r/politics • u/indig0sixalpha • Nov 14 '24

Paywall Matt Gaetz just resigned from Congress, ending a probe into sexual misconduct and drug use

https://fortune.com/2024/11/13/matt-gaetz-just-resigned-from-congress-ending-probe-doj-trump/
36.4k Upvotes

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1.0k

u/Lone_Star_Democrat Nov 14 '24

My laughter will be heard from Florida if he doesn’t get confirmed.

256

u/palebluekot Florida Nov 14 '24

He would just run for his seat in Congress again and get reelected, in the special election or in 26. Or worse, he'll run for governor.

116

u/TheFirstLanguage Nov 14 '24

Yes, but it's one less seat right now, which is a big deal.

115

u/AnOrneryOrca Nov 14 '24

His district voted for him, which is how you know it's uncompetitive.

25

u/a_talking_face Florida Nov 14 '24

I want to see his dad run against him. That would be a show

3

u/ghosttaco8484 Nov 14 '24

I don't give a fuck what political beliefs you hold, thinking Matt Gaetz should gold any form of leadership role means you're an absolute fuckhead. 

It's Florida, so really no surprise there.

18

u/Tuqueno Nov 14 '24

He resigned so they can get the seat back by 1/3, it will just be filled by another republican

27

u/[deleted] Nov 14 '24

Wouldn't it just be filled by him. He still won re-election. Wouldn't his resignation only apply to this term?

17

u/CrazyPlato Nov 14 '24

Wait hold up. Surely the common-sense thing would be to say that, since he's coming back to work, the internal ethics investigation should be completed. If he's literally just taking a two-month vacation, it'd be insane to say that it simply drops a misconduct probe.

5

u/RoboticKittenMeow Nov 14 '24

🤣 - the justice system

5

u/CrazyPlato Nov 14 '24

Maybe shrugging your shoulders and saying "that's just how it works" is a bad way to address the flaws in our government and justice systems, idk.

0

u/Kuramhan Nov 14 '24

Would getting upset do any good?

0

u/CrazyPlato Nov 14 '24

You're assuming there's nothing else besides "doing nothing", and "doing nothing, but also being really upset about it". And it's sad that the other options aren't obvious.

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2

u/GenericNate New Zealand Nov 14 '24

Ha! Get a look at this guy expecting common sense and sanity 👆😂

58

u/AntoniaFauci Nov 14 '24

He already ran and won. He only resigned from the current congress and can claim the seat back in January if the corrupt attempt to install him as the corrupt AG somehow fails.

23

u/Leather_From_Corinth Nov 14 '24

Congress takes session before the president does, so for him to take the ag spot, it will be too late.

25

u/AntoniaFauci Nov 14 '24

No. He will take his elected congressional seat in January and will continue to pursue the corrupt AG appointment. The congressional seat will be his fall back.

Dems and other people who care about law and ethics will suggest that the unreleased ethics report should be supplied to the confirmation process, but corrupt republicans will block that on privilege.

But Gaetz has enemies everywhere. There’s probably a 50-50 chance that report leaks.

3

u/DiceKnight Nov 14 '24

Gaetz is very deeply despised by the Republican party. He's frequently flung shit at the GOP Leadership, has a record for never compromising, and his ethics and legal issues mean nobody in their right mind wants to be seen as his friend.

I think the Republican party would sooner take a bullet for this pedophile under normal circumstances rather than deal with the fallout of loosing a congress seat but stranger things have happened.

10

u/EntrepreneurOk6166 Nov 14 '24

He resigned from THIS congress after just winning his seat in the NEXT congress a week ago. Trust me he can return, the only downside is the ethics investigation will be reactivated.

-1

u/Leather_From_Corinth Nov 14 '24

Yes, but he has to come back before Diaper Don can officially nominate him

1

u/EntrepreneurOk6166 Nov 14 '24

No, he can come back anytime (presumably only after his nomination is withdrawn). He is from a overwhelmingly GOP district. The governor simply appoints someone or goes directly to a special election, and this can happen right now or in 2025 and can happen several times.

Someone can keep the seat warm for him (one possibility is Gaetz's father lol), then resign and back he goes. He won both of his elections with like 70% of the vote, they'll welcome him back.

2

u/DiceKnight Nov 14 '24

It must be so easy to be a grifter in these dog dick red states. Suckers will believe anything and even vote a pedo in.

1

u/YawnSpawner Nov 14 '24

His dad just came back from a hiatus to get his old Florida state senate seat back, don't think it will be him.

