Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), a close ally of President Trump, is reportedly weighing a Senate run.
The Florida Republican has told his colleagues he is considering moving to Alabama to run for Senate in 2020, The Hill reports. Gaetz would be seeking to challenge Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.), the Democrat who in 2017 defeated Roy Moore in a close special election.
According to this report, "people in Trump's orbit" have been encouraging Gaetz to run in the election, noting that in Alabama, you only have to be a resident of the state for a single day before running for Senate.
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Gaetz has become a controversial figure for numerous reasons, including his tweet in February seeming to threaten former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen before his congressional testimony. Gaetz wrote to Cohen, "Do your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends? Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if she'll remain faithful when you’re in prison. She's about to learn a lot..." Gaetz later apologized for the tweet and said he didn't mean it to be threatening. The New York Times recently described Gaetz "a congressman liberals love to loathe."
Gaetz confirmed to The Hill on Thursday that "a few people" have mentioned to him that Alabama has short residency laws, but he said this is "not something I've looked at myself," saying his "most likely" path is re-election in the House.
Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.) is already running for Jones' seat, and Moore, who during the 2017 Senate race was accused of sexually assaulting or pursuing underage girls, has expressed interest in challenging Jones again, saying last month that he is "seriously considering" it.
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