Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) is backtracking on his personal threat to President Donald Trump’s former fixer Michael Cohen, apologizing to the ex-attorney and admitting he crossed the line.

“I want to say publicly what I’ve said privately to Michael Cohen and to his family, that I’m sorry if ― it is entirely appropriate to test the truthfulness of a witness, but that could have been done in a way that didn’t invoke someone’s family, and I shouldn’t have done it,” he told Fox News on Friday.

Controversy unfolded Tuesday when Gaetz, in a now-deleted tweet that placed him under investigation by Florida’s bar association, insinuated that Cohen had a stash of paramours he kept hidden from his wife:

Hey @MichaelCohen212 - Do your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends? Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if she’ll remain faithful when you’re in prison. She’s about to learn a lot…

“I made a mistake,” Gaetz conceded. “I should not have invoked someone’s family and I am here to take responsibility and to say that I’m sorry.”