As soon as news broke that President-Elect Donald Trump would nominate firebrand Congressman Matt Gaetz as his attorney general, a scrum of reporters at the Capitol wanted to know what Sen. Lisa Murkowski thought.
“He’s under investigation by the House Ethics Committee but now he could potentially be attorney general,” a Bloomberg reporter said.
“Do you think he’s a serious candidate?” Murkowski asked, poised at the door of the Senate Chamber.
The reporters tossed the question back at her — is Gaetz a serious candidate?
“Not as far as I’m concerned,” she said.
Murkowski ducked into the Senate Chamber and the reporters took to their phones to post her exact words: “Not as far as I’m concerned.”
This was a preview of coming attractions. Expect Murkowski to be in the spotlight a lot next year. Trump, if he follows the normal procedure, will need the Senate to confirm his cabinet and hundreds of other appointments. Murkowski, as a non-MAGA Republican, is among a handful of senators who could stand in his way.
Gaetz is a surprise pick. He’s a Trump loyalist and a hard-right House member who led the ousting of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. The House Ethics Committee has been looking into allegations against Gaetz involving sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, among other accusations, all of which Gaetz denies. His newly announced resignation from the House ends the investigation.
Trump will need just 50 Republican senators for the confirmation vote, so he can afford to lose a few. But Murkowski isn’t the only skeptical Republican. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said important questions will be raised at Gaetz’s confirmation hearing. Based on their voting history, Collins and Murkowski are the most likely to vote against their party. But the Gaetz pick was such a shock that even more conservative senators raised doubts about his confirmation.
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.
