Accused child sex trafficker Matt Gaetz's decision to withdraw his nomination for attorney general came from an unexpected place: Donald Trump.
The Bulwark, a media outlet launched by a group of “Never Trump” Republicans, reported that Trump called Gaetz on Thursday to tell him he didn’t have the votes for confirmation and had to step aside.
“You don’t have the votes,” Trump told Gaetz, according to The Bulwark. “These senators aren’t moving.”
Gaetz then announced he was withdrawing his nomination to avoid causing more distractions for Trump.
The fact that Trump folded just eight days after naming Gaetz as his pick to head the Department of Justice is out of character for the wannabe strongman, who has made "fight" his motto since the failed assassination attempt on his life earlier this summer.
Also surprising is the fact that Trump didn’t make good on his threat to go over the Senate’s head and use recess appointments to install his nominees without a vote.
However, Republicans have been telling Trump they won't stand idly by as he tries to shred their advice and consent power, according to The Hill.
Senate Republicans have been publicly telling Trump he can’t use recess appointments, since they say such a move violates the Constitution. (Of course, Trump doesn’t care about the Constitution. He tried to steal the 2020 election, an effort he was indicted for.)
“The separations of powers doctrine is pretty fundamental: three coequal branches of government. One branch can’t commandeer the other two,” Republican Sen. John Cornyn of Texas told The Hill.
This embarrassing saga for Trump is par for the course for a man who is known for his chaotic decisions.
Trump chose Gaetz on a whim after meeting with Gaetz and Boris Epshetyn, one of the far-right freaks who pals around with Trump. This all happened out of earshot of incoming Trump chief of staff Susie Wiles, who was hailed as the person who could finally rein Trump in but is failing at that job before it even begins.
Ultimately, Gaetz lasted just eight days as attorney general nominee—less than one Scaramucci. It was one of the shortest tenures as a Cabinet nominee in American history, the Senate historian told Politico.
And Gaetz may not be the only Trump nominee who is forced to withdraw.
Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, also faces a stomach-churning sexual assault allegation. Hegseth is accused of raping a female attendee of a Republican women’s event in Monterey, California, in 2017. And that allegation is only one reason his nomination could fail.
Republicans are also reportedly seeking information on Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s pick to be director of national intelligence, to find out whether she has had contacts with foreign adversaries, Punchbowl News reported Friday. Gabbard has been accused of being a Russian asset since she spews talking points that look to be straight from Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
Fail-son Donald Trump Jr. said pushback against his father’s nominees is the point.
“The reality this time is, we actually know what we’re doing,” Trump Jr. told Fox News on Sunday, a few days before Gaetz was forced to pull his nomination.
He added that while some of the picks may not make it, his father was “obviously going with the strongest candidates first."
Apparently, the “strongest candidates” are an accused child sex trafficker, an accused rapist, and a Russian asset. Very comforting.
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