One of Donald Trump's more controversial picks for his upcoming cabinet has withdrawn his name from consideration.
Former congressman Matt Gaetz announced on X that he will no longer seek the nomination for attorney general.
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.
Trump's nomination of Gaetz was controversial from the start. Gaetz has had a reputation as a disruptor, which was a primary reason that Trump picked him.
Trump released a statement on 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!
One of Gaetz's biggest problems was the rumor of a looming sex scandal that he couldn't shake. Despite the lack of credibility to many of the accusations, it wasn't a good look for the former Florida congressman. Rightly or wrongly, the reputation that comes with these types of allegations would dog him throughout his time in the Executive Branch.
Many senators, including some in the GOP, had their doubts about Gaetz. His perceived lack of experience combined with his temperament meant that his nomination was an uphill slog. He never had an easy road to confirmation.
PJ Media's Matt Margolis wrote last week, "He seems to thrive on controversy, and despite being a loyal MAGA Republican, he has been a bigger problem for his own party at times, like when he caused an unnecessary intra-party battle by triggering the ousting of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy."
Gaetz also resigned from Congress shortly after the announcement of Trump's nominating him, as PJ Media's Athena Thorne pointed out: "He resigned on the same day Trump announced his nomination, which raised eyebrows, but do we really imagine Gaetz himself only found out about his nomination when it was announced? Of course not. He had already been asked, accepted, and begun planning. And one thing he took into account was his party's razor-thin majority in the lower chamber."
Gaetz may have been a controversial choice for the AG role, and he might have had a contentious fight in the Senate. But let's face it: he couldn't have been any worse than most of Joe Biden's picks. It's a shame we'll never know what could have been.
This is a developing story, and we'll have more details as they emerge.
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