Last updated on January 13, 2025
Everyone is unpacking the election results, and the exit polls are still unraveling. I don’t want to psychoanalyze the data right now, if ever. That should be left for the data scientists and political strategists to digest this obvious political realignment.
Failing to take either chamber of Congress and the White House, the Democrats have lost all political power. Senate Democrats can cling to the filibuster to prevent non-budgetary legislation, but the Democrats will be the party in the background. And they have two years to understand why before they come before the American people again.
Now for the real news. Yesterday, Trump announced that his nominee for attorney general is Matt Gaetz.
This has to be a troll. I’ve been racking my brain for hours on end on how the political campaign that swept all seven swing states and won the popular vote would make such an atrocious pick. The only thing that makes sense to me is that Trump either doesn’t care or is so insulated by yes-men that he told him this is a genius pick. There is a third theory, which also would be asinine.
It’s no secret that Republicans roll their eyes at this chaos agent. He ousted Republican Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy and halted congressional business, embarrassing Republicans by forcing Congress into a paralysis. His stated reason was that McCarthy worked with Democrats on a continued resolution to prevent a government shutdown, citing the massive 33 trillion dollar federal debt.
And then he voted for Speaker Mike Johnson, who did the exact same thing.
But trust me that is the least of Gaetz’s deep and disqualifying flaws.
Put aside his inadequate litigation or trial experience, Gaetz has faced both a DOJ probe and a House ethics probe over alleged sexual misconduct. The DOJ probe investigated whether Gaetz engaged in sexual relations with a 17-year-old, and in the process, violated sexual human trafficking laws. That probe never materialized into a formal indictment in part because the DOJ was skeptical of the credibility of some witnesses and whether they could convince a jury that Gaetz knew the girl was underage at the time. Remember that this DOJ probe began under Bill Barr, Trump’s attorney general at the time.
This then culminated in a separate House ethics probe in 2021 over: “sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.”
This continued when the Republicans flipped the House in 2022, and when Gaetz ousted McCarthy, who claimed it was because he refused to quash the ethics probe against him. Given the fact that Gaetz was so indignant about McCarthy’s bipartisan continued resolution but was fine with Johnson’s same CR, that may be true.
This brings me to the third, insane theory as to why Trump tapped Gaetz: the House ethics panel would have voted to release the findings report tomorrow. However, Gaetz resigned from Congress shortly after being nominated, so the investigation ended because Congress’s jurisdiction only extends to its members.
The timing reeks.
The House can and should still release that report before the Senate confirmation hearings begin. There is a reason Gaetz asked Trump in 2021 for a blanket, pre-emptive pardon for any possible crimes committed.
All of this should be disqualifying for the congressional office Gaetz just held. I wouldn’t be surprised if lawyers have been disbarred for less. He is also just a terrible provocateur and showman. Last year, I wrote an op-ed for the Daily Californian after Gaetz ousted McCarthy, and I said that he has a malicious propensity to have the cameras rolling on him as the Titanic sinks. Yet, believe it or not, this entire timeline of debasement, debauchery, government malpractice, and foolish clownery is not even the greatest argument against Gaetz as attorney general.
The greatest disqualifying argument is that he will be Trump’s lapdog.
The Attorney General has always been in an awkward position. He’s a member of the president’s cabinet but also initiates and oversees federal probes into the president. Yet, the cornerstone of fair federal prosecution is independence from external political pressures.
The most jarring violation of this was when President Richard Nixon orchestrated the Saturday Night Massacre. At the time, Attorney General Elliot Richardson appointed Archibald Cox as special prosecutor to investigate Nixon’s involvement in Watergate. Nixon later ordered Richardson to fire Cox. When Richardson refused, Nixon ordered his deputy attorney general to fire Cox. Both men resigned in protest, which eventually led to significant political pressure towards Nixon’s resignation.
As history shows, the president cannot have blatant influence over the DOJ. It’s hard to imagine an Attorney General Matt Gaetz will be independent of Trump’s dictates, especially if Trump entertains campaigns of political retribution. If Trump or somebody in his administration needs to be investigated for potential breaches, it’s also hard to imagine Gaetz would follow his oath and defy Trump.
Admittedly, presidents like John F. Kennedy appointing his brother as attorney general also violated institutional independence. However, Gaetz is not half the serious litigator RFK was, and there is a difference between loyalty and fealty.
Republicans may point to Merrick Garland’s DOJ under Joe Biden went after Trump. While I disagree with Garland a lot, at the very least, he appointed a Trump-era special prosecutor to investigate Joe Biden’s mishandling of classified documents. Even though the special prosecutor did recommend charges, that was his choice and not the attorney general’s. Lastly, even if Biden’s attorney general engaged in political prosecution, that does not justify Republicans to do the exact same thing. They have a real opportunity to reaffirm neutral institutions of accountability and not spiral into a never-ending tit-for-tat.
This nomination will embroil increasingly substantiated accusations of gross executive power expansion. This will do nothing to quell fears of the DOJ succumbing to partisan weaponization and will only further bastardize our judicial process.
All of this is why Senate Majority Leader John Thune should prevent his confirmation.
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