself and that his line of questioning was "going too far boss."
Attorney Robert Barrera — who is representing Santos-Aviles' widower, Adrian Aviles — told Blaze News that these messages "appear valid." Blaze News also reached out to Aviles to confirm the validity of the messages.
Gonzales' office did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
As the scandal reaches a fever pitch, more and more Republicans are pressuring the Texas congressman to resign and bow out of his primary race against Brendon Herrera, a gun YouTuber who nearly unseated Gonzales in 2024.
"The entire Texas delegation, as well as every single other Member of Congress, should be condemning a sitting Member of Congress asking for explicit photos of their staff," Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida said in a post on X. "As a woman, this is really disgusting to see. Not to mention, it brings dishonor on the House of Representatives."
"I am so sick of people not calling this crap out," Luna added. "Again, like I’ve said before, this is not the only case of this crap up here. [Tony Gonzales], shame on you."
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) offered a succinct response to the apparent messages: "RESIGN!"
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) fell short of calling for Gonzales' resignation but rather said he would need to address the allegations. Notably President Donald Trump endorsed Gonzales in December following the initial scandal and has not yet rescinded his endorsement.
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