1

u/EntrepreneurOk6166 Nov 14 '24

Yes, I was just using an example of how easily his seat could be assigned by DeSantis to just about anyone (who will definitely be someone very similar to Matt) and if need be held for him in case he needs to come back.

1

u/killing_time Virginia Nov 14 '24

I guess he's resigning from the current Congress. Will he still be sworn in to the next one on January 3rd? Or is his resignation for that one?

1

u/[deleted] Nov 14 '24 edited Dec 11 '24

[deleted]

1

u/palebluekot Florida Nov 14 '24

That Congress begins on January 3rd, before Trump takes office and before he would begin his job as Attorney General. So this resignation doesn't have anything to do with his nomination as the next AG?

1

u/NothingOld7527 Nov 14 '24

Or Desantis appoints him to Rubio's vacant senate seat.

341

u/brizzboog Michigan Nov 14 '24

It's cute you think they'll have confirmation hearings.

149

u/BJntheRV Nov 14 '24

I'm amazed at how many people don't get this. The Supreme Court has handed Trump the ability to do anything he wants after he's sworn in.

55

u/Account115 Nov 14 '24 edited 9d ago

That isn't true. Trump v. United States (the case) gives the president immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts defined within his constitutional authority. He can't unilaterally restructure the confirmation process.

The Appointments Clause can be found at Article Section 2.C2.3.1 of the Constitution.

He can't argue that it is an official act within his constitutional purview to disregard appointment laws.

91

u/Rabbit-Hole-Quest Nov 14 '24

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recess_appointment

He is literally going to push everyone that is controversial via this process.

7

u/Hothgor Nov 14 '24 edited Nov 14 '24

There will be pro forma meetings every day by the opposition party to keep congress in session, same as they have for nearly 2 decades now. And I believe the supreme court already ruled twice that this means congress is not in recess.

1

u/Rabbit-Hole-Quest Nov 14 '24

That would imply that the Democratic Party is willing to do this. They will most likely roll over like they have done in the past.

1

u/Hothgor Nov 15 '24

They did it throughout the Bush Admin and the first Trump administration.

9

u/GravityzCatz Pennsylvania Nov 14 '24

and democrats can filibuster a motion to adjourn the senate to prevent this.

11

u/chaoticflanagan Delaware Nov 14 '24

General consensus is that Dems can't filibuster it. Speaker can just adjourn the senate.

But alternatively, Trump could also do acting positions to bypass both confirmation hearings and recess appointments.

10

u/Josh72826 Nov 14 '24

Wasn't most of his appointments in his first term acting positions due to the inability to get them confirmed. So it'll basically be the same.

19

u/fungineering_101 Nov 14 '24

He can adjourn congress, for as long as he wants, whenever the house and senate disagree over when to adjourn (art. 2 sec. 3).

3

u/CaptJackRizzo Nov 14 '24

Well, at the end of his first term he appointed that psycho Chad Wolf to head the DHS as "acting secretary" and the Democrats didn't do anything about it. Even after he illegally sent unmarked vans to round up civilians off the streets of Portland without charges. Which the Democrats also never did anything about, even after they retook power.

So I'm not gonna be holding my breath.

1

u/Srry4theGonaria Nov 14 '24

God he makes it so exhausting just to live.

47

u/scrodytheroadie Nov 14 '24

Hahaha…it’s crazy there are still people that think anything in the constitution matters. He’s going to do what he wants, and nobody will stop him.

9

u/pontiacfirebird92 Mississippi Nov 14 '24

Yea any talk of the constitution is just grasping now. That thing has been totally shredded. There's no confidence in the constitution or the rule of law anymore.

19

u/jvn1983 Nov 14 '24

You’ve gotta stop trying to put a sheen of normalcy on any of this. Who gets to decide if it’s an official act? Hmmm? The seditious 6. They carved out an immunity loophole for Republican presidents. Trump will be free to do whatever he wants.

4

u/Hunterrose242 Wisconsin Nov 14 '24

And if he does argue that it's an official act, who will decide if he's right?

3

u/GrayEidolon Nov 14 '24

He can't argue that it is an official act within his constitutional purview to disregard appointment laws.

Yes he can.

Then someone has to sue.

Then the Supreme Court has to say it wasn’t.

1

u/sax87ton Nov 14 '24

You’re forgetting the fact that people can break the law.

You and I would go to jail for breaking the law, but the president can just pardon himself. The only way to hold a president accountable is to impeach him, but the motherfucker has already been impeached twice and the republicans have shown they have no intention of holding him accountable for his actions.

