The Resignation, The Brain Worm and The Recess Appointment
Breaking down the allegations against Trump's Attorney General choice Matt Gaetz, the extreme views of his HHS choice RFK Jr., and his push for recess appointments
Welcome to yet another addition of News Notes, or Notes on News, I don't even know what this thing is called, but who really cares? If you do care, feel free to hit reply and tell me which you prefer.
Thanks to those who have switched to paid subscriptions. If you appreciate this column, please consider switching to a paid subscription, which will help me be able to sustain this column and my news work. Additionally, you can contribute to me through my “Buy Me A Coffee” page here.
211 of you are now subscribed to this newsletter! Thank you all for subscribing and reading, and please consider telling your friends and family (and forwarding this email to everyone you know :P).
Now let’s get into what I’ve been focusing on:
More Trump announcements have been rolling in, with the most widely discussed on Wednesday being the nomination of Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz as Attorney General. It was a choice that seemed to come out of nowhere, although he is considered very close to President-elect Donald Trump.
The Justice Department conducted a lengthy investigation into allegations that Gaetz was involved in sex trafficking of a minor. This probe, which began during Trump's first term under then-Attorney General Bill Barr, focused on claims that Gaetz and his associate Joel Greenberg paid underage girls and escorts for sex or offered them gifts in exchange. The investigation concluded in 2023 without charges being filed against Gaetz.
Until his resignation from Congress on Wednesday, Gaetz was under investigation by the House Ethics Committee. The committee was examining various allegations, including sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, and potential misuse of campaign funds. The committee had spoken with more than a dozen witnesses, issued 25 subpoenas, and reviewed thousands of pages of documents in relation to these allegations.
A woman, now in her 20s, testified to the committee that Gaetz had sexual relations with her when she was 17 years old. The committee also subpoenaed Gaetz's former girlfriend and obtained sworn statements from other witnesses regarding parties allegedly attended by Gaetz where drugs were present. Additionally, the committee was examining claims that Gaetz may have accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges to individuals with personal relationships, and attempted to obstruct government investigations into his conduct.
The probe was effectively halted when Gaetz resigned from Congress following his nomination by President-elect Donald Trump to serve as Attorney General, as the committee's jurisdiction is limited to current members of Congress.
Senators will be voting on whether to confirm his nomination for Attorney General. Senators from both sides of the aisle are urging the House Ethics Committee to release its findings on Gaetz. Democratic Senator Dick Durbin, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has called on the House Ethics Committee to "preserve and share" their report and all relevant documentation on Gaetz. Republican Senator John Cornyn, a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, stated that the Senate "should gain access to all relevant information by whatever means necessary," including potentially subpoenaing the ethics report. Senators have given a variety of reasons for requesting the information, including the timing of his resignation. The sudden resignation of Gaetz from Congress, just before the Ethics Committee was reportedly set to vote on releasing its findings, has raised suspicions among senators.
One may also wonder, even without the controversy and allegations, whether Gaetz has the qualifications for the role. Gaetz does have some legal background, as he holds a law degree from William & Mary College of Law. He briefly practiced law privately before entering politics. He does not have much in the way of legal experience, however, and Trump’s announcement of his nomination focused on Gaetz and his ability to fix what Trump calls the “weaponization of the Justice Department.”
Conservatives have been arguing that the Justice Department is weaponized against them, although the department has filed high-profile cases against Democrats as well, including against Senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and even the President’s own son Hunter Biden, so those arguments lack some merit.
On Thursday, Trump nominated former Democratic Presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a noted vaccine skeptic, for the role of head of Health and Human Services.
Kennedy is perhaps best known for his skepticism towards vaccines, a stance that has made him a prominent figure in the anti-vaccine movement. He has repeatedly claimed that vaccines are linked to autism, despite overwhelming scientific evidence disproving this connection. His views on immunization extend beyond childhood vaccines to include criticism of the COVID-19 vaccines, which he has argued are unsafe and ineffective.
From Time:
Kennedy has insisted that he is not anti-vaccine, saying he only wants vaccines to be rigorously tested, but he also has shown opposition to a wide range of immunizations. Kennedy said in a 2023 podcast interview that “There’s no vaccine that is safe and effective” and told Fox News that he still believes in the long-ago debunked idea that vaccines can cause autism. In a 2021 podcast he urged people to “resist” CDC guidelines on when kids should get vaccines.
“I see somebody on a hiking trail carrying a little baby and I say to him, better not get them vaccinated,” Kennedy said.
Beyond vaccines, Kennedy has expressed extreme beliefs about various health issues. He has claimed that Wi-Fi radiation causes cancer and "leaky brain," linked school shootings to antidepressant use, and suggested that chemicals in drinking water can lead to children identifying as transgender. He has also questioned the established scientific understanding of HIV's role in causing AIDS.
Kennedy's approach to public health often involves challenging mainstream medical consensus and regulatory bodies. He has pledged to reform the National Institutes of Health (NIH) by replacing hundreds of staff members and redirecting its focus away from infectious diseases. He has also threatened to dismiss Food and Drug Administration (FDA) personnel, accusing the agency of waging a "war on public health" by overregulating items like raw milk, along with other controversial treatments and substances.
The New York Post’s editorial board, which endorsed Trump for President, had this to say:
The overriding rule of medicine is: First, do no harm.
We’re certain installing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head Health and Human Services breaks this rule.
The piece ends with something I think many of us have been thinking: “We fear the worm that he claims ate some of his brain some years ago is contagious and there’s been an outbreak at Mar-a-Lago.”
With these two extreme choices for major roles announced just over the last two days, it is fair to ask whether they could be confirmed.
Regarding Kennedy, The New York Times had this to say:
Whether the Senate, even one controlled by Republicans, will confirm Mr. Kennedy is an open question. In addition to his outside-the-mainstream views about medicine and health, he has been associated with a number of peculiar activities, like dumping a dead bear in Central Park and supposedly decapitating a whale. In interviews before Mr. Trump’s announcement, some Republican senators said Mr. Kennedy gave them pause, but none ruled out voting for him.
And as noted, Republican Senators have seemed somewhat skeptical of the choice of Gaetz as Attorney General.
Trump has demanded that Republican Senate leaders allow recess appointments, arguing that they are necessary to fill positions quickly.
There are a number of challenges to recess appointments:
Firstly, the Senate has developed procedural tactics to prevent recess appointments. Since 2007, both parties have used pro forma sessions to keep the Senate technically in session, even during extended breaks. The Supreme Court validated this tactic in 2014.
Secondly, even if Trump manages to make recess appointments, they would be temporary. Recess appointees can only serve until the end of the next Senate session, typically lasting no more than a year.
However, the BBC notes there are two potential routes for Trump to take for recess appointments:
The first would involve the Senate agreeing to recess for 10 days or more by majority vote.
The second would involve the House voting for a longer recess than the Senate, which would allow Trump to invoke a never-used constitutional power to adjourn both chambers of Congress.
According to the US Constitution, "in Case of Disagreement" a president can adjourn both chambers of Congress until "such Time as he shall think proper" - which would then provide Trump an opportunity to make recess appointments.
Trump previously threatened to use this power when he was in the White House.
I’m quite skeptical the recess appointments would fully go through, but hey, we’re living in a time where surprises happen quite a bit.
Thanks for reading. I’ll see you in your inbox again soon :).