'Dead in the water': Ex-GOP congressman told by Senate colleagues they won't confirm Gaetz
During an appearance on MSNBC on Friday morning, former Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA) pointed out that Rep. Matt Gaetz's extreme unpopularity within his own party combined with a reported bombshell finding by the House Ethics Committee has likely killed his chances of being Donald Trump's attorney general.
Speaking with host Ana Cabrera, Dent — who previously served as chair of the House Ethics Committee — claimed that, based on what he has heard from Republican Party senators who hold Gaetz's fate in their hands, he has little chance of being approved.
The former GOP lawmaker told the MSNBC host he also thinks the charges against Gaetz are serious enough that a criminal referral could be made to the same DOJ Trump wants Gaetz to helm.
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"It appears to me this investigation was completed prior to Gaetz's resignation and so, at this point, I do think that Republicans — look, to say that Matt Gaetz is disliked by his House Republican colleagues would be a wild understatement. There is no love for this man among Republicans — and so the fact that Senators [John] Cornyn (R-TX) and [Dick] Durbin (D-IL) who, as part of the official record would like to see this report, I think is pretty compelling."
"By the way, this report is probably very damning It may recommend sanctions of some sort, may recommend censure or expulsion although that is moot at this point," he continued, referring to Gaetz's resignation from Congress after his nomination as AG.
"So this is going to be damning and there might be a referral to the Justice Department for all we know."
Asked what the future holds for Gaetz's AG nomination, he offered, "I happen to think this nomination will be withdrawn at some point, it's clear. In your leadup to this segment, you were playing Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND). If Gaetz doesn't have Kevin Cramer, I can assure you, he doesn't have a lot of other members. So many of them dislike Matt Gaetz. We can't forget that."
"I can see many members voting against him," he added. "I think this thing is dead in the water. I'm just shocked, this is a gobsmackingly bad nomination. In Trump world, we're used to all kinds of shocks and surprises, but this is really beyond the pale."
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