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Matt Gaetz withdraws from consideration as attorney general

Then-Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) questions Attorney General Merrick Garland at a House Judiciary Committee hearing on June 4 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)
By Noah Weiland New York Times

Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s contentious choice for attorney general who had faced a torrent of scrutiny, said Thursday that he was withdrawing from consideration for the role.

“It is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz wrote on X. “There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle.”

Gaetz, who visited with Republican senators Wednesday to help make a case for his selection, said in the post that the meetings were “excellent” and that “momentum was strong.” But he added that “Trump’s DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1,” referring to the Justice Department.