Incoming Senate majority leader John Thune says that he respects Gaetz’s decision to withdraw.

“I think everybody has to make a decision that’s good for them and for their family,” Thune said, according to CNN. “And, you know, for whatever reason, he decided not to pursue it, so we respect the decision.”

Florida senator Rick Scott says he is “disappointed” about Gaetz’s withdrawal.

“I’m disappointed. I’ve known Matt since I started running for governor, and he was a smart guy, worked hard,” Scott told CNN. “I had a great, great working relationship with him”.

When asked about who should be nominated to the role now that Gaetz has withdrawn, Scott told CNN that “the American public has completely lost trust of the federal government, and so we’re going to have to have somebody in there that goes and creates trust.”

Speaking to a reporter, Representative Michael Guest, who chairs the House Ethics Committee, said that Gaetz’s withdrawal should end the discussion about whether the committee should “continue to move forward in this matter.”

This comes as just a day ago, the House ethics committee was deadlocked regarding the release of a report examining allegations of sexual misconduct against Gaetz.

Lawmakers from both parties had called for the report to be released before the Senate was scheduled to vote on whether to confirm Gaetz’s nomination as attorney general.

More Republican Senators are reportedly reacting to the news of former representative Matt Gaetz’s withdrawal from the nomination for attorney general.

Here’s a quick roundup of some responses:

Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell called the decision “appropriate” according to the Washington Post.

Senator Cynthia Lummis told CNN that it was good that Gaetz recognised he was a distraction, and that this will allow Trump to appoint someone “equally tenacious” to lead the justice department.

“He must have gotten some signals yesterday during conversations that he was having with senators that this was going to be a distraction,” Lummis reportedly said.

Senator Susan Collins expressed that she was “surprised” but “pleased” with Gaetz’s decision, adding that he “has put country first, and I’m pleased with his decision”.

Senator Roger Wicker referred to the withdrawal as a “positive development”.

Republican senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma describes Matt Gaetz’s decision to withdraw as “probably a good decision”.

“I think because of the reports that were coming out, it was probably a good decision” Mullin told reporters, adding that “I’m sure he talked to the President about it first.”

According to CNN, the woman who says she had sex when she was 17 years old with then-Representative Matt Gaetz told the House ethics committee that she had two sexual encounters with him at one party in 2017.

The CNN report cites unnamed sources, who claim that the second sexual encounter, not previously been reported, included another adult woman.

The network also states that after being asked for comment regarding the new allegations, the former representative announced that he was withdrawing from the attorney general nomination.

Gaetz has repeatedly denied the allegations against him.

The other woman in the alleged second sexual encounter, who was an adult at the time, has also denied taking part in the encounter, according to multiple sources familiar with her ethics testimony, CNN reported.

Republican senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina says that he respects former Representative Matt Gaetz’s decision to withdraw from the attorney general nomination.

His statement reads:

I respect former Representative Matt Gaetz’s decision to withdraw his name from consideration and appreciate his willingness to serve at the highest level of our government.

He is very smart and talented and will continue to contribute to our nation’s wellbeing for years to come.

I look forward to working with President Trump regarding future nominees to get this important job up and running.

Donald Trump has released a statement on Matt Gaetz’s attorney general nomination withdrawal, saying on Truth Social:

I greatly appreciate the recent efforts of Matt Gaetz in seeking approval to be attorney general.

He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the administration, for which he has much respect. Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!

Gaetz reportedly informed Trump late Thursday morning that he will be withdrawing his nomination, ABC reports, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Matt Gaetz has withdrawn his name from consideration as Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, saying his “confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition”.

In a full statement on Thursday, Gaetz, who has been swept in a series of sexual allegation controversies and whose nomination has received widespread backlash from Democrats and former White House officials, said:

“I had excellent meetings with senators yesterday. I appreciate their thoughtful feedback – and the incredible support of so many. While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition.

There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as attorney general. Trump’s DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1. I remain fully committed to see that Donald J. Trump is the most successful President in history. I will forever be honored that President Trump nominated me to lead the Department of Justice and I’m certain he will Save America.”

Pete Hegseth, who arrived on Capitol Hill moments ago ahead of his visit with JD Vance and Republican senators, has repeated his denial of the 2017 sexual assault allegations against him.

Addressing reporters on Thursday morning, Donald Trump’s nominee for defense secretary said:

“As far as the media is concerned, it’s very simple. The matter was fully investigated, and I was completely cleared, and that’s where I’m gonna leave it.”

Speaking to ABC, Illinois Democratic senator and retired army national guard lieutenant colonel Tammy Duckworth criticized Pete Hegseth’s belief that women should not play in a combat role.

Duckworth, who is a combat veteran of the Iraq war where she served as a army helicopter pilot before losing both legs during an attack in 2004, said:

“Obviously I have my personal opinions but as a US senator, my job will be to determine whether or not he is qualified to be secretary of defense, and frankly, it shows me that he’s not because he doesn’t understand the realities of modern warfare.

We’re not talking about the Revolutionary War, where there’s a line behind which … this is combat and that’s not combat. If you were in the green zone … Baghdad, you were in a combat zone, whether you were a helicopter pilot like myself or a truck driver, which, by the way, is a job that women have been doing since world war one. So it just showed me that he really doesn’t understand modern warfare and is therefore not qualified to be secretary of defense.”

A spokesperson for Donald Trump’s transition said that the police report “corroborates what Mr (Pete) Hegseth’s attorney’s have said all along”, the Associated Press reports.

“The incident was fully investigated and no charges were filed because police found the allegations to be false,” the spokesperson said.

The report, however, does not state that Monterey police found the allegations to be false. The offence code in the report was listed as “rape: victim unconscious of the nature of the act”.

The report ended with the reporting police officer writing, “I recommend this case report be forwarded to the Monterey county district attorney’s office for review.”

Good morning,

The scrutiny around Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, grows as police unveiled an investigative report into the former Fox News host that further detailed the sexual assault allegations surrounding him.

The 22-page report released by police dates back to 12 October 2017. It includes allegations from a woman who told police that she was sexually assaulted by Hegseth after drinking at a hotel bar in Monterey, California following a Republican women’s event where Hegseth spoke. According to the report, Hegseth assaulted the woman after he took her phone, blocked the door to a hotel room and prevented her from leaving.

The police report’s release follows recent news of “a detailed memo” on the alleged assault which a friend of the accuser sent to the Trump transition team. Hegseth has insisted the encounter was consensual but paid the woman an unknown sum after she signed a nondisclosure agreement.

Emerging details of the alleged assault come as Hegseth is set to visit Capitol Hill today. The former Fox host is expected to meet with JD Vance and Republican senators ahead of his confirmation process.

Here are other developments in US politics:

• The Senate has rejected Bernie Sanders’ effort to block arms sales to Israel which the Vermont senator introduced out of concerns over the mass killings of Palestinians by Israeli forces in Gaza.

• Joe Biden is set to sign the Congenital Heart Futures Reauthorization Act today which will reauthorize the national research, surveillance and awareness program on heart disease.

• Trump is likely to choose Johns Hopkins surgeon Martin Makary – who raised concerns about various public health issues including opposing vaccine mandates – as head of the Food and Drug Administration.