Democrats have been losing their minds ever since President-elect Donald Trump nominated Matt Gaetz as his attorney general. Many lawmakers have since indicated that Gaetz could face an uphill battle in his confirmation hearings.
Gaetz was seen as a controversial pick largely because of the House Ethics Committee investigation into him. The probe had been ongoing since 2021. It was related to sexual misconduct and illicit drug use allegations against Gaetz.
After Trump tapped him as attorney general last week, Gaetz immediately resigned from the House. This put an end to the House Ethics Committee investigation into his conduct.
If anyone thought that this was all giving Trump second thoughts about making Gaetz his attorney general, however, they were dead wrong.
From Fox News:
Trump was in Boca Chica, Texas, to watch SpaceX launch its Starship rocket for its sixth test flight when he was asked about Gaetz.
“Mr. President, are you reconsidering the nomination of Matt Gaetz?” Trump was asked.
“No,” Trump replied before walking away.
He didn’t answer a question about how far he was willing to go to get Gaetz confirmed.
It doesn’t get much more blunt than that, folks! Clearly, Trump has no regrets about his attorney general pick.
When Trump nominated Gaetz as his attorney general, the House Ethics Committee was reportedly days away from releasing a report about the allegations against the Florida Republican. Gaetz resigning from Congress, however, has changed everything.
“Once the investigation is complete, then a report will be issued — assuming that, at that time, that Mr. Gaetz is still a member of Congress,” explained House Ethics Committee Chairman Michael Guest (R-MS).
“If Mr. Gaetz were to resign because he is taking a position with the administration as the attorney general, then the Ethics Committee loses jurisdiction at that point,” he continued. “Once we lose jurisdiction, there would not be a report that would be issued. That’s not unique to this case.”
Trump And Gaetz Call Senate Republicans
Republicans will have a 53 to 47-seat majority next year. However, multiple Republicans have expressed their reservations about Gaetz in the wake of his nomination.
Indeed, it would only take a handful of Republicans to join Democrats in denying Gaetz for him to lose his confirmation. To combat this, Gaetz has reportedly been personally calling Senate Republicans to drum up support for himself. Trump has also been calling Senate Republicans in an attempt to convince them to back Gaetz.
“He clearly wants Matt Gaetz,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), one of the senators Trump called. “He believes Matt Gaetz is the one person who will have the fearlessness and ferociousness, really, to do what needs doing at the Department of Justice.”
“One thing about Donald Trump, people should never confuse his support for one of his nominees as a tactical or strategic tool for somebody else,” Cramer continued. “And at least to this point, he’s putting his own political capital behind it. And he’s a pretty persuasive guy.”
Gaetz has long been one of the most hated Republicans among Democrats. That’s why him being attorney general is the stuff that liberal nightmares are made of.
Trump has always been loyal to those who are loyal to him, so it’s no surprise that he’s standing by Gaetz. Here’s hoping that Gaetz ends up getting confirmed as attorney general as swiftly as possible!
Key Takeaways:
- Trump isn’t reconsidering nominating Gaetz as his attorney general.
- It’s claimed Gaetz could face an uphill battle in getting confirmed by the Senate.
- Gaetz and Trump are personally calling Senate Republicans to drum up support.
