Controversy erupted when President-elect Donald Trump nominated former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to be the next attorney general despite lingering allegations of sexual misconduct and a pending ethics probe against the ex-congressman.

Recently, confidential files linked to the accusations against Gaetz were obtained from a private law firm by an unknown hacker, who threatened to publicly release the potentially damning information, according to Fox News.

That may have prompted Gaetz to suddenly withdraw himself from consideration to head up the Justice Department on Thursday, a move that may have caught even the Trump transition team by surprise.

Hacker obtains secret files on Gaetz

On Tuesday, ABC News reported that an unidentified hacker gained access to a purportedly secure online document-sharing file held by attorneys who'd been involved in a defamation suit related to the allegations against former Rep. Gaetz.

The hacker is believed to have stolen documents that included unredacted testimony from the ex-congressman's accusers and other key witnesses, including a woman who claims Gaetz had sex with her in 2017 when she was only 17, as well as another woman who claims she witnessed the alleged incident.

"We are aware that there was a hack in the civil case, and the protected materials have been compromised," one of the involved attorneys, Tim Jansen, told the outlet. "On behalf of our client, we do not authorize the release of documents related to my client."

Trump and Vance tried to secure support for Gaetz as AG

Fox News reported that when asked for comment about the concerning development, a spokesperson for President-elect Trump, Alex Pfeiffer, confidently declared, "Matt Gaetz will be the next attorney general. He’s the right man for the job and will end the weaponization of our justice system."

"These are baseless allegations intended to derail the second Trump administration," Pfeiffer added. "The Biden Justice Department investigated Gaetz for years and cleared him of wrongdoing. The only people who went to prison over these allegations were those lying about Matt Gaetz."

Indeed, Joel Greenberg, a former friend and associate of Gaetz, is currently serving an 11-year prison sentence following a conviction for sex trafficking, and it was a defamation lawsuit involving Greenberg that was targeted by the hacker.

Nevertheless, as of Wednesday, Fox News was reporting that Trump was making personal calls to Republican senators while Vice President-elect Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) was escorting Gaetz around the Capitol to try and build sufficient support for his confirmation as the next attorney general.

Gaetz withdraws from AG nomination

Yet, on Thursday, Gaetz wrote in an X post, "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," he continued. "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."

Gaetz added, "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."

In response, Trump posted 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!"