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ABC’s “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin had to read a “legal note” clarifying that Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz, the nominee for attorney general, has “long denied all allegations” of sexual misconduct against him and that a criminal investigation “closed with no charges being brought.”
As the co-hosts of “The View” talked about President-elect Donald Trump’s list of nominees, which included Gaetz and the accusations against him, Whoopi Goldberg suddenly said, “Sunny, you have a legal note.”
“I do have a legal note. Thank you, Whoopi. Matt Gaetz has long denied all allegations, calling the claims, quote, ‘invented,’ and saying in a statement to ABC News that ‘this false smear following a three-year criminal investigation should be viewed with great skepticism.’ The DOJ investigation was closed with no charges being brought,” Hostin said while staring into the camera with a straight face.
Goldberg then announced, “We’ll be right back,” as the show cut to commercials.
Minutes prior, as the co-hosts discussed the sexual misconduct allegations against Gaetz, Hostin said, “Within the Department of Justice, you know, you have the sex crimes unit, which is what I was a part of. Child sex crimes and child trafficking. How could you nominate someone with allegations of child trafficking or trafficking across state lines and having sex with a 17-year-old?”
Goldberg responded, “I’m saddened by it because all of those women who will have to get some defense of what’s happened to them, that’s who they’re going to, and this is someone who will just say, ‘It’s not a big deal.’ All of those little kids who, you know, get abused, they got no recourse now because this is what’s in charge.”
WATCH:
Sonny Hostin was forced to issue a “legal note” on The View that Matt Gaetz was found to have done nothing wrong after a three year DOJ investigation. Enjoy. pic.twitter.com/wiz0OhynFK
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) November 20, 2024
Earlier this week, Republicans provided a crucial update on Gaetz’s chances of being confirmed as the attorney general.
During an interview on Fox News with host Larry Kudlow, GOP Sen. Ron Johnson spoke about President-elect Donald Trump nominating Gaetz to head the U.S. Department of Justice. Johnson came out in support of Trump picking Gaetz, saying the president-elect based his decision on “instinct.”
“Let’s talk to two senators, Kevin Kramer and Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson. Welcome very much, lots to talk about. We will start with Matt Gaetz, came as a surprise, I am sure they will have tongues. What do you think of the Matt Gaetz appointment to the Justice Department?” Kudlow asked the senators.
“Interesting pick, Donald Trump is operating at warp speed in terms of filling out his administration, which he needs to do. He got elected on a mandate for a significant dramatic change in Washington D.C. which we need and I am looking forward to what Elon Musk and Vivek will do with the Department of Government Efficiency, cheering them all the way and hoping to work with them to accomplish great things,” Johnson added.
WATCH:
Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson announced that 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 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!”
