Who is Matt Gaetz, Trump's pick for attorney general of the United States? | US Election News 2024

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's nomination of Republican lawmaker Matt Gaetz as attorney general on Wednesday sparked a stir on both sides of the political aisle.

The role is also that of the country's top prosecutor and head of the Justice Ministry. As attorney general, Gaetz would also oversee agencies like the Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI).

Trump announced the nomination in a post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday. He cited Gaetz's background as a lawyer and member of the House Judiciary Committee.

The president-elect, who has verbally attacked the Justice Department for filing two federal lawsuits against him, said Gaetz would root out systemic corruption within the department and return it to its true mission of fighting crime and upholding our democracy and our constitution.

Gaetz, who has been the subject of his own series of investigations for alleged inappropriate and illegal behavior, has caused waves during his tenure in the House and sparked some animosity among his congressional colleagues, even within his own party . As a result, his nomination sparked widespread concern, with some Republicans saying it was not a serious move.

Gaetz will have to go through a Senate confirmation hearing in the next Congress before he can be confirmed as attorney general, the date for which has not yet been set.

Republicans will have a 53-seat majority in the next party, but a difference of opinion over Gaetz could hamper his chances. Four negative votes from Republicans, along with united Democratic opposition, would result in the nomination being rejected.

Here's what we know about Gaetz and why he's such a controversial choice for U.S. attorney general:

Who is Matt Gaetz?

Gaetz, 42, was until this week a member of the US House of Representatives representing Florida.

He has held the position since 2017 but resigned on Wednesday following his appointment as attorney general. He represented Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and parts of Walton counties.

The politician graduated from Virginia's William and Mary Law School in 2007 and briefly engaged in private practice before entering politics. He was following in the footsteps of his father, Don Gaetz, who served in the Florida state Senate from 2006 to 2016 and will return as senator next year, after the 2024 general election.

Matt Gaetz is widely considered a far-right ideologue. In 2021, he posted an endorsement of the Great Replacement Theory on the social media channel X.

The conspiracy theory is peddled by white American nationalists and falsely claims that Democrats are deliberately replacing whites with non-whites through mass migration. Gaetz's tweet still appeared on the social media platform as of Thursday morning.

.@TuckerCarlson is right about replacement theory when explaining what is happening to America.

The ADL is a racist organization. https://t.co/32Vu60HrJK

Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) September 25, 2021

In 2018, he invited right-wing Holocaust denier Charles Chuck Johnson to Trump's State of the Union address as his guest from Florida. Gaetzhas also called abortion rights protesters ugly.

Reacting to his appointment on Wednesday, Gaetz said in a post that it would be an honor to serve as attorney general.

It will be an honor to serve as President Trump’s Attorney General! pic.twitter.com/dg0iQ0bA6Y

Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) November 13, 2024

What criminal investigations has Gaetz been the subject of?

The Justice Department launched a federal sex trafficking investigation against Gaetz that began in early 2021, examining whether Gaetz and an associate, Joel Greenberg, paid or gave gifts to underage girls and escorts in exchange for sex. sexual with themselves and with other men during a trip to the Bahamas.

In the same investigation, department prosecutors also were looking into whether Gaetz and other associates tried to get government jobs for some of the women.

Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing in all allegations. In a statement to US cable news channel CNN at the start of the Justice Department's investigation, he claimed that the charges were part of an extortion plot and that no part of the allegations against me were was true.

Over the past several weeks, my family and I have been victims of an organized criminal extortion involving a former DOJ official seeking $25 million while threatening to smear my name, Gaetz alleged.

Greenberg, a fellow Republican politician from Florida, later pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor and was sentenced in 2022 to 11 years in prison. However, Gaetz said in a statement in February 2023 that the DOJ had ended the investigation against him and was not filing charges.

Why else is Gaetz being investigated and by whom?

Separately, Gaetz has been under investigation since 2021 by the bipartisan House Ethics Committee over allegations that he was involved in the trafficking of a 17-year-old girl. It is unclear whether this is the same case that the DOJ investigated.

The committee said earlier this year that Gaetz was also under investigation for allegations of using illegal drugs, accepting inappropriate gifts as a lawmaker and obstructing a government investigation.

The committee was preparing to vote Friday to release a highly critical report on Gaetz, according to the New York Times earlier this week, which cited an unnamed Republican official.

However, with his resignation, the Chamber no longer has jurisdiction to continue its investigation.

The politician was repeatedly combative during committee questioning during the 2023 and 2024 hearings, and delayed the House investigation for several months, the official told the Times, adding that the report could not be released earlier because of House rules prohibiting the exposure of negative information. information on which lawmakers will be running in elections close to the vote.

The return pic.twitter.com/OigHzDzGOZ

Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) November 13, 2024

How close is Gaetz to Donald Trump?

Gaetz is a close ally of Trump and has appeared frequently on television programs defending the now president-elect.

Like Trump, he supports strengthening borders and opposes tighter restrictions on gun ownership.

In the House, Gaetz fiercely criticized the Justice Department's criminal charges against Trump, linked to the former president's handling of classified information and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Gaetz also criticized a special investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election in favor of Trump. In 2020, a Senate panel found that Russia had indeed intervened and detailed how Trump's close associates were in contact with Kremlin contacts.

After Trump failed to win the 2020 election, Gaetz, along with fellow hardline Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, participated in America First rally tours. In Florida, they asked the crowd, “Who is your president?” and supporters responded: Trump!

When Trump went on trial for paying money to adult film star Stormy Daniels, Gaetz traveled to New York to support him.

According to the Associated Press, citing a former White House aide, Gaetz preemptively requested a presidential pardon for the Justice Department investigation before Trump left office in January 2021.

Gaetz's nomination Wednesday is seen by political analysts as payback for his support of Trump.

What do Republicans think of Gaetz?

Gaetz's combative style means he has been treated as a pariah in the House, even by members of the Republican Party. He is part of the Freedom Caucus, a group of Republican representatives loyal to Trump and considered the most conservative and right-wing within the party.

The two investigations into him have cast a shadow over his time in Congress. Gaetz's lead role in proposing the motion to impeach former Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy last year also earned him some enemies.

I was shocked by this nomination, Republican Senator Susan Collins told reporters Wednesday. Obviously, the president has the right to appoint whoever he wants, but that's why the Senate advice and consent process is so important. I am sure that many, many questions will be raised at Mr. Gaetz's hearing if, in fact, the nomination is successful.

Liza Murkowski, a Republican senator, also told reporters that she thought Gaetz was not a serious candidate.

However, Gaetz's allies in the House defended the lawmaker. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a fellow Florida Republican, told reporters Wednesday that while many would try to smear him, the evidence would speak for itself.

The liberal New Yorker magazine claimed I had an agenda for chaos.

In reality, I want:

– A balanced budget – Single-subject spending bills – Term limits – A secure southern border – A government that gets a mandate before spying on you

Does this look like chaos or order pic.twitter.com/B2uFwxzPbH

Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) November 12, 2024

What are the implications of his new role?

In a twist, Gaetz is reportedly set to lead the Justice Department, the same institution that succeeded him and Trump.

Trump, in his nomination statement, said Gaetz would reform the DOJ and end the militarization of the justice system.

Hours before the announcement, Gaetz posted on

He also advocated less expensive, single-subject spending bills in the House, rather than bundled bills that he called chaotic.

Gaetz also said he supports U.S. drilling and selling more oil. It's likely a sign of possible legislative support that would favor oil and gas industries blamed for the dirty fossil fuels that are largely to blame for climate change, experts say.

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