Former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) discussed his political future while addressing the crowd at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest on
Sunday.

Gaetz recently resigned from the House last month after he was nominated to serve as President-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general. The Florida lawmaker ultimately removed his name from consideration after a number of establishment Republican senators refused to back his candidacy, according to reports from numerous Capitol Hill staffers and members of the Trump transition team.

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With the staunchly pro-Trump lawmaker out of Congress, his political future has been the focus of intense speculation, which he opted to address at AmericaFest.

“You’ve asked which perch I will be fighting from next. And some of you throughout this conference have even given me a few suggestions,” Gaetz told the crowd of conservative activists and lawmakers. 

Gaetz then pointed to previous reports that he is interested in running for governor of Florida when incumbent Ron DeSantis terms out in 2026, which he has seemingly confirmed in the past. He also addressed calls from the MAGA base to serve as a Trump DOJ-appointed special counsel to investigate federal government corruption after he was denied the top job.

“It seems I may not have had enough support in the United States Senate. Maybe I’ll just run for Marco Rubio’s vacant seat in the Senate and join some of those folks,” he added, drawing cheers from the crowd.

“For the moment I’ll enjoy being one of you. It was James Madison who said that the most powerful position in America would not be congressman or senator or even president, but that of citizen, because we put such an obligation on the citizenry to ignite the patriotism that the country needs,” the former congressman went on to say.

For the time being, Gaetz will be hosting a primetime show on the San Diego-based conservative media outlet One America News.

In addition, Gaetz will co-host a video podcast with fellow OAN star Dan Ball, host of “Real America with Dan Ball,” that the network describes as a medium for “unfiltered conversations” tailored to Gen Z, Millennials, and Gen X viewers. “We’ve been big fans of Matt Gaetz from day one. We admire his leadership and authenticity, and we’re confident he’ll really connect with our viewers. It’s an exciting partnership that’s going to take OAN to the next level,” Ball said in a statement.

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