Former Republican Congressman Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania has suggested he may withdraw President-elect Trump's nomination of Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to be attorney general.
“In the case of Matt Gaetz, we would have to withdraw the nomination. I think that's a bridge too far,” Dent told CNN's Abby Phillip on Friday.
Trump has faced some backlash since nominating Gates to be his attorney general, as the former congressman faces a House Ethics Committee investigation over allegations of sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. It's because I'm doing it. The investigation began in 2021, shortly after reports emerged that the Department of Justice (DOJ) was investigating whether the suspect had sexual relations with a 17-year-old girl.
Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing, and the Justice Department has declined to prosecute him. Gaetz said in September that he would “no longer voluntarily participate” in “redemptive” ethics investigations and would not respond to subpoenas.
Mr. Dent cited the House ethics report and warned that it could pose a hurdle for Mr. Gaetz if it were made public.
“Ethics reports are coming and there's a good chance they'll be released as well, but those reports won't be clean,” Dent said, adding that while he was in Congress, the House Ethics Committee gave him credibility. He listed the post in which he served as committee chairman.
Dent noted that Gates resigned from Congress shortly after being nominated by President Trump, adding, “If the report is going to be clean, there's no need for him to resign from Congress. It's not going to be clean.”
Gaetz also caused controversy last year when he was accused of spearheading an effort to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from the House speakership last fall. The former speaker resigned from the House late last year, but Gaetz claims he only wanted to remove him over ethics complaints.
During the interview, Dent argued that the dynamics within House Republicans could cause some problems for Gaetz in seeking Senate confirmation.
“No one should underestimate how much House Republicans hate him. I mean, hate is actually the only word they use to describe how much they hate him. “That's a dramatic understatement to use,” Dent said.
