It appears that disgraced former Representative Matt Gaetz has found his new job: anchor on One America News Network.
CNN reports that Gaetz is set to join the pro-Trump network after his bid to be attorney general collapsed under a mountain of drug and sexual misconduct allegations outlined in a buried House Ethics Committee report. It’s the second post-Congress gig for Gaetz, who last month announced that he was setting up an account on the celebrity video website Cameo.
Gaetz will apparently be hosting his own show on OANN, and a webpage bearing the name The Matt Gaetz Show is already live on the outlet’s website. OANN is not widely carried on cable and satellite television, and it was dropped by DirecTV in 2022. The network encourages viewers to stream its programming online.
Last month, Gaetz alluded to his new job in an interview with conservative personality Charlie Kirk.
“I’m still going to be in the fight, but it’s going to be from a new perch. I do not intend to join the 119th Congress,” Gaetz told Kirk.
If Gaetz were to return to Congress, his Ethics Committee report could be released, further damaging his image and political future. His role in the successful effort to unseat former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was actually connected to the misconduct allegations against him, according to McCarthy.
In an interview on Fox News Sunday, McCarthy said Gaetz has himself to blame for his nomination failing.
“I blame Matt Gaetz for lying to [Donald Trump] about his ethics report,” McCarthy said, making the case that Gaetz convinced the president-elect to appoint him attorney general so that he could quit Congress and try to sink the Ethics Committee report against him. McCarthy also claimed Gaetz backed his ouster because of the report.
“People know that’s why he’s not capable of even staying in Congress,” McCarthy said. “He needed an excuse to resign because the Ethics report would be done in a couple days.”
Kari Lake, the television anchor turned twice-failed Republican political candidate from Arizona, is reportedly the leading contender to serve as Donald Trump’s ambassador to Mexico—and no one is happy.
Lake, who built her failed candidacy by mimicking Trump on issues of immigration, border security, and election denialism, is likely to receive the president-elect’s nomination to manage diplomacy with Mexico, Semafor reported Monday.
Lake rose to prominence within her party after refusing to concede that she lost Arizona’s gubernatorial race in 2022. Last month, the MAGA acolyte lost Arizona’s Senate race to Representative Ruben Gallego, a Democrat.
Lake’s Senate failed platform contained a 10-point plan that fell in lock-step with Trump’s hardline immigration policy, including finishing the wall at the southern border, ending asylum claims for people from countries experiencing endemic crime, and the immediate, automatic deportation of undocumented immigrants.
Earlier this month, Trump announced his intention to implement a 25 percent tariff on all goods imports from Mexico, which will more than likely damage border state economies (such as Arizona) and could spark retaliatory tariffs. As the ambassador to Mexico, Lake would advocate for Trump’s immigration and tariff policies to the Mexican government.
Online, the possibility that Lake would land this enormous responsibility was met with exhaustion and derision.
“Tell me you’re not serious about negotiating with Mexico over trade or immigration without telling me …” commented Reason’s Eric Boehm.
Meanwhile, Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, Councilman Tony Heyl wondered, “How is she going to have time to do this when she is already Governor and Senator from Arizona?”
Senator Lindsey Graham appeared hard-pressed for praise beyond personal niceties for Tulsi Gabbard after meeting with Donald Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence.
“We’ve had policy differences. I know her, I like her, you know. She wanted to stay in the JCPOA. I thought that was a mistake,” Graham told CNN congressional correspondent Manu Raju on Monday, referring to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, from which Trump withdrew in 2018.
“But, you know, she’ll be serving Trump,” the South Carolina Republican said.
“We’ll see how the hearing goes,” he continued, per footage from WAAY 31 News. Asked whether he was satisfied with Gabbard’s answers, Graham replied, “She’s gonna get back with me, we had a very good meeting. And I’m inclined—well, let’s see what the answers are.”
Lindsey Graham on Tulsi Gabbard: I know her, I like her, um, you know, she wanted to stay in the jcpoa. I thought that was a mistake. But, you know she'll be serving Trump pic.twitter.com/YKIMmNkTvh
Gabbard is meeting with senators this week, hoping to alleviate concerns about her sympathetic stances on Russia and Syria’s now-ousted President Bashar Al Assad.
But if Graham has any reservations about Gabbard, that doesn’t mean they will last.
The senator had a sudden change of heart regarding allegations of sexual assault and other misconduct plaguing Trump’s defense secretary pick, Pete Hegseth, who is also making the rounds on Capitol Hill. Last Tuesday, Graham called the accusations against Hegseth “very disturbing,” saying, “Some of this stuff is going to be difficult.”
Within 24 hours, Graham pivoted, telling Fox News, “I’m not going to........