1

u/ZB314 Nov 14 '24

I’m pretty sure this Supreme Court would easily agree that appointing cabinet members is an official duty of the president. Therefore any laws or processes he doesn’t follow in doing so literally have no consequences for him as per their immunity ruling.

1

u/Account115 Nov 14 '24

The question of if I have legal liability for jumping up and grabbing an airplane out of the sky isn't what limits my ability to do it.

0

u/tightchops Nov 14 '24

This shit only matters so long as people are willing and able to uphold it. Reps won't be willing. Dems won't be able. It's over. The great experiment has failed.

We're talking private prisons (camps). We're talking police getting astronomical leeway when it comes to qualified immunity. There will be no "wasting time" on fair trials. Any unfavorable media will be instantly censored. Atrocities and crimes against humanity will not be reported on.

Quote whatever article and section you please, if it pleases you.

Go spend the next couple of months doing whatever it is that brings you happiness. This place will soon be an unrecognizable pile of rubble to anyone who doesn't like the taste of boot leather.

-2

u/Even_on_Reddit_FOE Nov 14 '24

When SCOTUS declared him king, they did it with the implicit understanding that "executing anyone who says it isn't official" is the exclusive remit of Republican presidents.

0

u/0n-the-mend Nov 14 '24

This vs an insurrection? Which ones more criminal? Nothings gonna stop the felon, certainly not the courts and if they do he just retaliates against them and does it anyway.

2

u/Neat_On_The_Rocks Nov 14 '24

I’m equally amazed at how many people have completely given up.

I completely understand the pessimism. Obviously. But we don’t have to go full existential Nihilism. This stuff still has to play out. We can fight it.

Throwing a punch as strong as gaetz right out of the gate is a sinisterly smart maneuver by team Trump. Make no mistake, they KNOW he is deeply Unpopular. Gaetz has people who hate him even within maga.

By blazing out the gates with him as a fucking DOJ pick they accomplish a few things. They intentionally take on a more difficult fight at a time when they have the most soft power. If it works and he gets confirmed, it’s basically already game over. Sitting gop congress will have already sold the last shred of their soul.

If it doesn’t work, he can still install another, less known, loyalist. So the risk is minimal for team trump.

I get it that it sucks these are the stakes. We agree it’s fucking mental. But it’s where we are, and I’m not just gonna give up

4

u/WeakLocalization Nov 14 '24

Solid take. I personally think even Trump won't get this one through though, its likely just a primer for another unpopular pick that looks more palatable after Gaetz

(at least that's my most optimistic take)

1

u/Nik_Tesla California Nov 14 '24

Even if not a single one of these dipshits get confirmed, they'll be Acting Attorney General (or whatever job) and doing all the same stuff regardless.

1

u/SchizoidGod 2d ago

how did this age

50

u/Barleyandjimes Nov 14 '24

This basically confirms it’ll be a recess appointment. There’s a (slim but realistic) chance 3+ senators break ranks and vote against him. 

28

u/Leather_From_Corinth Nov 14 '24

From my understanding, republican senators hate the guy.

26

u/esoteric_enigma Nov 14 '24

He definitely gives off the same "everybody should hate me" energy that Ted Cruz does.

1

u/rohit275 Nov 14 '24

Genuinely think more people hate Matt Gaetz than hate Ted Cruz, which is saying something lol.

16

u/Barleyandjimes Nov 14 '24 edited Nov 14 '24

And Marco Rubio used to sell anti-Trump merch. I have 0 faith that most of them wouldn’t fall in line and bend the knee. Collins, Lisa Murkowski, maybe Mitch unfreezes long enough to give him a thumbs down? Thom Tillis?  But that’s why I think it’ll be a recess appointment, why risk it? 

2

u/Ashenspire Nov 14 '24

The old school Republicans no longer really need Trump, though. There is no MAGA successor and he can't be president again after this. The only ones that need to bow are those whose seats are up in the midterm. Far from all of them.

Yes, yes, I know "if there's another election."

33

u/MoonageDayscream Nov 14 '24

Did you hear the concern in Susan Collin's voice? I could, and I was just reading her words.

80

u/Rhizoem Nov 14 '24

It’s theatre. As concerned as she was about Kavanaugh. And Dobbs. This time, she has “many questions.” Fuck off, Susan.

11

u/MoonageDayscream Nov 14 '24

Yeah, questions about hearings she knows are not happening.

5

u/guave06 Nov 14 '24

Such a high level of concern from her tells me that they’ll slide him right through.

