As president-elect Donald Trump prepares for his second term in office, he has begun promising key positions in his future administration. One nomination is Matt Gaetz as Attorney General. 

“I heard that Trump picked Gaetz as Attorney General, and that surprised me quite a bit,” sophomore Leila Sawicki said. “Even though I expected someone who might be under qualified, I wasn’t exactly prepared for such a big role to go to someone with an alleged criminal record,”

During Trump’s last presidency and the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, Gaetz has supported Trump’s actions and agenda, according to House.gov. Gaetz also attended and spoke at some of Trump’s rallies. 

The Attorney General is the head of the Department of Justice and is in charge of enforcing the laws of the federal government. Gaetz’s appointment to be Attorney General is controversial because Gaetz has been involved in an investigation by the House Ethics Committee and the Department of Justice (the department he is nominated to lead), according to sophomore Alexandra Herrmann.

“I got an email earlier this week about how Gaetz was suspected of having relations with an underage girl,” Herrmann said. “It’s pretty concerning and I feel like this type of scandal has happened to many politicians.”

The allegations against Gaetz include use of illicit drugs, relations with a minor, and accepting bribes. In 2021, Gaetz’s friend Joel Greenberg pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor and complied with the Gaetz probe report. While Greenberg never explicitly named Gaetz as part of his operation, his compliance and financial payment records suggest Gaetz’s involvement. 

In addition to the probe, Gaetz unexpectedly resigned from Congress days before the House committee was to release its findings in the case. Although many believe that it’s because he was guaranteed a spot in Trump’s cabinet, some suggest that he resigned just so that the House would drop the case and let him go free, according to history faculty Jason Enevoldson. 

“I think he’s trying to dodge a bullet and get out of the spotlight,” Enevoldson said. “From what I understand, Trump can nominate whoever he wants, but even though he controls the House and Senate, I still don’t think Gaetz will become Attorney General because there are good people in the Senate who will stop it.”

Gaetz has denied all wrong-doing in the investigations and those close to Trump claim that the bad press is an attempt to sabotage the future administration. Nonetheless, both Republicans and Democrats have called for the release of the Ethics report. As lawmakers scramble with whether or not to bypass the Committee and find a way to publish the reports, hackers have also been rumored to have gotten ahold of depositions in the investigation which include testimony from the 17-year-old girl that Gaetz allegedly had relations with. 

“I think he shouldn’t be Attorney General because of his role in the sex trafficking ring,” senior Tabitha Martin said. “Someone who has questionable ethics like he does shouldn’t have that much power in the government.” 

To officially be Attorney General, the Senate will have to confirm Gaetz with at least 50 votes, according to The Constitution Center. This means that all Senate Republicans and either one independent or Democrat must vote for Gaetz in order for the nomination to be confirmed. Although cabinet nominations have not been largely rejected in the past, Gaetz’s misconduct may affect the way Senator’s vote come 2025. 

“His nomination as Attorney General, especially with his alleged criminal record, brings with it a scary precedent of electing people who are famous or popular instead of the most qualified,” Sawicki said. “Additionally, the idea that he might make it easier for other criminals to come into power becomes more and more real by the day.”