US President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday nominated Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, to be the next US attorney general, hours after his first pick, Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name.
Pam Bondi’s nomination comes after the original pick for attorney general, Republican Matt Gaetz withdrew his name due to an ongoing federal sex trafficking investigation against him.
“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,” said Gaetz.
“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,” he added. In a post on social media he indicated that he would continue to fight for the country but from a different position.
Who is Pam Bondi?
Pam Bondi is a long-time Donald Trump ally and was one of his lawyers during his first impeachment trial when he was accused trying to negotiate US military aid to Ukraine based on them investigating former president Joe Biden, who was vice president at the time.
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She has also chaired the America First Policy Institute, a think tank established by former Trump administration staffers.
Pam Bondi, who is from Tampa, was Florida’s first female attorney general and has 18 years of experience as a prosecutor.
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Donald Trump reacts to Matt Gaetz’s withdrawal
Donald Trump reacted to Gaetz’s withdrawal saying, “Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!”
Allegations against Matt Gaetz
Two women came forward recently to tell the House Ethics Committee that Gaetz paid them for sex on multiple occasions since 2017, at a time when he was a Florida congressman. They also accused him of sexual relations with a 17-year-old at a party in Florida in 2017, which would constitute statutory rape as the age of consent in the state was 18.
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The women’s lawyer stated, “They are grateful for the opportunity to move forward with their lives. They are hoping that this brings final closure for all the parties involved.”
Gaetz has strongly denied any wrongdoing. The Justice Department’s investigation ended last year with no charges against him.
Gaetz won his re-election bid in November for Congress but issued a resignation letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson and Florida Governor Ron Desantis, saying that he did not intend to take the oath of office.
Republicans on the House Ethics Committee have declined to release the panel’s findings, over objections from Democrats in a split vote. The committee will meet once more on December 5 to conclude the matter.
Apart from Gaetz, Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon, former Fox News anchor Peter Hegseth, is also facing sexual assault charges, though he has stated that he had been investigated and cleared of any blame.
