Following President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) as his nominee for U.S. attorney general on Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) announced that the Florida representative had submitted his resignation “effective immediately.”
In a statement obtained by The Hill, Johnson said, “I think, out of deference to us, he issued his resignation letter effective immediately, of Congress. That caught us by surprise a little bit, but I asked him what the reasoning was and he said, well, you can’t have too many absences, so under Florida state law there’s about an eight-week period to select and fill a vacant seat.”
Johnson added that he had already contacted Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) to “start the clock” on choosing a replacement following Gaetz’s resignation from Congress.
Prior to Gaetz’s resignation, Trump issued a statement on Truth Social, saying, “It is my Great Honor to announce that Congressman Matt Gaetz, of Florida, is hereby nominated to be The Attorney General of the United States.”
The president-elect described Gaetz as a “deeply gifted and tenacious attorney” who was trained at the William & Mary College of Law before serving in the U.S. House of Representatives. Trump highlighted Gaetz’s focus on reforming the Department of Justice and emphasized that “ending the partisan Weaponization” of the Justice Department is one of the most important issues currently facing the country.
“Matt will end Weaponized Government, protect our Borders, dismantle Criminal Organizations and restore Americans’ badly-shattered Faith and Confidence in the Justice Department,” Trump said. “On the House Judiciary Committee, which performs oversight of DOJ, Matt played a key role in defeating the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, and exposing alarming and systemic Government Corruption and Weaponization. He is a Champion for the Constitution and the Rule of Law.”
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If Gaetz is confirmed as attorney general, Trump said he will “root out the systemic corruption” in the Justice Department and guide the department to “its true mission of fighting Crime, and upholding our Democracy and Constitution.”
Following Trump’s announcement on Wednesday, Gaetz tweeted, “It will be an honor to serve as President Trump’s Attorney General!”
According to The Hill, Gaetz’s sudden resignation after Trump’s announcement brings an end to the House Ethics Committee’s investigation into allegations that Gaetz was involved in illicit drug use and sexual misconduct.
House Ethics Committee Chair Michael Guest (R-Miss.) explained, “Once a member is no longer a member of Congress, then Ethics has no jurisdiction.”
Despite Trump’s appointment, Fox News reported that Gaetz may face difficulty being confirmed by Senate Republicans. One anonymous Republican senator told the outlet, “He will never get confirmed,” while another source said, “Ain’t gonna happen.”
