Government

Law School Alums Looking To Distance Themselves As Much As Humanly Possible From Matt Gaetz

More than 400 lawyers have signed the petition.

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Matt Gaetz (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) is not what you’d call a “good guy.” He has quite the list of racist credits to CV including awful tweets (which is almost de rigueur for rising Republicans rn), palling around with Holocaust deniers, spreading unfounded rumors about COVID, and well, a whole lot more.

Anyway, on his way to Congress, Gaetz got himself a JD, courtesy of William & Mary Law School. But other alums of that institution aren’t happy to be associated with his brand of terrible. There’s now a petition denouncing him, saying, “He is unfit to write or determine the law, and he must resign.” Specifically pointing to his problematic actions post-insurrection:

After a group of white supremacists stormed the Capitol in an effort to overturn the election, he voted twice against counting the votes in the electoral college, despite the Department of Justice’s affirmation that no widespread election fraud occurred. He then spread a dangerous, debunked lie about the mob that stormed the Capitol. His actions directly undermine our democracy, the Constitution, and the will of the American people. Mere days after the carnage at the Capitol, Rep. Gaetz called President Trump an “inspirational leader of a loving and patriotic movement.”

Over 400 students, alumni, and faculty have signed the petition, which unequivocally denounces his actions:

We, students, alumni, and members of the William & Mary Law School community, absolutely and unequivocally condemn the recent actions of Representative Matt Gaetz (‘07) and call for his immediate resignation from Congress. To be clear: this is not a condemnation of differing perspectives or mere political views; we are disgusted by his efforts to stoke white supremacy, incite violence, and dispute the legitimacy of the 2020 election — thereby questioning fundamental democratic processes. William & Mary Law teaches its students to be citizen lawyers: leaders in our community and passionate advocates for equality and social justice. Rep. Gaetz is the antithesis of a citizen lawyer and he cannot be trusted with the laws of our nation.

Of course, no one expects he’ll actually resign. But signatories are drawing a pretty clear line in the sand.

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headshotKathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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