Matt Gaetz drops out of consideration for next U.S. attorney general | CBC News

Former U.S. congressman Matt Gaetz has pulled himself out of the running to be the nation’s attorney general under president-elect Donald Trump after several days of concern over the selection, even from Republicans.

The announcement Thursday came after the House ethics committee deadlocked on releasing a report into allegations of Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old girl and using illegal drugs.

The politician said he made his decision to drop out after he met with Republican senators, whose support he would’ve needed to secure the job.

“While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance transition. There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as attorney general,” he wrote on X.

Gaetz has denied criminal wrongdoing.

Trump’s choice to have Gaetz oversee law enforcement shocked many in Washington last week. The pick also rattled many career Justice Department lawyers, who privately expressed concern about Gaetz leading the same agency that investigated sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls. 

The agency’s three-year investigation into Gaetz ended last year without charges being brought.

Trump, who has railed against the Justice Department over the two criminal cases brought against him, had described Gaetz as the right person to “root out the systemic corruption” within the agency.

When asked Tuesday if he was reconsidering his nomination of Gaetz, Trump said, “No.”