Congressional Republican alarm at Matt Gaetz nomination as A-G

Donald Trump faces a backlash over his nomination as attorney-general as he unveiled more of his cabinet.

Donald Trump meets House Republicans in Washington on Wednesday. Picture: AFP

Donald Trump faces a backlash over his nomination of Matt Gaetz as attorney-general as he unveiled more of his cabinet, including former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard as national intelligence director and close ally Marco Rubio as his pick for secretary of state.

In a busy day in Washington, where Mr Trump met with Joe Biden in the Oval Office and addressed House Republicans following his sweeping November 5 victory, the nomination of Mr Gaetz rocked the Washington establishment and drew criticism – including from some Republicans taken by surprise.

Questions swiftly emerged over whether Mr Gaetz would be able to pass the Senate confirmation process after South Dakota senator John Thune was elected the next Senate majority leader – despite not being seen as Mr Trump’s preferred candidate.

Before the secret ballot on Wednesday, Mr Trump had signalled his expectation that the incoming Senate majority leader would agree to his demand for “recess appointments” – typically seen as a last-resort option allowing presidents to install nominees in the face of Senate hostility.

Following his election, Senator Thune said he was willing to approve cabinet appointments in the “old-fashioned way” but also kept recess appointments as an option.

Trump loyalist Mr Gaetz is seen as a fierce critic of the Justice Department, which, until last year, was investigating whether the Florida Republican congressman had breached federal sex trafficking laws.

While Justice did not end up bringing charges against him, the announcement by Mr Trump meant Mr Gaetz was able to resign from congress ahead of a probe by the House ethics committee. No report will now be issued given the committee has no power over former members.

Axios reported the committee had been investigating allegations including sex trafficking, illicit drug use and accepting bribes – all of which Mr Gaetz has denied.

Mr Trump’s nomination of Mr Gaetz is widely being interpreted as a key test of Senator Thune. With the Republicans commanding 53 Senate seats from next year, the party cannot afford to lose more than three votes to secure Mr Gaetz’s appointment.

Democrats swiftly used the decision to warn that the president-elect was “appointing unqualified people to cabinet positions”, also condemning the nomination of Fox News host Pete Hegseth as defence secretary.

“Donald Trump is making good on his promise to install loyalists who will do his bidding and that starts with nominating Matt Gaetz to be attorney-general. They will weaponise the DOJ to protect themselves and their allies and we must stop them from executing Trump’s plans for revenge and retribution,” an email to Democrat supporters said.

Republican senator Susan Collins, from Maine, said she was “shocked” by the nomination and flagged there would be “many, many questions raised at Mr Gaetz’s hearing, if in fact the nomination goes forward”.

Lisa Murkowski, a Republican senator for Alaska, said she was “surprised by this particular nomination and perhaps some of the others, which, again, were not names that most of us would have thought to be out there”.

Announcing his decision, Mr Trump said “few issues in America are more important than ending the partisan weaponisation of our Justice system. Matt will end weaponised government, protect our borders, dismantle criminal organisations and restore America’s badly shattered faith and confidence in the Justice Department”.

Senator Rubio’s nomination and that of Mike Waltz as national security adviser are seen as evidence the Trump administration will take a tough view on China.

Mr Trump described Senator Rubio as a “very powerful voice for freedom” who would be a “strong advocate for our nation, a true friend to our allies, and a fearless warrior who will never back down to our adversaries”.

Senator Rubio has previously labelled China the “threat that will define this century”, while Mr Waltz has said the US is “in a Cold War with the Chinese Communist Party”.

Mr Trump said Ms Gabbard, a former Democratic presidential candidate turned Republican, had “fought for our country and the freedoms of all Americans” for more than two decades.

Former Trump national security adviser John Bolton said Ms Gabbard and Mr Gaetz should not appear before Senate confirmation hearings until they had been investigated by the FBI.