Matt Gaetz was Donald Trump ’s nominee for attorney general for eight days. The former Florida congressman’s historically short stint as a presidential pick came to an end on Thursday when he bowed out of consideration, claiming he no longer wanted the frenzy over the sexual misconduct allegations against him to distract from “the critical work of the Trump/Vance administration.” Gaetz has long been under scrutiny for allegedly having sex with a 17-year-old girl at a party in 2017.
The Justice Department investigated him over that and sex-trafficking allegations, but ultimately declined to bring charges. The House Ethics Committee also investigated Gaetz over the allegations, and was poised to release its findings before Gaetz resigned from Congress last week. The committee’s report was reportedly damning, and there’s plenty to suggest that what is publicly known about Gaetz’s alleged indiscretions is only the tip of the iceberg.
CNN reported on Thursday that Gaetz gave up his bid for attorney general less than an hour after the network informed him they were releasing a report about how he allegedly had multiple sexual encounters with the then-minor. Trump’s allies seemed well aware there could be more to Gaetz than meets the public’s eye, and were worried it could have become a problem if Gaetz took the reins of America’s justice system. The recent drip-drip-drip of new revelations about Gaetz’s alleged sexual activities in 2017 — along with the prom.