Embattled lawmakers' ex-aide: I confronted them about affair

Joshua Cline said at a news conference in the Detroit suburb of Royal Oak that during a late-night staff meeting in January, he confronted the two first-term lawmakers, who shared staffers in an unusual arrangement.

The Republican lawmakers, who took office with tea party backing, have apologized for having an extramarital affair with one another.

Courser admitted that he orchestrated a smear campaign against himself in which he had an email sent to Republican supporters from an anonymous account accusing him of having had sex with a male prostitute.

Courser, 43, and Gamrat, 42, are the subjects of a state House investigation into whether they misused public resources to hide their relationship and fired another aide for refusing to help.