The Rise and Fall of Matt Gaetz in 8 Days

Eight days after President-elect Donald Trump selected Matt Gaetz as Attorney General, congressman Brandt withdrew from consideration for the position.

It was the nomination that shocked Washington and thrilled the Justice Department.

President Trump reportedly settled in with Gaetz, 42, during a two-hour flight from Washington to Florida last week.

The president-elect, who is still basking in the joy of his election victory, was flying back to West Palm Beach last Wednesday afternoon after a warm meeting with President Joe Biden.

That morning, according to Politico, Gaetz wasn’t even on the shortlist for top U.S. attorney general, but Trump felt overwhelmed by other options.

That day, the so-called Trump Force One included Gaetz himself, Elon Musk, Trump’s new White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and his top legal adviser, Boris Epshteyn, the New York Times reported.

Epshteyn reportedly began persuading Trump that Gaetz should lead the Justice Department that conducted a sex trafficking investigation into the congressman before dismissing the matter.

Allegations that Gaetz had sex with a minor, which he denied, dominated and perhaps torpedoed his nomination process.

Losing his first choice is a setback for Trump and shows the Senate’s reluctance to pass someone who doesn’t lack enemies in Congress.

Instead, another of Trump’s picks, Pam Bondi, a Florida native, would appear to have more allies and a smoother path.

Gaetz, a lawyer, has been one of Trump’s strongest defenders on Capitol Hill.

He helped prepare the Republican candidate for a televised debate against Biden, which effectively eliminated the Democrat in the race for the White House.

A Trump adviser explained why the president-elect, who is under criminal investigation by the Justice Department and has accused prosecutors of a witch hunt, took a shine to Gaetz over his other rivals.

“Everyone else looked at the AG (attorney general) as if he were applying for a judicial appointment,” said the anonymous aide.

“The only one who said, ‘Okay, I’m going to go in there and start cutting (expletive) hair,’ was Gaetz.”

Republicans on Capitol Hill reacted lukewarm to the nomination, but career lawyers at the Justice Department told American media they were shocked and outraged.

At last year’s conservative conference, Gaetz suggested that the Justice Department and its agencies, including the FBI, be abolished, arguing that they were being weaponized against conservatives. Current Attorney General Merrick Garland has rejected these claims.

Critics said Trump, who nominated three lawyers who defended him in criminal cases for senior positions at the Justice Department, was more interested in hiring loyalists than appointees who would uphold the rule of law.

Former Trump national security adviser John Bolton dismissed Gaetz as “the worst cabinet appointment in history.”

But the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr, said the outrage from authorities in Washington showed that his father’s unconventional cabinet nominations were merely agents of the kind of change that American voters elected him to lead.

Gaetz, who was nominated for attorney general last week, resigned as representative of Florida’s 1st Congressional District, a position he had held since 2017.

His resignation comes as the House Ethics Committee is expected to decide whether to release a report on its investigation into allegations of misconduct involving drugs, bribery and prostitution involving underage girls.

Gaetz dismissed these claims as slander. But his resignation led to a flurry of leaks in the days that followed, as the ethics committee debated what to do about the report.

Meanwhile, few Republicans seemed willing to circle the wagons around one of the most unpopular members of the House.

Last year, the combative Gaetz came under fire for his part when he proved instrumental in ousting Republican Kevin McCarthy as House speaker.

Markwayne Mullin, a former congressman turned senator, told CNN at the time that there was a reason none of Gaetz’s colleagues came forward to defend him against the sexual harassment allegations.

Last October, the Oklahoman accused Gaetz of boasting about his sexual exploits, saying “we all saw the video he showed on the House floor.”

Gaetz said Mullin was lying.

As backlash against his attorney general nomination grew this week, Trump called senators to shore up support.

Trump appeared to have a firm hold on Gaetz as he attended the SpaceX rocket launch in Boca Chica, Texas, with Musk on Tuesday.

When asked if he was reconsidering, President-elect Lee answered, “No.”

There was more encouraging news for Gaetz Wednesday as Republicans on the House Ethics Committee decided not to make their investigation into him public.

This happened as Vice President-elect J.D. Vance was using a charm offensive to get his attorney general nominee around the Senate.

Gaetz said it was a “good day.” However, turbulence was predicted ahead.

Asked how messy the confirmation process could get, incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said the hearings could be “on steroids.”

As of Thursday morning, Trump was still calling Republican senators to gauge Gaetz’s chances.

But by lunchtime, the candidate decided he didn’t have the votes, and once again surprised Washington by announcing that he would open the door.

He told

On the 16th, President-elect Trump unusually ignored a Truth Social post confirming his first political frustration since being elected.

“I greatly appreciate Matt Gaetz’s recent efforts to secure confirmation for the Attorney General position,” he wrote, adding that the nominee did not want to be “in the way.”

Hours later, Trump nominated former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi instead.

Trump predicted a “great future” for Gaetz, but a question mark hangs over what he will do next.

He was comfortably re-elected this month, but plans are already in place for a by-election to fill his vacancy.

Randy Ross, a Florida-based Trump fundraiser, told the BBC that America has not heard the last of Matt Gaetz.

“I believe there is still a place for this patriot in the future leadership of the Trump administration, Florida, and our country,” Ross said. “We are all looking forward to seeing what he does next.”

Meanwhile, Ginger Gaetz, who is marrying the congresswoman in 2021, posted an old photo to X after they were both evacuated from the steps of the Capitol.

“It’s the end of an era,” she said.