WASHINGTON — Following his withdrawal from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general due to allegations of sexual misconduct, former Representative Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., stated on Friday that he had no plans to return to Congress.
The battle will still be fought by me, but from a different angle. In an interview with conservative pundit Charlie Kirk, Gaetz stated, “I have no intention of joining the 119th Congress.”
Many outstanding Floridians have volunteered to run for my seat; these are individuals who have inspired others with their bravery and public service. He went on to say, “I’m really thrilled to see Northwest Florida reach new heights and have excellent representation.”
Gaetz, who was elected to Florida’s state house for the first time at the age of 28, stated that he had served in that capacity for 14 years.
At 42, he declared, “I’m going to be fighting for President Trump because I have other goals in life that I’m eager to pursue with my wife and my family.” “I’m going to comply with his requests, just as I always have. However, I believe that eight years in the US Congress is probably enough time.
According to Gaetz, now seems like a very poetic time to let that wonderful fresh blood in so that my district may have excellent representation.
Without going into detail, he also hinted at continuing to be involved in Trump’s plans.
“We need a leadership structure under President Trump that s going to allow for durability of our movement and the ability to continue this great realignment of our politics, and so I ll play a part in that,” he stated. “I plan to be a big voice, but maybe not as an elected member of the government.”
Gaetz’s seat in Florida’s First Congressional District will be filled by a special election on April 1, 2025, the Florida Department of State said later Friday. With Gaetz’s departure, House Republicans lose a seat by a narrow margin.
Gaetz’s former House aides were contacted by NBC News for comment.
There were some doubts about whether the Florida Republican, who was recently re-elected this month to a second two-year term, would decide to return to Congress after Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration to be Trump’s attorney general on Thursday.
In addition, there was the question of whether the House Ethics Committee would release its report on its investigation into Gaetz’s alleged sexual misbehavior if he returned to Congress.
He was under investigation by the panel because of claims that he paid an adult lady and a juvenile for sex at a party in 2017. According to a source familiar with the conversations, NBC News reported Thursday that the committee was told during the investigation that the 17-year-old juvenile had had two sex encounters with the then-congressman at the party.
Despite looking into Gaetz’s alleged involvement in sex trafficking, the Department of Justice decided not to press charges against him. Gaetz has also refuted those claims.
Due of the accusations, Gaetz’s upcoming nomination was in doubt. He informed Kirk on Friday that the accusations are untrue and an effort to discredit him.
According to Gaetz, “I would be under indictment and probably in a prison cell if the things that the House Ethics report [said] were true.” Naturally, though, they are untrue because everything immediately breaks down when you compare them to other documents and testimonies.
Following Trump’s announcement last week that he had chosen Gaetz to be his attorney general, Gaetz resigned from Congress. Gaetz’s departure prevents him from rejoining the current Congress.
Because he spearheaded the successful attempt to remove Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as House speaker last year, the lawmaker, who joined the U.S. House in 2017, was unpopular with some members of the House Republican Conference.
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