Gaetz, Trump Defeated by Lone, Anonymous Woman
Gaetz withdrew (ew) as Trump's nominee after new allegations came to light
RePresident-elect Donald Trump has his first, embarrassing, easily avoidable loss. And he’s not even president yet.
His attorney-general nominee, former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) this afternoon withdrew his name from consideration for the post.
Gaetz pulled out (ew) shortly after CNN asked him about a previously unreported allegation he had not one but two sexual encounters with a 17-year-old girl.
CNN is using phrases like “sexual encounter” and “had sex with,” so it’s not clear whether both involve rape. But “had sex with” a 17-year-old girl is rape, so there’s at least some rape involved.
Trump, of course, has also been adjudicated as liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll.
The House Ethics Committee was going to release its report on the allegations tomorrow. But Gaetz resigned from Congress after Trump nominated him. Then Republicans voted not to release the report.
Some Senate Republicans urged the committee to release it anyway, implying that the already-public allegations and everything known about Gaetz weren’t enough to reject the nomination.
According to CNN, the woman who was 17 when Gaetz raped her told the committee that there was a second sexual encounter with Gaetz that also involved an adult woman. The woman denied the claim, as has Gaetz.
Ironically, Trump and Gaetz don’t seem to have understood that if they had just stuck to their disgusting guns, there was a good chance Senate Republicans would fold. Instead, it seems, Trump and Gaetz seem to have fallen for the GOP bluff that Gaetz didn’t have the votes.
It’s also worth remember that Trump brought this shitpile on himself by refusing to work with the Senate Republicans beforehand to ensure he picked a nominee they could defend.
In a statement, Trump said he he has “much respect” for Gaetz not wanting to be a distraction.
It’s not clear, though, what exactly Gaetz was distracting from. Defense nominee Pete Hegseth?
Unfortunately, what’s likely to happen now is that Trump will tap someone less obviously toxic — who’ll be just as willing as Gaetz was to do Trump’s bidding.
Here’s how Axios reported on what that bidding is likely to be, in the context of a Trump advisor describing the attorney-general vetting process:
“None of the attorneys had what Trump wants, and they didn’t talk like Gaetz,” the adviser said. “Everyone else looked at AG as if they were applying for a judicial appointment. They talked about their vaunted legal theories and constitutional bullshit. Gaetz was the only one who said, ‘Yeah, I’ll go over there and start cuttin’ fuckin’ heads.’”
Trump had already tapped his own lawyer, Todd Blanche, to be the number-two person at the Justice Department, indicating, again, that loyalty is the paramount virtue.
As for Gaetz, I was thinking Trump would pick him for a post that doesn’t require Senate confirmation. Like, somewhere in the White House, with all those interns running around.
But Trump’s line about watching what Gaetz does (ew) sounds more like a seeya later.
Well, the right wing can always park Gaetz at one of its many “think” tanks with gobs of obscene funding. He’s gonna be okay!
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Let's take a win while we can. They are likely to be few and far between.
Gaetz is potentially just a sacrifice, the other rapists, criminals, and enablers Trump has nominated need to be dumped as well. Like the rapist, Faux sock puppet, white supremacist he nominated for defence.
NEXT!