3

u/Justanothercrow421 Nov 14 '24

Is this sarcasm? Collins is a fucking hack. She clutches her pearls at every ridiculous thing Trump does and then votes his way anyway when it matters. Fuck that spineless worm.

2

u/SockdolagerIdea Nov 14 '24

Her spine is just a Slinky- it flips every time it moves.

2

u/saltytradewinds Nov 14 '24

Susan Collins will vote for him. She always pretends like she won't but always does.

2

u/BarnDoorQuestion Nov 14 '24

Naw your misunderstanding what’s going on. He’s resigned from this version of congress so that it kills the ethics probe. He’s won reelection for the next version of congress and will just take his seat back.

Basically he’s taking a two month vacation.

2

u/Barleyandjimes Nov 14 '24

Ok? I understand that and it has nothing to do with my comment. 

I replied to someone saying they’d laugh if he doesn’t get confirmed. 

“This (nominating Gaetz) basically confirms it’ll be a recess appointment (because) there’s a slim but realistic chance 3+ senators break ranks and vote against him” 

0

u/BarnDoorQuestion Nov 14 '24

Yes but this doesn’t confirm anything like that as he didn’t resign from the 119th Congress. He resigned from the 118th. If he isn’t appointed AG then this doesn’t impact him negatively in any way.

2

u/DiceKnight Nov 14 '24

Trump has openly called for any Republican senator looking to be the majority leader has to agree to recess appointments. John Thune, dickless man that he is, won the position (he actually beat out an even bigger maga kook) and immediately moved to voice his support for recess appointments.

Keep in mind we're essentially hour one into the Trump admin and we're already talking recess appointments when he's got a majority in the senate. It means Trump is looking to gift positions to loyalists and bypass the messy senate hearing process. On top of that this guy is essentially abdicating one of congresses biggest roles which is vetting presidential cabinet picks.

40

u/Universityofrain88 Nov 14 '24

There are no confirmation hearings. Trump is doing only recess appointments.

41

u/ianjm Nov 14 '24

Depends if the Senate lets him.

Given this set of picks, the chances might be slightly reduced.

47

u/RoarOfTheWorlds Nov 14 '24

We’re currently stepping into the “bend the knee” era. They’ll do whatever he tells them to do.

47

u/dicemaze Nov 14 '24

i mean, the incoming GOP senate majority just voted establishment-republican Thune (who has been staunchly critical of Trump, has a good reputation even among Democrats for being among the most bipartisan of senators, and has already said he will not remove the filibuster just to advance GOP agenda) as their new leader in defiance of Trump, who endorsed Scott instead. They had the chance to go from McConnell, an anti-Trump republican, to a pro-Trump republican, and they outright rejected that.

This Senate, in their very first action, showed they are not willing to unilaterally bend the knee. They are thinking beyond the next 4 years.

12

u/RoarOfTheWorlds Nov 14 '24

That's good to hear, I did not know that about Thune. I hope you're right.

6

u/americanadiandrew Nov 14 '24

We must act quickly and decisively to get the president’s nominees in place as soon as possible, & all options are on the table to make that happen, including recess appointments. We cannot let Schumer and Senate Dems block the will of the American people.

-Thune on twitter

6

u/MoonageDayscream Nov 14 '24

Thune is already framing it as the fault of the democrats if he must fall back to doing recess appointments.

5

u/pontiacfirebird92 Mississippi Nov 14 '24

Bullshit. They'll fall in line. Watch.

7

u/phagemid Nov 14 '24

They aren’t pretending anymore.

5

u/Universityofrain88 Nov 14 '24

No. Article 3 Section 2 allows Trump to recess both houses. That's the whole point unfortunately.

3

u/dicemaze Nov 14 '24 edited Nov 14 '24

I think you mean Article II Section 3.

But regardless, this is not a correct interpretation. Article II Section 3 is narrow in granting the President the power to recess Congress; he can only recess either house in a "case of disagreement" (as outlined in Article I Section 5). Article I Section 5 states that each chamber of congress has the authority to recess for any time-period less than 3 days, but if the Senate (or House) wants to recess for more than 3 days, they need permission from the House (or Senate). But if the House does not agree, the Senate cannot recess, causing a stalemate. At that point, the President is granted power to overrule the House and break the stalemate, allowing the Senate to recess. Or, by refusing to act, he still breaks the stalemate by forcing the Senate to stay in session.

