Gaetz wrote that after meeting Senators, he had chosen to withdraw himself from consideration for the attorney general role. Recently, many allegations have surfaced against Gaetz, including those of sex trafficking.
Here's his full message:
I had excellent meetings with Senators yesterday. I appreciate their thoughtful feedback - and the incredible support of so many. While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance 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. Trump's DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1.
I remain fully committed to see that Donald J. Trump is the most successful President in history. I will forever be honored that President Trump nominated me to lead the Department of Justice and I'm certain he will Save America.
I had excellent meetings with Senators yesterday. I appreciate their thoughtful feedback - and the incredible support of so many. While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance…
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) November 21, 2024
While Gaetz is well-aligned with Donald Trump and the hyper-conservative Freedom Caucus in the House, he is controversial even within Republican circles. He played a key role in the Speaker controversy that lead to the downfall of Kevin McCarthy, and he even attempted to have Trump voted in to control the House during last session.
Worse still, Gaetz has a lengthy history of ethics complaints that date back years. He allegedly intimidated a witness, misspent taxpayer money and had an inappropriate relationship with a 17-year-old girl.
Of course, earlier this month, Gaetz resigned from congress after being informally nominated to be the attorney general, in the hope that his House ethics investigation would effectively be out of bounds when it came time for the Senate to vote to confirm him.
Gaetz was nominated for the position just one week ago:
Update: Following Gaetz's withdrawal from consideration for attorney general, president-elect Trump has selected Pam Bondi, Florida's former attorney general, for the role.
[Image: YouTube]
