WASHINGTON — Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., stated Friday that he would not plan to rejoin Congress after he withdrew his identify from consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump’s lawyer normal amid sexual misconduct allegations.
“I’m nonetheless going to be within the combat, however it may be from a brand new perch. I don’t intend to affix the 119th Congress,” Gaetz stated in an interview with conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
“There are quite a lot of unbelievable Floridians who stepped as much as run for my seat, individuals who have impressed with their heroism, with their public service. And I’m truly excited to see Northwest Florida go to new heights and have nice illustration,” he added.
Gaetz stated he’s been in elected workplace for 14 years, first being elected to Florida’s state House when he was 26 years outdated. “I’m 42 now, and I’ve obtained different objectives in life that I’m wanting to pursue — my spouse and my household — and so I’m going to be preventing for President Trump,” he stated. “I’m going to be doing no matter he asks of me, as I at all times have. But I feel that eight years might be sufficient time within the United States Congress.”
Gaetz stated it looks as if “a fairly poetic time to permit that nice new blood to return in, to permit my district to have high-quality illustration.”
NBC News reached out to his former House aides for remark.
After Gaetz eliminated his identify from consideration to be Trump’s lawyer normal on Thursday, there was some query as as to if the Florida Republican would select to rejoin Congress since he had simply been re-elected to a different two-year time period.
If he had been to rejoin Congress, there was additionally the query about whether or not the House Ethics Committee would proceed with releasing its report on its investigation into the sexual misconduct allegations in opposition to Gaetz.
The panel had been investigating him over allegations that he paid a minor and an grownup girl for intercourse at a celebration in 2017. During the probe, the committee was knowledgeable that the minor, who was 17 years outdated, had had two sexual encounters with the then-congressman on the celebration, NBC News reported Thursday, in accordance with a supply acquainted with the discussions.
The Department of Justice had additionally been investigating Gaetz on intercourse trafficking allegations, however selected to not pursue prices in opposition to him. Gaetz has denied these allegations as effectively.
Gaetz’s forthcoming nomination was on shaky floor due to the allegations. On Friday, he informed Kirk that these allegations are false and an try and “smear” him.
“Like if the issues that the House Ethics report [said] had been true, I’d be underneath indictment and doubtless in a jail cell,” Gaetz stated. “But in fact, they’re false, as a result of whenever you take a look at them in opposition to different information, whenever you take a look at them in opposition to different testimony, all of it falls aside in a short time.”
Gaetz resigned from Congress final week after Trump introduced he had chosen him to function lawyer normal. Gaetz can not return to the present Congress due to his resignation.
The congressman joined the U.S. House in 2017 and was disliked by some members of the House Republican Conference due to his position main the profitable effort to the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as House speaker final 12 months.