WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 Just hours after Republican Sen. John Thune was elected as the incoming Senate majority leader on Wednesday, President-elect Donald Trump presented him with one of his first tests 鈥 an announcement that he intends to nominate controversial Rep. Matt Gaetz as attorney general.
The Florida Republican is one of the more universally disliked members of Congress, including among GOP lawmakers after he led the effort to last year. He has spent his congressional career agitating against the Justice Department and has been under a probing whether he engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct. Gaetz denies the allegations.
Asked about the nomination as he left a Senate vote, Thune smiled and declined to answer. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 probably a good question for the chairman of the Judiciary Committee,鈥 he said.
An hour earlier, the likely incoming chairman of the Judiciary panel, Republican Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, also deflected, saying he doesn鈥檛 know Gaetz but will look at the nomination. 鈥淒on鈥檛 ask me any other questions,鈥 Grassley said.
It鈥檚 a familiar posture for Republican senators who have lived through the last eight years dodging questions about Trump and defending him, even after he tried to overturn his election defeat in 2020 and his supporters . But the stakes are even higher now that he has been decisively elected to a second term. Congressional Republicans have , betting their political futures on his success.
Two months before Trump even takes office, he is already challenging those congressional Republicans to defy him as he nominates potentially controversial figures to his Cabinet 鈥 including Gaetz, former Democratic House Rep. for director of national intelligence and conservative media personality for secretary of defense. On Sunday, Trump even said in a post on X that he wants the new Senate leader to allow him to make appointments when the chamber is on recess, bypassing confirmation votes altogether.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a little bit of a test,鈥 said Republican Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, who called the Gaetz nomination a 鈥淗ail Mary鈥 pass from Trump. Cramer said he sees Gaetz as a disruptive force in the House and has concerns about the 鈥渟erious allegations鈥 against him, but stopped short of saying he wouldn鈥檛 vote for his confirmation.
鈥淚t will take a lot of political capital to get him across,鈥 Cramer said, adding that 鈥渢here will forever be tension between the branches.鈥
What鈥檚 unclear is how much political capital Trump will have to expend to get his picks through 鈥 or whether it will even be necessary. Republicans will have a 53-seat majority in the Senate next year, giving them room to lose a few votes.
Immediately after his election as the incoming GOP leader, Thune suggested that the Senate will not fully relinquish its power to vet nominations 鈥 but kept the door open to Trump鈥檚 suggested changes.
鈥淭he Senate has an advise and consent rule in the Constitution,鈥 Thune said, adding that Senate Republicans will do everything they can to get Trump鈥檚 nominees quickly in place.
鈥淗ow that happens remains to be seen,鈥 Thune said.
While Trump鈥檚 announcement about Gaetz sent an immediate shock wave around Capitol Hill, many Republican senators who will be tasked with confirming him were reluctant to publicly criticize the pick.
Texas Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Judiciary panel, said he didn鈥檛 know Gaetz 鈥渙ther than his public persona," and said he won鈥檛 鈥減rejudge any of these鈥 nominations.
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, elected Wednesday as the incoming No. 2 Republican in the Senate next year, would only say that Trump 鈥渋s going to continue to make his appointments. We鈥檙e going to continue to look forward to them coming to the Senate and have hearings and get his Cabinet confirmed as quickly as possible.鈥
鈥淚鈥檝e got nothing for you,鈥 said Sen. Katie Britt, an Alabama Republican. 鈥淲e鈥檒l see,鈥 said Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin when asked whether he would support Gaetz鈥檚 confirmation.
A few GOP senators praised Gaetz, who resigned from the House shortly after the announcement, ending the House Ethics investigation and making way for a replacement to be elected before the new Congress is sworn in Jan. 3.
鈥淚鈥檝e known Matt for a very long time, we鈥檙e friends,鈥 said Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who was nominated for secretary of state Wednesday, but was instead flooded with questions about Gaetz. 鈥淚 think he would do a very good job for the president.鈥
Gaetz is 鈥渁 smart, clever guy,鈥 said South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, though he said 鈥渉e鈥檒l have to answer some tough questions in the hearing, and we鈥檒l see how he does.鈥
Other Republican senators, like Cramer, were skeptical while stopping short of saying they would oppose his nomination.
Gaetz 鈥渨ill have his work cut out for him,鈥 said North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, adding that it should 鈥渕ake for a popcorn-eating confirmation hearing.鈥
Maine Sen. Susan Collins said she was 鈥渟hocked鈥 by Gaetz鈥檚 nomination.
鈥淚 recognize that the president-elect has the right to nominate whomever he wishes, but we in Congress have a responsibility under the Constitution and our advise and consent, which will lead to hearings, an FBI background check and an awful lot of questions being asked in this case,鈥 Collins said.
Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, that the Justice Department鈥檚 investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls had ended with no federal charges against him.
Democrats were appalled.
鈥淭his nomination is the first test of whether Republicans are willing to stand up to Donald Trump and go with conscience and conviction as opposed to just politics,鈥 said Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democratic member of the Judiciary panel.
New Mexico Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., was even more blunt.
鈥淧eople voted for cheaper eggs, not whatever the f@#鈧 this is,鈥 he posted on X, referring to last week鈥檚 election.
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Associated Press writers Stephen Groves, Kevin Freking and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.
