Following President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla. ) as his nominee for U. S. attorney general on Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La. ) the Florida representative’s departure was announced as “effective soon.”
In a statement obtained by The Hill, Johnson said,” I think, out of respect to us, he issued his resignation letter successful immediately, of Congress. That caught us by surprise a little bit, but I asked him what the reasoning was and he said, well, you ca n’t have too many absences, so under Florida state law there’s about an eight-week period to select and fill a vacant seat”.
Johnson continued, adding that he had spoken with the governor before. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla. ) to” start the clock” on choosing a replacement following Gaetz’s resignation from Congress.
Due to Gaetz’s departure, Trump issued a statement on Truth Social, saying,” It is my Great Honor to declare that Congressman Matt Gaetz, of Florida, is now nominated to be The Attorney General of the United States”.
The president-elect described Gaetz as a “deeply brilliant and tenacious lawyer” who was trained at the William &, Mary College of Law before serving in the U. S. House of Representatives. Trump praised Gaetz’s efforts to reform the Justice Department and emphasized that one of the most pressing problems facing the nation right now is “ending the republican Weaponization” of the Justice Department.
” Matt will stop Weaponized Government, protect our Territories, dismantle Criminal Organizations and restore American ‘ badly-shattered Faith and Confidence in the Justice Department”, Trump said. ” On the House Judiciary Committee, which performs monitoring of DOJ, Matt played a vital role in defeating the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, and exposing disturbing and widespread Government Corruption and Weaponization. He supports the principle of law and the constitution.
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Trump said he would “root out the widespread problem” in the Justice Department and help it fulfill its” real goal of fighting violence, upholding our politics, and constitutional rights” if Gaetz were to be confirmed as attorney general.
Following Trump’s statement on Wednesday, Gaetz tweeted,” It will be an honor to serve as President Trump’s Attorney General”!
The House Ethics Committee’s investigation into allegations that Gaetz was involved in illegal drug usage and sexual misconduct is ended, according to The Hill’s report.
Michael Guest, R-Miss., head of the House Ethics Committee. explained,” When a representative is no longer a member of Congress, next Ethics has no control”.
Despite Trump’s session, Fox News reported that Gaetz does experience difficulty being confirmed by Senate Republicans. One anonymous Republican senator told the outlet,” He will never get confirmed”, while another source said,” Ain’t gonna happen”.