House Speaker Mike Johnson has announced that Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz has resigned effective immediately.
“I think out of deference to us, he issued his resignation letter effective immediately, of Congress. That caught us by surprise a little bit. But I asked him what the reasoning was, and he said, well, you can’t have too many absences. So under Florida State law, there’s about an eight week period to, select and fill in a vacancy,” Johnson told reporters.
“And so by doing so today, that allows me I’ve already placed a call to Governor DeSantis in Florida and said, let’s start the clock. He’s in Italy at the moment. And so we’re going to talk first thing in the morning about this. And if we start the clock now, if you do the math, we may be able to fill that seat as early as January 3rd when we take the new oath of office for the new Congress,” he added.
#BREAKING: Matt Gaetz resigns from Congress after AG nod https://t.co/TLXWMX9zYe
— The Hill (@thehill) November 14, 2024
This comes after President-elect Donald Trump nominated Gaetz for Attorney General of the United States.
“It is my Great Honor to announce that Congressman Matt Gaetz, of Florida, is hereby nominated to be The Attorney General of the United States,” Trump said in a statement.
“Matt is a deeply gifted and tenacious attorney, trained at the William & Mary College of Law, who has distinguished himself in Congress through his focus on achieving desperately needed reform at the Department of Justice.”
In response, Gaetz said on X; “It will be an honor to serve as President Trump’s Attorney General!”
Earlier on Wednesday, pro-Trump businessmen Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have officially joined Donald Trump’s administration, according to a statement from the president-elect.
Trump announced in a statement on Tuesday that the two would jointly lead the newly established Department of Government Efficiency. Both Ramaswamy and Musk were vocal throughout Trump’s campaign about the need to reduce the size and power of the federal government.
“I am pleased to announce that the Great Elon Musk, working in conjunction with American Patriot Vivek Ramaswamy, will lead the Department of Government Efficiency [DOGE],” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
‘DOGE’ is also a cryptocurrency that Musk has often promoted.
“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies,” Trump said in a statement.
The Department of Government Efficiency is not a new government agency. Trump said it will “provide advice and guidance from outside of government” and “partner” with the White House and Office of Management and Budget to drive structural government reform, ABC News reported.
“‘This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people!’ stated Mr. Musk,” the statement continued.
JUST IN: 🇺🇸 President-elect Trump appoints Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). pic.twitter.com/WtoLBZSgGM
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) November 13, 2024
Trump speculated that the effort could become a modern-day version of the “Manhattan Project” in terms of its scope, influence, and legacy.
“Republican politicians have dreamed about the objectives of ‘DOGE’ for a very long time. To drive this kind of drastic change, the Department of Government Efficiency will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before,” Trump wrote.
“I look forward to Elon and Vivek making changes to the Federal Bureaucracy with an eye on efficiency and, at the same time, making life better for all Americans. Importantly, we will drive out the massive waste and fraud which exists throughout our annual $6.5 Trillion Dollars of Government Spending.
“They will work together to liberate our Economy, and make the U.S. Government accountable to ‘WE THE PEOPLE.’ Their work will conclude no later than July 4, 2026 — A smaller Government, with more efficiency and less bureaucracy, will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th Anniversary of The Declaration of Independence. I am confident they will succeed!”
Trump announced on Tuesday night that he will nominate Pete Hegseth of Fox News to be the next Secretary of Defense.
