The House Democrat who is threatening to impeach President Trump said in a statement Monday that he and a former staffer who once accused him sexual assault are now friends, and that they both settled the matter without any use of taxpayer funds.

Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, and his former staffer Lucinda Daniels, are now "friends" who regret the charges they hurled at each other nearly a decade ago.

Their joint statement appears to be an attempt to head off questions about what happened at a time when several lawmakers' relationships with women are being questioned, and some are being accused of sexual assault.

"In the present climate, we wish to jointly quiet any curious minds about our former and present relationship with each other," they said. "We are friends, and have long been friends."

"At an unfortunate time in our lives, when both of our feelings were hurt, we hastily made allegations and charges against one another that have been absolutely resolved," they added. "As consenting friends, we both regret our former claims and have since then maintained our respectful friendship. We are friends."

"The matter has been resolved without payment of any money or transfer of any consideration of any kind by either of us to the other," they added. "As friends, we have both agreed that we see no need to make further statements regarding this absolutely resolved matter."

In 2008, Green argued that Daniels was trying to extort money from him by claiming Green forced her to have sex.

"Although Green and the former employee had a 'romantic encounter' at her home in May 2007, Bill Miller, a spokesman for the congressman, said the claim of sexual assault, coming 18 months after the fact, is desperate and totally false," the Houston Chronicle reported in 2008.