In the first big shakeup of the upcoming administration, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-F.L., formally withdrew from consideration as President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general pick Thursday — and according to reports, Gaetz was encouraged to withdraw by Trump himself.
Trump made a crucial morning phone call to the former Florida congressman, telling him he lacked sufficient Senate support.
“You don’t have the votes,” Trump told Gaetz, according to reports. “These senators aren’t moving.”
Gaetz later acknowledged he was four to six Republican votes short of confirmation in the Senate, where Republicans hold a 53-47 majority.
At least five Senate Republicans had told Trump they refused to vote for Gaetz’s nomination: Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine, Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, and Senator-elect John Curtis of Utah.
The opposition came despite Gaetz’s Wednesday charm offensive on Capitol Hill, where he and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance met with 10 key Republican senators to win them over to Trump’s nominee.
The withdrawal came shortly after CNN contacted Gaetz about new allegations regarding sexual encounters. Gaetz has consistently denied any wrongdoing related to previous mainstream media leaks about sex trafficking allegations.
The leaks caused a Biden Department of Justice investigation that ended without charges.
“While the momentum was strong, 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, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General.”
Senator Mullin, who had previously clashed with Gaetz but appeared more positive after Wednesday’s meetings, commented, “I think because of the reports that were coming out, it was probably a good decision.”
 
Trump moved swiftly to name former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as his new nominee. Sources close to the transition team said the prolonged confirmation battle would have complicated Trump’s day-one agenda. “At best this was going to be complicated and drag on into February, March,” said one source. “And a strong A.G. is central to everything Trump wants to get started on day one… immigration, overhauling the D.O.J.”
The episode marked a dramatic end to Gaetz’s eight-day nomination, which began with his resignation from the House last Wednesday.