Rep. Jake Auchincloss, a Massachusetts Democrat, just resigned from the Congressional Dads Caucus. Not because he lost interest in paid family leave or the Child Tax Credit. Because the caucus chairman, Rep. Jimmy Gomez of California, is under a formal House Ethics Committee investigation for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman.
The Dads Caucus. Of all the caucuses.
Gomez, who has represented California's 34th District since 2017, founded the Congressional Dads Caucus in January 2023 alongside former Rep. Jamaal Bowman. The caucus — roughly three dozen Democratic lawmakers — was supposed to champion affordable child care, paid family leave, and expanded Child Tax Credit. Gomez made it his brand. He famously carried his infant son onto the House floor during the 2023 speaker vote, generating a wave of fawning media coverage about what a modern, caring father he was.
That image has aged poorly.
On August 17, the House Committee on Ethics announced a formal review of Gomez's conduct. According to attorneys Lisa Banks and Sarah Nesbitt, who represent the alleged victim, the woman experienced "sexual harassment and assault by Gomez." The investigation centers on potential violations of the Code of Official Conduct, clause 18(b), which specifically prohibits unwelcome sexual advances toward House employees.
Gomez's response has been a masterclass in saying nothing while technically speaking. He acknowledged making "personal mistakes outside his marriage" and said he would "stand ready to cooperate with the Ethics Committee." Personal mistakes outside his marriage. That's a creative way to describe what two attorneys are calling sexual assault.
Auchincloss, to his credit, didn't wait around to see how this played out. He quit the caucus entirely. But the rest of the membership roster reads like a Democratic leadership directory — House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Sen. Adam Schiff, Sen. Ruben Gallego, Rep. Johnny Olszewski. None of them have resigned. None of them have issued statements distancing themselves from Gomez.
They're staying in the Dads Caucus while the founder faces an ethics probe for alleged sexual assault of a subordinate. The silence is the statement.
Angela Gonzales-Torres, a fellow Democrat, is already running against Gomez ahead of the November election. Whether that challenge gains traction depends on how long the Ethics Committee takes and how loud the investigation gets. But Gomez isn't going anywhere voluntarily. Politicians who admit to "personal mistakes" and immediately lawyer up rarely do.
The caucus was built on a simple premise — that Democratic dads in Congress could model responsible fatherhood while legislating for working families. Three years later, the guy who built it is under investigation for conduct that violates the very code he swore to uphold, and his colleagues are pretending they don't see it.
There's your model of responsible fatherhood. Frame it and hang it in the caucus office.