Trump to nominate Matt Gaetz for attorney general
President-elect Donald Trump says he will nominate longtime ally GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida to serve as his attorney general — a choice that quickly prompted backlash from Democrats and some Republicans over Gaetz's history. Following Trump's announcement, Gaetz resigned from his seat in the House of Representatives, House Speaker Mike Johnson said.
Gaetz, who has represented Florida's 1st Congressional District since 2017, has been the focus of several investigations into his conduct.
In a statement on social media, Trump praised him as a "tenacious attorney" who will "end Weaponized Government, protect our Borders, dismantle Criminal Organizations and restore Americans' badly shattered Faith and Confidence in the Justice Department." Gaetz said said on X, "It will be an honor to serve as President Trump's Attorney General!"
If confirmed, Gaetz would lead the Justice Department — a federal agency of more than 100,000 employees — and oversee its numerous investigative components, including the FBI. Gaetz's ascent to the Justice Department's top job will come at a unique time, after Mr. Trump spent all of his 2024 presidential campaign under federal investigation or prosecution.
Johnson said Wednesday night that Gaetz had already submitted his letter resigning from Congress, effective immediately.
"That caught us by surprise a little bit," Johnson said. "But I asked him what the reasoning was, and he said, 'Well, you can't have too many absences,'" referring to the GOP's slim majority in the House of Representatives. Johnson said Florida law would allow Gaetz's replacement to be selected within the next eight weeks or so.
"I've already placed a call to Gov. DeSantis in Florida and said, 'Let's start the clock,'" Johnson said.
In the letter, later obtained by CBS News, Gaetz wrote: "I hereby resign, as United States Representatives for Florida's First Congressional District, effective immediately, and I do not intend to take the oath of office for the same office in the 119th Congress, to pursue the position of Attorney General in the Trump Administration."
In a confirmation process, Gaetz would undoubtedly face questions about an ongoing review by the bipartisan House Ethics Committee, which said in a statement earlier this year it was looking into allegations that Gaetz may have "engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct."
Prior to his resignation, the committee had scheduled a vote Friday on whether to release its report into Gaetz, three sources with knowledge of the committee's work told CBS News. Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, on Thursday called on the House Ethics panel to preserve and share the report, as well as "all relevant documentation" on Gaetz with his committee.
Gaetz has denied all wrongdoing and maintained his innocence throughout a Justice Department probe — closed last year — into allegations that he violated sex trafficking laws and obstructed justice. Federal prosecutors in Florida did not file any charges in the case and informed the congressman that the case was closed.
Senators, who will vote on his confirmation, began to weigh in as they learned of Trump's intent to nominate Gaetz.
"He wants to be the top cop, so I would say that yeah, he's certainly going to have to answer all those things, whether they're legit or not legit," GOP Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota said of past allegations against Gaetz. "Some of these investigations are still open, obviously." Cramer also said the pick was "a surprise to me" and expressed some reservations.
"The one thing about Matt was that concerned me a little bit. I didn't like the way he handled the squabble with with Speaker McCarthy." He said he was for every one of Trump's other nominees, adding, "Matt could earn that, but I'm not there right out of the chute with Matt."
"This one was not on my bingo card," GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told reporters. "I don't think this is a serious nomination for attorney general. We need to have a serious attorney general."
Senate Republican conference Chair John Barrasso, when asked by reporters about Gaetz, said, "The president is going to continue to make his appointments. We're going to continue to look forward to them coming to the Senate and have hearings and get his Cabinet confirmed as quickly as possible."
Sources told CBS News that the most conceivable, easiest and fastest way to install Gaetz would be for the House and Senate to recess shortly after Inauguration Day so that Gaetz and others could be installed through recess appointments, a temporary option that doesn't require Senate confirmation.
One former senior Justice Department official during Trump's first administration told CBS News that "Matt Gaetz has no business running DOJ."
Gaetz, who has served on the House Judiciary Committee and has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration, would take over the post as the first confirmed attorney general under a Trump presidency since Bill Barr. Barr resigned in 2020 when then-President Trump sought to remain in power after he lost the election. Barr left office at the end of that year and was replaced by an acting attorney general, Jeff Rosen. Rosen and a number of his subordinates later testified against Trump during a hearing of the House select committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol. The former officials alleged that Trump had sought to pressure the Justice Department to investigate his claims of election fraud.
Attorney General Merrick Garland, a former federal judge, appointed numerous special counsels to conduct investigations into high-profile figures, including Mr. Biden, his son Hunter and Mr. Trump.
Gaetz's expected nomination comes as some of the president-elect's supporters have called for change inside the Justice Department. Attorney Mark Paoletta, who was thought to be in the running to serve as Mr. Trump's attorney general, said, "Career DOJ lawyers must be fully committed to implementing President Trump's policies or they should leave or be fired."
"If the president wants to deport illegal aliens, secure the border, ban race-based 'affirmative action' and DEI, investigate antisemitism, halt Big Tech censorship, grant pardons and commutations to Jan 6th defendants, he has every right to expect that these perfectly lawful policies are implemented," Paoletta wrote. "It is absolutely unacceptable for career employees to seek to thwart this policy agenda."
Trump's first term brought tension between the White House and his two Senate-confirmed attorneys general, Jeff Sessions and Barr. Sessions, who angered Trump because he recused himself from the Justice Department investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, was forced out shortly after the 2018 midterm elections.
In a statement released after last week's election results, the Justice Department said it is "committed to ensuring an orderly and effective transition to the new Administration."
Beyond the political implications, like attorneys general of both parties who have preceded him, Gaetz would likely try to shape the Justice Department around the priorities of the president. And he would be all but certain to reverse course on various Biden-era policies, too.
Trump has called for mass deportations, pardons for some of those convicted in the ongoing Jan. 6 investigation and regulation slashing — all actions in which the Justice Department is likely to play a central role.
Trump and Republicans have long criticized Garland's leadership and targeted various Justice Department initiatives, including the expansion of civil rights and business regulation cases. Under the Trump administration, that is likely to come to an end.
Much of next attorney general's work would depend on who Trump appoints to lead various Justice Department divisions, like those that handle national security and criminal matters. Trump's pick to oversee the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel will also likely be key to Trump's agenda because this office will issue decisions on the department's legal interpretation of the president's decisions. For instance, it could cement the president's power to fire certain political appointees and career government officials.
FBI Director Christopher Wray reports directly to the attorney general. He was nominated by Trump in 2017 for a ten-year term. Since then, however, the president-elect has criticized the Bureau amid the federal probes into Trump's conduct, and he has vowed to implement reforms.