Thursday brought a trifecta of scandals for Trump world. The scandal-plagued Matt Gaetz bowed out of his nomination for attorney general, and Donald Trump’s Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Department of Defense pick Pete Hegseth are each facing their own public reckonings. As the MAGA drama piled up over the past 24 hours, questions grew over what comes next for an administration dead set on appointing a crude and unruly circus to run the federal government. Gaetz withdraws as AG nominee after new allegations surface Gaetz pulled out of the running to head the Department of Justice after CNN surfaced disturbing allegations involving a second sexual encounter with a minor—this time in the form of a threesome. The news broke Thursday when Gaetz issued a statement on X attempting to frame his decision as selfless, but many saw it as a forced retreat in the face of mounting scandal. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz wrote. “There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I'll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General.” The move marks the latest chapter in a tumultuous period for Gaetz, a fierce ally of the president-elect who has faced sex scandals of his own. The former Florida congressman was already under investigation by the House Ethics Committee for other allegations of sexual misconduct. While Gaetz may have framed his withdrawal as an effort to keep the transition focused on “critical work,” it’s clear that the controversy surrounding him was only intensifying. Fresh scrutiny for Health and Human Services nominee Kennedy Just when it seemed like Gaetz’s scandal would be the week’s most significant political bombshell, another controversy erupted involving Trump’s nominee for the Department of Health and Human Services. The anti-vaccine conspiracist who has also been accused of sexual assault by his kids’ former babysitter, has faced renewed scrutiny after an unearthed clip from CNN revealed Kennedy compared Trump to Hitler and described Trump supporters as “outright Nazis” and “belligerent idiots.” It’s unclear how Senate Republicans will react to Kennedy’s latest comments. He reportedly plans to visit Capitol Hill after Thanksgiving to seek their votes for his confirmation. New details emerge about sexual assault accusation against Hegseth Meanwhile, Trump’s appointee for the Department of Defense is under fire due to the release of a 2017 police report detailing sexual assault allegations against the Fox News host. The report recounts the alarming testimony of a woman, identified as “Jane Doe,” who claims that she was with Hegseth late at night at a Hyatt hotel in Monterey, California, when the alleged asault occurred. Hegseth denies the assault took place but did pay the victim in a settlement. According to Doe, she suspected that her drink may have been tampered with. The police report describes how she later woke up unable to fully remember what happened but recalled a disturbing sequence of events. “DOE remembers being in one of her coworker's hotel rooms and remembers being ejaculated on,” the police report stated. “[Redacted] said DOE could not remember whether or not any sexual penetration occurred but believes that she was sexually assaulted at that time.” This police report adds to the list of controversies surrounding Hegseth, although he has not been charged with any crime. Previous allegations have already marred his public image, and this new revelation is likely to fuel further scrutiny. Campaign Action
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