FLORIDA, USA — Former Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz, who resigned from the House of Representatives following his nomination for Attorney General, withdrew his name from consideration because he felt that his confirmation was "unfairly becoming a distraction."
"There is no time to waste...thus I'll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General," Gaetz said in a social media statement Thursday. "Trump's DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1."
Controversy has surrounded Gaetz, a native of Hollywood, Florida, who had been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee. Following President-elect Trump's nomination of Gaetz for Attorney General, pressure mounted for the committee to release their findings.
The committee's investigation centered on sexual misconduct allegations involving the former Republican congressman, who has vehemently denied any claims against him. An investigation by the Department of Justice looked into sex trafficking allegations, which he has also denied. The DOJ's investigation ended without any criminal charges.
The Senate would have had the responsibility to confirm Trump's nomination of Gaetz to the highest law enforcement position in the United States. As Trump and his allies called for a swift confirmation process for his administration's nominations, it was never obvious that Gaetz had won over lawmakers' full support.
While few Republican senators had publicly criticized any of Trump's nominees, it became clear after Gaetz's withdrawal that many had been harboring private concerns about him. Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who served with Gaetz in the House, said it was a “positive move.” Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker said it was a “positive development.” Maine Sen. Susan Collins said Gaetz “put country first and I am pleased with his decision.”
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Gaetz, who said he had "excellent" meetings with senators and appreciated their "thoughtful feedback," called the events that were unfolding a "needlessly protracted Washington scuffle."
While Gaetz's confirmation was up in the air, it was also never a foregone conclusion that he wouldn't have been confirmed.
Republicans will have 53 votes in the Senate in January and can break ties with Vice President-elect JD Vance. That means four Republicans would have to break ranks to defeat any Trump nominee if all Democrats opposed his pick.
In response to Gaetz's withdrawal, Trump posted to Trust Social, saying the following:
"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!"
Later in the evening, the president-elect chose former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as Gaetz's replacement.