An “abrasive” State Department goon who “has the ear of Donald Trump” is being investigated for allegedly assaulting a colleague.
Ali Motamedi, a special assistant to major Trump ally Jeff Landry, the Louisiana governor and U.S. special envoy to Greenland, filed the complaint against Gavin Wax, the chief of staff to the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs.
The Daily Mail obtained the complaint, and sources told the publication that Wax, who got a personal shout-out from Trump in a speech in December 2023, has a history of being a “very abrasive and difficult personality.”
Motamedi said the 32-year-old forcefully pushed him in the chest in the Harry S. Truman Building earlier this month. “If you ever talk s--t about me or my family again, I will beat the f--- out of you,” Wax said, according to Motamedi’s complaint. “He then forcefully pushed me before turning around and reentering the elevator,” Motamedi claimed.
A State Department source told the Mail that an investigation has been launched by the organization’s Office of Special Investigations.
A second source told the Mail that Motamedi’s account about the explosive elevator blowup is erroneous. They said a chat about expenses quickly devolved into something else entirely, with the men verbally sparring over allegations that Motamedi had made remarks about Wax’s Jewish heritage behind his back.
“For the record, I do not know what Mr. Wax was referring to with respect to his allegation that I had spoken about him or his family,” Motamedi said in his complaint.
However, the aforementioned source said that he was “strangely fixated” on Wax’s heritage. They said this was ongoing and likely led to the tension.
Another source said the claims of antisemitism are unfounded and that the only time Motamedi ever mentioned Wax was when he was at the White House Presidential Personnel Office and opposed his hiring in the administration.
Sources said a third Trump official, Charles Yockey, a special adviser at the State Department, was the only other person in the elevator when it kicked off. One added that he supported Wax’s account that there was no physicality.
The Mail also reported on concerns within the State Department, headed by Marco Rubio, that any investigation could be colored by the fact that Wax “has the ear of Donald Trump.”
“A lot of people claim to have a relationship with Trump and don’t,” another source countered.
Some sources said there could be video evidence; others said there is not—so much is yet to be determined, but some think things could get very serious. “I would imagine that most people would be terminated for this sort of engagement,” one of the Mail’s sources added.
Another source from the pro-Motamedi camp made a telling remark about Wax. They said that for the usually dutiful and non-offensive Motamedi to file a complaint, “it would mean that Gavin is once again doing some Gavin Wax things.”
This is probably a reference to an incident last October where, according to another written complaint, Wax blew up at Michael Bartels, a senior adviser at the Small Business Administration.
Bartels claimed that Wax forcefully demanded chat logs from him before the scandal surrounding the racist, antisemitic, and misogynistic Young Republican Telegram chats exploded. At the time, Wax was accused of being the leaker. He denied this.
Bartels claimed that Wax threatened his professional standing if he didn’t comply, and also raised the specter of legal trouble.
Wax remained in his position after a probe by the White House Office of Political Affairs.
Before entering the Trump administration, Wax led the New York Young Republican Club, the first Young Republicans chapter to endorse Trump’s 2024 campaign. He got a shout-out from Trump for this at the group’s annual gala in December 2023. “Let me especially thank your president, Gavin Wax,” Trump said.
The State Department and Wax have been approached for comment.
