After President-elect Donald Trump chose Florida Republican Representative Matt Gaetz for his Attorney General, conservative commentator Ben Domenech—the co-founder of The Federalist and editor-at-large of The Spectator World—did not hold back with a warning to anyone who votes to confirm him.
Domenech highlighted that Gaetz was previously the subject of a Justice Department investigation into alleged sex trafficking involving a 17-year-old girl and has faced scrutiny from the House Ethics Committee over accusations of sexual misconduct. However, that inquiry effectively concluded on Wednesday when Gaetz announced his resignation from Congress.
Gaetz, a vocal Trump ally, has long been entangled in controversies that now pose a significant challenge to his confirmation as the nation’s top federal law enforcement official in the Republican-controlled Senate.
He has consistently denied any misconduct, asserting last year that the Justice Department concluded its investigation into allegations of sex trafficking involving underage girls without filing federal charges against him.
But Domenech made clear that Gaetz's history is unacceptable for someone vying to become the nation's head of law enforcement, writing the following in a Substack post titled, "Matt Gaetz is a Vile Sex Pest and Any Senator Who Votes For Him Owns That":
"I realize that we are occasionally given to hyperbole about the untoward nature of politicians, but let me be clear: Matt Gaetz is a sex trafficking drug addicted piece of s**t. He is abhorrent. His eyes are permanently rimmed with the red rings of chemical boosters. In person, he smells like overexposed Axe Body Spray and stale Astroglide."
"The fact that he boasted on the floor to multiple colleagues in the House of Representatives of his methods of crushing Viagra and high test Red Bull to maintain his erection through his orgiastic evenings is perhaps the least offensive of his many crimes against womanhood and Christian faith. The man has less principles than your average fentanyl addicted hobo."
"He likes them underage and he’s not ashamed about it. Matt Gaetz isn’t just your average extreme Florida MAGA Man, he’s a hypocritical ass with the worst Botox money can buy, pursuing an ever-thinner nose and higher cheekbones at every opportunity like a Real Housewife gone mad for fillers. Every Republican in Washington has an opinion about Matt Gaetz, and 99 percent of those opinions are “Keep Matt Gaetz away from my wife/daughter/friend and anyone I care about.”"
"He is a walking genital, warts included as a bonus. If I was merely attempting to count the number of women I know who have had bad experiences with Matt Gaetz, I would run out of fingers and toes."
He then stressed the following to Senate Republicans with the power to confirm or scuttle Gaetz's nomination:
"If you vote for him to be the Attorney General of the United States, you don’t just need your head examined, you need to be committed to a mental institution. The man is absolutely vile. There are pools of vomit with more to offer the earth than this STD-riddled testament to the failure of fallen masculinity."
Even better—he outlined just why Gaetz is unfit to hold office:
"Let’s just deal with the facts. Did Matt Gaetz transport an underage woman across state lines with the stated intent of her having sex with him and his friends? Yes. Did he later claim to Tucker Carlson that this woman did not exist? Yes. Does this conflict with the fact that one of his closest friends was convicted of having sex with this underage woman for pay? Yes."
"Are Gaetz and his orgy friends attempting to destroy the records — images, videos, etc. — from this sex party to protect his political future? Yes. Does this matter to Republicans? Who can say?"
"Donald J. Trump has the best judgment in politics, of course he would never name a sex trafficking drug addled lying philandering piece of s**t to be the Attorney General of the United States simply to avoid investigation. Or would he?"
And he concluded with the following brutal warning to Republicans:
"Here’s the real deal: Matt Gaetz is the line for how we assess the Republican Party. If they are truly a cult of personality, beholden to Donald Trump in ways that we could not even imagine for a party that rejects cults and idol worship, they will approve this choice."
"But if they have a degree of independence, any kind of free thought, mindful of the fact that a presidency is four years but your career is forever, they will reject this choice so emphatically that it sends a very simple, straightforward message: you can be an absolute dirtbag wannabe pimp pounding dick pills and caffeine while you film your “girlfriend” twerking on the gram, or you can be a Republican."
"The choice is yours."
The case against Gaetz couldn't be clearer—and Domenech's words resonated.
The federal sex trafficking investigation launched during Trump’s first term under Attorney General Bill Barr examined allegations that Gaetz and his former political ally Joel Greenberg paid escorts and underage girls or provided them with gifts in exchange for sex.
Greenberg, a Republican who served as Seminole County, Florida’s tax collector, pleaded guilty in 2021 to charges including paying women and an underage girl for sex with him and others. Court documents did not identify the other men involved. Greenberg received an 11-year prison sentence in late 2022.
Federal investigators scrutinized a trip Gaetz took to the Bahamas with several women and a campaign donor, examining whether the women were compensated or gifted in exchange for sex. They also investigated whether Gaetz or his associates attempted to secure government positions for some of the women.
Gaetz had been under investigation by the House Ethics Committee over allegations linking him to a scheme involving the sex trafficking of a 17-year-old girl.
The committee launched its inquiry in April 2021 but paused its work at the Justice Department's request. It resumed its investigation after Gaetz publicly announced that the Justice Department had concluded its sex trafficking probe without filing charges.
In a rare public update over the summer, the committee revealed its expanded review, which included allegations of sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, acceptance of improper gifts, and attempts to obstruct government investigations. Gaetz has consistently denied all the allegations and his resignation means the committee no longer has jurisdiction to continue its investigation.
