Trump attorney general pick Matt Gaetz withdraws, says nomination became 'distraction'

Former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz is withdrawing Thursday from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump's next attorney general.

It came in a shock announcement as a House of Representatives panel weighs the release of a critical report concerning sexual misconduct allegations against Gaetz.

Gaetz was on Capitol Hill on Wednesday to sit down with senators who were pivotal to his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. He said the meetings were "excellent" but conceded that his nomination has become a "distraction" for the Trump transition team.

"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. Trump's DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1," he wrote on X.

"I remain fully committed to see that Donald J. Trump is the most successful President in history. I will forever be honored that President Trump nominated me to lead the Department of Justice and I'm certain he will Save America," he added.

Trump wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, that Gaetz did not want to be a distraction for his next administration.

"I greatly appreciate the recent efforts of Matt Gaetz in seeking approval to be Attorney General. He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect. Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!" he wrote.

The House Ethics Committee met Wednesday to discuss the release of its report on sexual misconduct allegations against Gaetz following a years-long probe but was deadlocked as to whether to publish the findings.

The panel is comprised evenly of five Democrats and five Republicans. Shortly after lengthy closed-door deliberations, Susan Wild, the senior most Democrat on the body, said all five Republicans voted against the release of the report, leading to a deadlock.

Wild said she was prompted to speak in defiance of an agreement to keep the proceedings secret because Republican chairman Michael Guest mischaracterized what unfolded shortly after the meeting concluded.

"The chairman has since betrayed the process by disclosing our deliberations within moments of walking out of the committee," she said, noting the committee will meet again Dec. 5.

Democrats Rep. Sean Casten said he would seek to introduce what is known as a privileged resolution, which would force the House to hold a floor vote on the report's release.

In addition to the House committee's long-running investigation, Gaetz had been under federal scrutiny for allegations he engaged in underage sex trafficking. That probe was closed in February 2023.

Gaetz has denied wrongdoing. He abruptly resigned earlier this month as the committee was preparing to vote on the release of its report.