Graham on Gaetz nomination: ‘Give Matt a chance’
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) urged his fellow Republicans to “give Matt a chance” after President-elect Trump nominated former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to lead his Justice Department, sending shockwaves through Capitol Hill.
With less than 70 days before Trump returns to the White House, he has begun assembling his team, Gaetz being one of the more surprising choices.
“So, we’re going to give the president a chance to put his people forward. To every Republican: Give Matt a chance,” Graham said Wednesday on Fox News’s "Hannity."
Trump’s nomination of Gaetz was a shocking signal that he intends to follow through with his campaign promises; Gaetz resigned from Congress immediately after receiving the nomination.
“I say elections have consequences when Republicans don’t like it, and I’m telling my Democratic friends, elections have consequences whether you like it or not,” Graham told host Sean Hannity in the interview highlighted by Mediaite.
Gaetz, who has been the subject of a Justice Department investigation in the past, has been a staunch ally of the president-elect. Critics have long expressed concerns that the department could go after Trump’s political enemies, as he suggested while on the campaign trail.
Graham argued the accusations against Gaetz are the “very thing” Democrats did, including lie under oath and signing FISA warrants based on Russian disinformation.
Others are less supportive of Trump's decision. Some Republican senators were surprised by the move, and Democrats have argued it's a "red alert moment" for American democracy.
-
Trump to nominate Matt Gaetz for attorney general
Top stories - CBS News - 20 hours ago -
Trump to nominate Rep. Matt Gaetz as attorney general
Top stories - CBS News - Yesterday -
Senate Republicans Alarmed by Trump Nominating Matt Gaetz for Attorney General
Top stories - The New York Times - 21 hours ago -
Matt Gaetz resigns from Congress after Trump attorney general nomination
World - The Guardian - 19 hours ago -
Picking an Attorney General
Top stories - The New York Times - 2 hours ago -
Moskowitz on Gaetz nomination: 'Elections have consequences'
Politics - The Hill - 22 hours ago -
Lawmakers react to Trump nominating Gaetz for attorney general
Top stories - CBS News - 5 hours ago -
Matt Gaetz, under House ethics investigation, is Trump's pick for attorney general
Top stories - ABC News - 20 hours ago -
Matt Gaetz is Trump's pick for attorney general
Politics - The Hill - Yesterday
More from The Hill
-
DOJ finds Fulton County Jail in violation of federal law in probe of inmate's death
Politics - The Hill - 41 minutes ago -
Trump says Dimon won’t be part of administration
Politics - The Hill - 42 minutes ago -
Rick Scott backs Lara Trump for Rubio's Senate seat
Politics - The Hill - 59 minutes ago -
Hugh Hewitt: Trump may be playing '4D chess' with Gaetz nomination
Politics - The Hill - 1 hour ago -
Note to Democrats: To succeed next time, avoid these words
Politics - The Hill - 1 hour ago
Latest in Politics
-
Trump expected to nominate RFK Jr. for HHS secretary, three sources say
Politics - CBS News - 10 minutes ago -
Every uncalled race left in the fight for control in Washington
Politics - NBC News - 35 minutes ago -
DOJ finds Fulton County Jail in violation of federal law in probe of inmate's death
Politics - The Hill - 41 minutes ago -
Trump says Dimon won’t be part of administration
Politics - The Hill - 42 minutes ago -
Rick Scott backs Lara Trump for Rubio's Senate seat
Politics - The Hill - 59 minutes ago