In eight days, former Rep. Matt Gaetz went from re-elected member of the House to chief counsel in President-elect Donald Trump’s second-ultimate administration. bending over Ahead of a Senate confirmation hearing.
Here is a timeline of the rollercoaster of congressional events.
President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, takes a break during private meetings with members of the Republican Senate Judiciary Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Nov. 20, 2024.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
November 13, 2024
President-elect Donald Trump has announced Gaetz, who won re-election to Florida’s 1st District on Election Day, as his attorney general nominee.
Gaetz will resign from Congress that day, according to House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Several House Republicans told the closed-door meeting an audible thud in the room when they heard that Trump had chosen Gaetz, sources told ABC News.
Gaetz was investigated by the Department of Justice for alleged sex trafficking, but ultimately no charges were filed.
The Ethics Committee of the Chamber has also been investigating these accusations against Gaetz, and has repeatedly denied them.
November 14, 2024
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has announced a special election to fill Gaetz’s seat, but did not provide immediate details.
Sen. John Thune, the incoming Senate majority leader, told reporters he won’t know until the Gaetz confirmation process begins.
President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, closes the door to a private meeting with Vice President-elect JD Vance and members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Republicans, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Nov. 20, 2024.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Senators on both sides of the aisle are demanding the details of the Ethics Committee’s investigation into the former congressman be released.
ABC News the reports The woman at the center of the Justice Department’s investigation into sex-trafficking allegations surrounding Gaetz testified before the House Ethics Committee that the former congressman had sex with her when she was 17.
November 15, 2024
Johnson told reporters that he will ask the Ethics Committee not to release the report on the investigation into Gaetz.
The speaker says that he did not think it was “important” for the public to know what is in the report.
A lawyer representing two women testified in the House Ethics Committee investigation says ABC News one of his clients testified that he saw him having sex with an underage congressman from Florida.
November 18, 2024
In an interview with ABC News’ Juju Chang, Florida attorney Joel Leppard reveals new details His clients’ closed-door testimony before the Ethics Commission included, among other things, that his clients told congressional investigators that Gaetz paid them to travel across state lines to have sex on at least two occasions.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Attorney General, walks with Vice President JD Vance as they arrive for meetings with senators, November 20, 2024, in Washington.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
November 19, 2024
Trump backer and Tesla/SpaceX/X CEO Elon Musk is backing Gaetz even as more stories about his scandals have surfaced. Musk said the scandals “are worth less than nothing” and called the former congressman “our hammer of Justice” in an X post.
Johnson denied discussing the details of the draft ethics report on the Gaetz case with House Ethics Chairman Michael Guest, and also denied that Trump or Gaetz pressured him to bury the report.
A hacker gained access to a secure document sharing file between lawyers involved in the civil case filed against Gaetz by a close friendand potentially exposed documents, including depositions of key witnesses in the case, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
At a Space X launch, Trump told reporters he is not reviewing his pick for attorney general.
ABC News the reports The Ethics Commission obtained records, including a check and Venmo payment records, showing Gaetz paid more than $10,000 to two women who later became witnesses in sexual misconduct investigations by the House and Justice Department, according to the documents.
November 20, 2024
Gaetz he meets with Republican senators who encourage him to continue his nomination process.
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are writing to FBI Director Christopher Wray to request the bureau’s full evidence file from its closed investigation into Gaetz.
The Ethics Committee voted against releasing the report after several rounds of voting, with all Republicans on the committee voting against its release in a closed-door, two-hour meeting. The committee has planned another meeting for December. Two Democrats introduce privileged resolutions to make the report public.
A sign for the House Ethics Committee is seen outside their office in the Longworth House Office Building on November 20, 2024 in Washington.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
November 21, 2024
Johnson said the House will take up a privileged resolution to compel the release of the Gaetz report after the Thanksgiving break.
Gaetz announces in X that he is withdrawing his name from the nomination process.
“While the lead was strong, it is clear that my assertion was unfairly drawing attention to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” he said in the post.
Democratic Representative Sean Casten of Illinois suggests he still plans to press ahead with a vote to compel the House Ethics Committee to release the Gaetz report.
November 22, 2024
Gaetz tells conservative commentator Charlie Kirk himself he has no plans to join the 119th Congressbut “he will still be fighting but it will be from a new perch.”
“And I’m excited for Northwest Florida to go to new heights and have great representation,” he said.
