SALT LAKE CITY — The Republican-dominated Senate was thrown into a whirlwind this week as President-elect Donald Trump announced a series of unconventional Cabinet selections.
Before the dust had even settled from the election of new leadership on Wednesday, which saw South Dakota Sen. John Thune ascend to the position of majority leader, the Senate was faced with the challenge of confirming the contentious former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., as the next United States attorney general.
Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who was widely speculated to be a top contender for the attorney general position, expressed his support for Trump’s Cabinet choices in a statement to the Deseret News. He emphasized that these nominees embody the message that propelled Trump to a historic victory on Nov. 5 and that they should be confirmed without delay.
“The American people have entrusted President Trump with the responsibility to govern, and I am eager to expedite the confirmation of his nominees so they can begin serving the American people,” Lee stated.
The unexpected nomination of Gaetz — reportedly decided within hours on Trump’s airplane — came on the heels of announcements that Fox News host and military veteran Pete Hegseth was Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, former Democratic congresswoman and military veteran Tulsi Gabbard was selected for director of national intelligence, and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk was chosen to lead the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency.
Utah Sen.-elect John Curtis, in a statement to the Deseret News, stressed that the Senate should not shirk its responsibility to thoroughly vet nominees for top executive branch positions.
“Sen.-elect Curtis maintains that every president should be granted a certain level of discretion in selecting their team and making nominations. However, he also staunchly believes in and is committed to the Senate’s crucial role in confirming or rejecting nominations based on information gleaned from confirmation hearings,” a spokesperson for Curtis told the Deseret News.
“Curtis is deeply committed to his constitutional duty to provide advice and consent, and his primary objective is to ensure that the voices of Utahns are represented. He intends to meticulously scrutinize the records and qualifications of every nominee President-elect Trump presents to the Senate.”
Trump’s most contentious Cabinet selection?
Gaetz’s nomination to oversee more than 100,000 employees at the Department of Justice has elicited a wider range of reactions among congressional lawmakers than any other Cabinet selection to date.
“Matt isn’t particularly well-liked because he doesn’t always play well with others,” Rep. Burgess Owens, of Utah’s 4th Congressional District, said of his former colleague in an interview with the Deseret News. “But for the role that President Trump needs him to fill, he’s one of the brightest minds we have in Congress. He’s unquestionably intelligent. He’s incredibly persistent. And that’s exactly what President Trump is looking for.”
Gaetz made headlines in October 2023 when he led the charge to oust his party’s House speaker for the first time in American history. Throughout his four terms in Congress, Gaetz has advocated for immediate reductions in discretionary spending and has proudly relied on small-dollar donors rather than deep-pocketed special interests.
Before submitting his resignation on Wednesday, Gaetz expressed the need to combat the misuse of federal power by eliminating “three-letter agencies” like the FBI, which falls under the purview of the attorney general.
Gaetz was also the focus of a House Ethics Committee investigation into alleged sexual misconduct with a minor in violation of sex trafficking laws. Trump called for Gaetz to leave Congress for a Cabinet position just two days before the committee was set to vote on releasing the “highly damaging” report.
Can Trump sidestep Senate approval for his Cabinet selections?
Trump’s choice for attorney general was lauded by some Republican senators, including Rand Paul of Kentucky, Vice President-elect JD Vance of Ohio, and Marco Rubio of Florida, who Trump nominated as secretary of state. However, it was met with apprehension by others.
The news of Gaetz’s potential elevation to attorney general left Senate Judiciary chair Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, speechless for a full 30 seconds. Republican Sens. Suzan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina also expressed doubts — putting Gaetz’s confirmation by at least 50 of the 53 Senate Republicans in jeopardy.
But Trump is determined to prevent dissent from GOP senators from becoming an obstacle to installing his preferred team.
Before Wednesday’s Senate leadership election, Trump insisted that Thune and his challengers, Texas Sen. John Cornyn and Florida Sen. Rick Scott, agree to let him use a process known as “recess appointments,” which allows Cabinet officials to be appointed without Senate approval when Congress is not in session.
Each candidate expressed a willingness to consider the idea, with now-Majority Leader Thune stating that ”all options are on the table” to expedite the installation of Trump’s nominees. However, many senators, including Curtis, have underscored the importance of their constitutionally mandated role to provide “advise and consent” for the president’s choices to lead executive agencies.
When asked about Gaetz, outgoing Utah Sen. Mitt Romney declined to comment, noting that he will not be part of the next Congress.
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