Matt Gaetz Thursday abruptly dropped his bid to be President-elect Trump’s attorney general amid growing allegations involving drugs and paid sex with young women. “It is clear that my nomination was becoming a distraction,” Gaetz said. “I am withdrawing my nomination.” There was no immediate comment from Trump or his transition. CNN reported Thursday morning that it planned to reveal new reporting that Gaetz engaged in a second sexual encounter with a girl who was only 17 at the time. Minutes later, Gaetz pulled the plug on his bid to be the nation’s top law-enforcement officer. The embattled Trump pick had insisted he was planning to fight to salvage his nomination, which faced an uphill battle to win the required 50 senators in a confirmation hearing. Gaetz already resigned his Florida congressional seat last week in what many believed was a ploy to avoid disclosure of a congressional Ethics Committee report. The former lawmaker won a small victory Wednesday when Republicans on the House Ethics Committee decided not to immediately release a report on his alleged misdeeds. The panel agreed to meet again in early December, when it could release the report or seek to permanently shelve it on the grounds that he is no longer a member of the House. Gaetz met privately for hours Wednesday with Republican senators who have heard questions about the allegations and will be considering their votes on his nomination.