Trump pushes past sting of Gaetz’s exit with flurry of new picks

President-elect Donald Trump quickly put behind him the loss of his first choice for attorney general, his top-priority position, while Senate Republicans expressed relief that they had avoided an ugly, drawn-out standoff with the incoming president. The day after former congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration to lead the Justice Department, Trump pushed ahead with a burst of fresh announcements for planned appointments, including some controversial picks. The president-elect also showed no sign of shrinking from his choice of former Fox News host Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense or any of his other picks facing tough confirmation fights.

Still, his team is taking a more cooperative approach to the upper chamber after initially demanding to bypass confirmation hearings and votes..