The president-elect Donald Trump named the controversial Republican congressman on Wednesday Matt Gaetz as a candidate for attorney general, choosing an ally who has been the subject of Justice Department investigations to lead that agency. “Matt will end gun government, protect our borders, dismantle criminal organizations, and restore Americans’ confidence in the Justice Department,” Trump said in a statement, announcing a selection that must be confirmed by the Senate, now in power. Republican majority.
Gaetz, 42, has never worked at the Justice Department or as a prosecutor, underscoring Trump’s tendency to nominate candidates with limited experience in the positions to which they are nominated. The same day, Gaetz resigned from the House of Representatives, according to House Speaker Mike Johnson, who said the resignation took several members of Congress by surprise.
Gaetz’s nomination was met with skepticism by some Republican senators, who have the power to approve or reject his nomination. The Republican senator Lisa Murkowski said she didn’t think it was a “serious nomination for attorney general.”. Gaetz was the subject of a Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations, although his office announced in 2023 that he would not face criminal charges. Additionally, he remains under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for allegations of sexual misconduct, illegal drug use and possible obstruction attempts.
Trump was also investigated by the Justice Department after his term, facing criminal charges for trying to overturn his 2020 election defeat and for concealing national security documents. Trump has accused the Justice Department of acting against him to harm his political prospects, although a federal judge threw out the documents case and the election case is also expected to be dismissed after his recent election victory.
Some former Justice Department officials have expressed concern that Gaetz is trying to politicize the agency’s operations. Jonathan Smith, a former deputy assistant secretary, warned that an attorney general intent on politicizing the department’s work could harm the rule of law and the agency’s legitimacy. Trump’s entourage has described the attorney general, the nation’s top law enforcement official, as the most important member of the administration after the president. It is key to his plans to implement mass deportations, amnesty participants in the Capitol assault and retaliate against those who prosecuted him over the past four years.
Gaetz, before his election to Congress in 2016, worked at a law firm in Florida. That same Wednesday, shortly before Trump announced his nomination, Gaetz posted a message on social media declaring: “We should undertake an all-out offensive against this ARMED government that has turned against our people. And if that means ABOLISHING all three… mail agencies, from the FBI to the ATF, I’m good to go!” The FBI and ATF are units of the Department of Justice..
Gaetz’s nomination could be a sign that the Trump administration will pursue an aggressive stance on antitrust enforcement, particularly in the technology area, a trend that began during his first term and continued through the Biden administration. Gaetz supported the Justice Department’s work under Biden in pursuing cases against monopolies like Google and warned the company that it was required to comply with any sanctions imposed in the illegal search monopoly case. line.
Finally, some former Justice Department officials, such as national security attorney Bradley Moss, have expressed doubts about Gaetz’s ability to pass security reviews because of his record, which would be unusual under normal circumstances. .
