Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, withdrew his name from consideration on Thursday, Nov. 21. The former Florida congressman said his nomination had “unfairly” become a distraction to Trump’s transition.
“There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General,” Gaetz wrote on X. “Trump’s DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1.”
Gaetz added that he was “fully committed” to Trump’s presidency.
In response, Trump posted to Truth Social, “I greatly appreciate the recent efforts of Matt Gaetz in seeking approval to be Attorney General. He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect. Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!”
The announcement comes after Gaetz and Vice President-elect JD Vance spent Wednesday, Nov. 20, on Capitol Hill meeting with senators. He could only spare three Republican votes to be confirmed, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, had already said she was a no, while others expressed reservations.
Gaetz’s nomination had been dogged by controversy due to investigations by the Department of Justice and the House Ethics Committee. The allegations against Gaetz included sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, converting campaign funds for personal use and accepting a bribe.
The DOJ decided not to charge the former congressman with a crime. The House Ethics Committee was still considering whether to release its report.
While lawmakers from both parties said they would need to see the report before voting to confirm Gaetz, as of Wednesday, Republicans had temporarily rejected releasing it.
The document represents the culmination of a three-year investigation and could shed more details on allegations that Gaetz did hard drugs and had sex with a minor while a member of Congress.
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