Matt Gaetz said Thursday that he’s withdrawing from President-elect Donald Trump's pick for U.S. attorney general, ending the controversial bid that spotlighted previous allegations of sexual misconduct.
“I had excellent meetings with senators yesterday. I appreciate their thoughtful feedback – and the incredible support of so many,” Gaetz said in an announcement posted to his X account.
“While momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation unfairly became a distraction from the critical work of the Trump/Vance transition,” the previous Republican congressman from Florida said.
“We cannot waste time on an unnecessarily protracted melee in Washington, so I will be withdrawing my name from consideration for attorney general,” he said.
The Justice Department's investigation into whether Gaetz sexually abused an underage girl ended last 12 months with none charges being filed. But the House Ethics Committee later resumed its work its own probe from allegations that Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, accepted improper gifts, granted special favors to private contacts and attempted to obstruct the federal government's efforts to analyze him.
CNN's said Paula Reid that Gaetz's withdrawal got here lower than an hour after he was contacted by the outlet for comment his report that a girl told the ethics panel that she had two sexual encounters with Gaetz in 2017, when she was 17.
Gaetz has denied having sex with an underage girl. His decision to resign from Congress after being nominated for attorney general effectively ended the ethics investigation by removing him from the committee's jurisdiction.
The House committee, made up of an equal variety of Republicans and Democrats, deadlocked on Wednesday in voting to release a report on its investigation into Gaetz.
Rep. Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, the committee's rating Democrat, said members agreed to satisfy again on Dec. 5 to “further consider this matter.”
Trump said on Truth Social Later Thursday, he said that Gaetz was “doing very well, but at the same time he didn't want to be a distraction for the administration for which he has great respect.”
Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for Trump's transition team, said in an announcement that the president-elect “remains committed to choosing a Justice Department leader who will vigorously defend the Constitution and end the weaponization of our justice system.”
Trump “will announce his new decision as soon as it is made,” Leavitt told CNBC.
Had Gaetz continued to hunt the role of AG, he can have faced a steep path to confirmation, even in a Republican-controlled Senate.
The former lawmaker, who regularly clashed with members of each parties in Congress, was allegedly A major variety of Republican senators opposed this.
Gaetz and Vice President-elect JD Vance met with senators on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said after speaking with Gaetz and Vance that he was inclined to “defer the President's Cabinet's decisions unless the evidence points to disqualification.”
Vance said in an X post Thursday afternoon that he was “extremely grateful for the work Matt put into the nomination process.”
“He made his decision to withdraw solely out of respect for President Trump’s administration,” Vance wrote.
Gaetz's withdrawal also got here a day after the Senate Judiciary Committee's Democratic majority called on the FBI to show over all evidence it had collected as a part of its investigation into the previous congressman.
“The serious public allegations against Mr. Gaetz speak directly to his suitability to serve as the federal government’s top law enforcement official,” her letter said.
Gaetz is the primary of Trump's nominees to withdraw his name from the race to hitch the brand new administration.
He's not the just one facing allegations of misconduct. Police files released On Wednesday evening it was revealed that Pete Hegseth, Trump's nominee to guide the Pentagon, was accused of sexually assaulting a girl in 2017.
Hegseth's attorney, Timothy Parlatore, told NBC News that the report “confirms what I have said all along, that the incident was fully investigated and police found the allegation to be false, therefore no charges were filed.”
Police gave no reason for not charging Hegseth.
Hegseth, a former Fox News host, has denied the allegations. His lawyer admitted he paid the lady an undisclosed amount under a civil confidential settlement agreement. Parlatore has accused the lady of “attempting to blackmail Mr. Hegseth for money.”
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