Former Rep. Matt Gaetz said Friday he will not be part of the new Congress when it convenes early next year — despite handily winning re-election earlier this month.
“I do not intend to join the 119th Congress,” Gaetz, 42, told “The Charlie Kirk Show” on Real America’s Voice in his first interview since announcing Thursday that he was withdrawing from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general.
“There are a number of fantastic Floridians who stepped up to run for my seat, people who have inspired with their heroism, with their public service,” added Gaetz, who teased that he would still be involved in public service from a “different perch.”
“I think that eight years is probably enough time in the United States Congress,” he said.
“I plan to be a big voice, but maybe not as an elected member of the government.”
Gaetz resigned from the House of Representatives Nov. 13, hours after Trump, 78, announced him as his pick to run the Justice Department.
The Floridian announced he was bowing out of consideration for the cabinet post after it became clear he could not win over enough skeptical Republican senators to be confirmed, due in part to a pending House ethics report into allegations that Gaetz had engaged in sex with a minor, used illicit drugs and taken bribes — among other transgressions.
“If the things that the House Ethics report were true, I would be under indictment and probably in a prison cell,” Gaetz told Kirk, calling the probe a Washington “smear” campaign.
Gaetz also said he made the decision to drop out after realizing his critics, which he said were “handpicked” by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy — were going to delay his confirmation to a point where the “pace was just going to be too long.”
He added that Pam Bondi, the former Florida attorney general and Trump’s choice to oversee DOJ, will be “fantastic” in her role.
Sunshine State Gov. Ron DeSantis must now announce the date of special elections to replace Gaetz and Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.), whom Trump tapped to serve as national security adviser.
DeSantis must also appoint someone to fill the Senate seat held by Marco Rubio, who is expected to resign early next year to become Trump’s secretary of state.
Gaetz did not reveal exactly what he would be doing now that he’s out of Congress, but mentioned that he has other things to focus on, like his wife Ginger.
He also said he would be working to recruit “patriots” to fill Trump’s team and will be “scouring for talent.”
