Florida Republican Matt Gaetz has tendered his resignation from Congress “effective immediately,” House Speaker Mike Johnson revealed Wednesday.
The shocking announcement came on the same day that Gaetz was surprisingly chosen by President-elect Donald Trump To act as Attorney General in his incoming administration — and reportedly ahead of Friday’s vote on whether to release the House Ethics Committee report related to the allegations Sexual misconduct and drug use Now former Congressmen are also included in this.
“I think out of respect for us, he issued his resignation letter with immediate effect. It took us by surprise a little bit,” Johnson (R-La.) said during a press conference.
The House Speaker said he expects the now vacant Florida 1st District seat to be filled by January 3.
Gaetz’s resignation will end a House Ethics Committee investigation launched in April 2021, which alleged that the congressman engaged in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, accepted inappropriate gifts, extended special privileges to those individuals and provided benefits to those with whom he had personal relationships, and tried to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.
The ethics panel was reportedly set to vote Friday on whether to release its “highly damaging” report on Gaetz punchbol news,
With Gaetz resigning, the panel no longer has jurisdiction to pursue the investigation.
Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
His office did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
Johnson indicated during his remarks to reporters that he was unaware of the status of the ethics investigation and indicated that Gaetz’s sudden resignation was related to quickly getting a Republican replacement in the House.
“I asked him what the reasoning was, and he said, ‘Well, you can’t have too many absences,'” the House speaker said.
“Under Florida state law, there is a period of approximately eight weeks to select and fill the vacancy. And so today (by resigning) it allows me to — I’ve already called (Florida Governor Ron DeSantis) and said, ‘Let’s start the clock,'” he said.
“If we start the clock now, if you do the math, we might be able to fill that seat by January 3, when we’ll be sworn in to the new Congress,” Johnson explained.
“So, Matt has done us a great service by making this decision, as he did it immediately.”
“We’re grateful for that.”
Trump’s announcement earlier in the day that he had selected Gaetz to be his top Justice Department official surprised many and disappointed some in Congress.
A GOP aide told The Post that he does not expect Gaetz to be confirmed for a Cabinet post by the GOP-led Senate.
Florida Republicans led the charge to oust former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in October 2023 — putting him on poor terms with many in Congress.
Trump, 78, referred to Gaetz in his announcement on Wednesday as an “extremely talented and tenacious attorney” who “distinguished himself in Congress by focusing on achieving desperately needed reforms at the Justice Department.”
Trump said of Gaetz, “Few issues in America are more important than ending the partisan weaponization of our justice system.”
The President-elect said, “Met will dismantle the government, secure our borders, dismantle criminal organizations, and restore Americans’ badly damaged trust and confidence in the Justice Department.”
(TagstoTranslate)Politics(T)US News(T)Congress(T)Matt Gaetz(T)Mike Johnson
