Media

Puck News slammed by GOP donor for falsely reporting he’s married to Matt Gaetz’s sister

By
Social Links for Alexandra Steigrad
Published May 17, 2024, 2:43 p.m. ET

Republican donor Palmer Luckey slammed Puck News after it wrote an error-filled story about him — including that the Silicon Valley whiz is married to Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz’s sister.

The Oculus founder and Donald Trump supporter was the target of a story by Puck’s Teddy Schleifer, who wrote that the former president and presumptive Republican nominee will attend a fundraiser hosted by Luckey.

Shleifer described Luckey as “the oh-so-charming former Facebook V.R. executive who is enjoying his moment as the founder of Anduril, a defense contractor that specializes in A.I.-powered weapons.”

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and his wife Ginger Luckey walk down the steps of the House of Representatives on Capitol Hill following a vote on April 19 in Washington, DC.
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and his wife, Ginger Luckey, walk down the steps of the House of Representatives on Capitol Hill following a vote on April 19 in Washington, DC. Getty Images

He went on to write that “Luckey, who’s married to Matt Gaetz’s sister, will host Trump on June 8 at his home in Newport Beach, according to the invite.”

Luckey, however, is not married.

One of his three sisters, Ginger, married Gaetz in 2021.

The Republican congressman has one sister, Erin.

Luckey clipped out the offending paragraph as he roasted Puck.

“It is crazy how bad @PuckNews is, people pay for this s–t?” Luckey wrote.

“I have never met Matt’s sister, much less married her. I am not hosting Trump at my home. I doubt the existence of an invite saying otherwise. Silicon Valley is 400 miles away,” he continued.

Tweet
Tweet

“My big league support for Donald Trump is no secret, and shouldn’t be a free pass to make s–t up. Journalists will often claim they were just mistaken, but it is a matter of carefully selective incompetence — you almost never see major Democrat donors treated this way.”

After Luckey called out Puck, the news site amended its article, according to Mediaite, which first reported the story.

However, Puck kept in that Luckey will host the fundraiser: “Luckey, who’s [sic] sister is married to Matt Gaetz, will host Trump on June 8 at his home in Newport Beach, according to the invite.”