Matt Gaetz has withdrawn as President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to serve as US attorney general in his new administration.
In a post on . ”
“There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted scuffle in Washington, so I will withdraw my name from serving as attorney general,” the former Florida congressman said.
Trump said in a post on Truth Social shortly after Gaetz’s announcement that the former congressman was “doing a very good job, but at the same time I didn’t want to be a distraction to the government.”
Gaetz’s path to confirmation was in jeopardy from the start. He has faced intense criticism over a House of Representatives ethics committee investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. A separate Justice Department investigation into allegations that Gaetz engaged in sex trafficking ended last year without any charges being filed. He has denied any wrongdoing.
Hours after Trump announced last week that he would choose the Florida Republican as attorney general, Gaetz resigned from the House of Representatives, effectively ending the committee’s jurisdiction over him. And while there is precedent for releasing ethics reports after a lawmaker resigns from Congress, the committee faced enormous pressure from Gaetz’s allies not to do so.
Still, several senators, including Republicans, had expressed skepticism about his selection for AG and said they were interested in the committee’s findings. Details about two women’s testimony before the committee also began to emerge, further jeopardizing Gaetz’s chances for confirmation — and threatening his reputation.
Gaetz met with Senate Republicans on Wednesday in an effort to win their support. But he and Trump may have ultimately decided that there was no easy or realistic path to Gaetz’s confirmation without risking the commission’s report — or at least some of its findings — being made public.
Gaetz, who won reelection on Nov. 5, has not elaborated on his future plans. He said in his resignation announcement last week that he would not take the oath of office next year because he was serving as attorney general.
This is a development story. Check back for updates.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
