Donald Trump’s decision to nominate Representative Matt Gaetz as his attorney general managed to inspire new levels of social media face-palming.
Yes, even more than his choice of Fox News host Pete Hegseth to be secretary of defence.
Of course, that’s bound to happen when your attorney general candidate is being investigated by fellow members of Congress because he allegedly “engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favours to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.”
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump claimed that Gaetz would end “the partisan Weaponization of our Justice System” and stop “Weaponized Government” while protecting the U.S. border, dismantling criminal organizations and restoring “Americans’ badly-shattered Faith and Confidence in the Justice Department.”
Gaetz accepted the job offer on X, saying, “It will be an honour to serve as President Trump’s Attorney General!”
But even former Trump administration officials were disturbed by his attorney general pick.
Olivia Troye, a Mike Pence staffer during Trump’s first stint in office, said making Gaetz attorney general was akin to “putting the Hamburglar in charge of McDonald’s security.”
Other commenters called Gaetz “a douche” and “severely underqualified,” and noted that, among other things, he was at the center of a sex trafficking probe and has pushed lies targeting trans children.
But, as former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele noted, “If Trump is your president, of course Matt Gaetz will be your Attorney General.”