CNN commentator Scott Jennings said it's unclear “how successful” President-elect Trump will be in getting former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to become attorney general.
The nomination of Gates, who is under investigation for sexual misconduct, illegal drug use and other charges, to be attorney general has caused chaos on Capitol Hill as controversy swirls over several of Trump's Cabinet nominees. That's true.
The investigation into Gates began shortly after reports emerged that the Department of Justice (DOJ) was investigating whether he had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.
Mr. Jennings appeared on CNN's Wolf Blitzer on Tuesday evening and was asked about a call Mr. Trump reportedly made to Republican senators to curry favor with Mr. Gates.
“Obviously there's going to be a lot of pushback against Gates, and we don't know how successful Donald Trump will be in this,” Jennings said. Highlighted by Mediaite. “So this goes beyond just a handful of senators who have regular issues with Donald Trump or who have feuded with him on issues in the past.”
“We'll see if Trump sticks to it,” Jennings said of his call for lawmakers to support Gaetz.
Pressure is mounting on the House Ethics Committee to release its findings into Gaetz's misconduct allegations, and the Senate has all the information it needs to make a decision.
Gaetz resigned from the House last week, and the committee typically does not release its findings on former members. But lawmakers are asking the committee to do so. The committee is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to consider the decision.
Even if the report is not released, Jennings insisted there is “a lot of time” between now and when the next Congress convenes to vote on Trump's nomination. They argued that Gaetz might not want to lose votes and choose someone else before the election is decided. Up to that point.
“When you become president and you get a candidate, at some point you have to ask yourself, 'Do I want to lose?'” he said. “Most people don't lose. They just withdraw from the process.”
Jennings said he believes Gaetz is in a “different category” among Trump's controversial nominees.
“There's more resistance to him than anyone else and obviously more issues are coming to light every day,” he said.