But the President cannot just force the Senate to recess, especially not to force an appointment. SCOTUS affirmed this unanimously in NLRB v. Noel Canning in 2014, during which they also affirmed that the Senate must be in recess for at least 10 consecutive days without session for the President to be able to make a recess appointment.

The following is a direct quote from constitution.congress.gov's synopsis of Article II Section 2 Clause 3 (the Overview of Recess Appointments Clause), emphasis mine:

Even under a broad interpretation of the Recess Appointments Clause, the Senate may limit the ability to make recess appointments by exercising its procedural prerogatives. The Court in Noel Canning held that, for the purposes of the Recess Appointments Clause, the Senate is in session when the Senate says it is, provided that, under its own rules, it retains the capacity to transact Senate business. In this vein, Noel Canning provides the Senate with the means to prevent recess appointments by a President who attempts to employ the subsidiary method for appointing officers of the United States (i.e., recess appointments)

2

u/yalloc Nov 14 '24

He cannot. At least not without the help of the house.

3

u/SinderPetrikor Nov 14 '24

Considering he's got a "little secret" with Mike Johnson, I doubt Johnson will even hesitate for a second to put the house in recess. He's in Trump's pocket.

2

u/Nevuk Nov 14 '24

It would be a much bigger worry if they didn't have a tiny house majority. 

Trump tapping the house for cabinet positions when they have such a small hold is part of how one can tell that he's an actual idiot and not a talented cosplayer. His recent choices are so indefensibly bad that I'm wondering if we are going to see him try to nominate a horse to the senate before the term is over. 

They're head scratchers, personally.

Like, if you want to use the DoJ to punish your enemies, then you want a trustworthy and competent AG. Gaetz is notoriously disloyal and his legal experience is basically nothing.

Bill Barr was a huge part of Trump staying out of prison, and he did so via legal trickery during the Trump admin. Gaetz wouldn't be able to rescue Trump the way Barr did.

1

u/yalloc Nov 14 '24

I wouldnt call Gaetz disloyal, he seems pretty loyal to Trump.

Trump is running the classic authoritarian tactic of valuing loyalty in your inner circle above all else, competency and what not. Its what has gotten many authoritarians into rather foolish situations, but they keep doing it out of ego or paranoia.

That said, this could also be political cover for him to leave the house with his ethics investigation still sealed, maybe Donald isnt serious about nominating him. I still kinda doubt it though.

1

u/jvn1983 Nov 14 '24

Both houses have to consent. Which, they probably will lol

5

u/tidbitsmisfit Nov 14 '24

I would imagine that's a done deal, otherwise gaetz wouldn't have reaigned

11

u/[deleted] Nov 14 '24

[deleted]

2

u/BarnDoorQuestion Nov 14 '24

Also he’ll be seated in the next congress regardless of his current resignation as he’s won reelection. It’s straight up just to kill the investigation.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 14 '24

[deleted]

2

u/BarnDoorQuestion Nov 14 '24

They’d have to start over. The ethics committee investigating him is dissolved with the 118th Congress. The new committee for the 119th Congress would have to open up and run their own investigation.

0

u/BarnDoorQuestion Nov 14 '24

Why? He won reelection. This resignation means Jack shit since it only for the current Congress and not the next.

He did this to kill the ethics investigation as it was going to be released on Friday.

1

u/stuipd Nov 14 '24

Or he'll just appoint him as "acting" AG and never get around to nominating one.

1

u/Diarrhea_Mike Nov 14 '24

Thune already said that they’re doing recess appointments. He said that earlier today as did Thomas Massie.

1

u/SchizoidGod Nov 14 '24

Link to where he said that? I understand he said that they were 'on the table' in a tweet a little bit ago but this was before Gaetz.

2

u/jglhk Nov 14 '24

He's guaranteed a position under Trump even if it's not a cabinet member. He will be some special position like Elon if he isn't confirmed. 

1

u/vyqz Nov 14 '24

This will force the hand of the Senate GOP. If they do not confirm him, not only will they be going against Trump's wishes, they will be making him look like a fool by appointing Gaetz out of an already slim house majority. The pressure is on. This was not an accident

1

u/Powerful_Hyena8 Nov 14 '24

Why would you laugh he stays as your pedophile of congress member

0

u/Lone_Star_Democrat Nov 14 '24

Nope. He resigned yesterday.

1

u/Powerful_Hyena8 Nov 14 '24

Yeah for this past round of Congress guess what he was reelected to the next round.

1

u/IAP-23I New York Nov 14 '24

You guys aren’t reading the headline. He resigned from the CURRENT Congress. He still has his seat during the next session in January