Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) isn’t happy over Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s (R) intent to defy President Trump’s preference to appoint Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA) for the state’s soon-to-be vacant Senate seat.
In a Tuesday tweet, Gaetz railed against Kemp for his plans to formally announce his decision to appoint business executive Kelly Loeffler to replace retiring Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) instead of Collins — a staunch ally to the President and ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee. Kemp’s formal announcement is expected at a press conference scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday.
In response to a tweet by Politico reporter Gary Fineout, Gaetz quote-tweeted that Kemp’s appointment of Loeffler translates to announcing “the funeral time and location” for the Republican governor’s political career.
Governor Kemp announces the funeral time & location for his political career. https://t.co/7aQHe53Cx0
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) December 3, 2019
This isn’t the first time Gaetz has expressed his dissatisfaction with Kemp’s decision. Last Friday, Gaetz threatened Kemp with a primary challenger in 2022 if he did not appoint Collins. It’s an odd threat given that Gaetz represents a different state.
Last week, Politico reported that Kemp believes that Loeffler can help staunch the flow of suburban and female voters fleeing the party. During a meeting at the White House last month, Trump reportedly aired his concerns that Loeffler lacks the right amount of political experience to receive the appointment and also took issue with how Loeffler was not an original 2016 Trump campaign supporter.
