For Gaetz, a Return to Congress Is Possible

With Matt Gaetz taking himself out of the running for attorney general, could he return to Congress after abruptly resigning from his House seat? Some takes on the situation:

• ABC News reports that Gaetz resigned from the 118th Congress, and House rules bar him from returning to that same Congress, but there's nothing to stop him from attempting to return to his old seat when the 119th Congress convenes in January. Gaetz was reelected to his seat, but said when he resigned that he does not intend to take the oath of office when the next Congress begins. He could presumably, however, go back on that, since it is impossible to resign from a Congress that has not yet convened.
• Experts who spoke to Axios, however, suggest it's a gray area, and seem to think it's unlikely Gaetz could simply change his mind and get sworn in.

• Another possibility is that Gaetz runs in the special election to fill his vacant seat in the 119th Congress, NBC News reports. It's not clear, however, whether he actually wants to do that. (And if he did, the House Ethics Committee could decide to revive its probe into the sexual misconduct allegations against him.)
• No special election has yet been scheduled, and Politico notes that ultimately, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Cord Byrd, Florida's secretary of state, would have to make the decision, should Gaetz want to return.
• Another possibility, though one seen as a bit of a longshot: DeSantis could name Gaetz to the Senate seat that will be vacated by Marco Rubio once he leaves to serve as Trump's secretary of state ("Senator Gaetz" was quickly trending after Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration for AG, the Tallahassee Democrat reports). If Gaetz decides to lobby for the seat, he could be up against a Trump.
• The Hill runs down a few more possibilities: Gaetz could run for governor of Florida in 2026, take a different role in the Trump administration, or opt for a media career.

(More Matt Gaetz stories.)