Some of the Republican senators thought to be opposed to the selection of Matt Gaetz for attorney general because of obstacles to his confirmation openly praised his decision to step aside.

"I think that was an excellent move on behalf of the incoming President," Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said -- though it's not clear if Trump directed Gaetz to withdraw.

"I think it was a sound decision. I think it was important," said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who had been among those publicly projecting serious concern about Gaetz's nomination.

Asked if she was relieved, Murkowski said, "I am. I think it was the right decision."

Sen. Mike Rounds, who had also expressed some concerns about Gaetz, said the move to withdraw was the "right decision to make."

"There was perhaps some information out there that the president was not aware of when he made the original recommendation. Part of this process is, the information comes out, and then at that point, as people re-evaluate or evaluate, you know, the president or the individual candidate may decide it's not the right time to pursue the nomination," Rounds said. "It may very well have been because of advice from the Senate rather than consent from the Senate."

Not all senators were as open on their views.

"That's obviously a decision he came to, and I think everybody had to make a decision that's good for them and their family. And for whatever reason he decided not to pursue it," Sen. John Thune, the incoming Republican leader, said.

When pressed on whether he felt it was the right choice, he said, "We respect his decision."

Many Republican senators said they were taken by surprise.

"I learned about it the same way everyone else did, by reading the announcement," Sen. Ted Cruz, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee and met with Gaetz on Wednesday, said.

-ABC News' Allison Pecorin

Illinois Democratic Rep. Sean Casten suggested that he plans to still move forward with forcing the House to vote on compelling the Ethics Committee to release its report on Matt Gaetz.

"While I welcome the news that Matt Gaetz is withdrawing from consideration for Attorney General, it remains important that the Gaetz report be made available to the American people," he said in a statement Thursday.

Casten introduced a privileged resolution on Wednesday night to force the House to vote to release the report. Speaker Mike Johnson said earlier Thursday the House will take a vote on the resolution after Thanksgiving.

-ABC News' Lauren Peller

Outgoing Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he reached out to Trump's pick for his successor, businessman and Fox News contributor Sean Duffy, and had a good conversation.

"I reached out to Mr. Duffy yesterday to congratulate him on getting what I believe is the best job in the federal government. Let him know that, upon confirmation, he'll be working with some of the -- in my biased opinion -- the best men and women in the in public service, and that there is a great tradition of former secretaries from either party rooting for the success of the department long after they leave, and I hope to be part of that tradition," Buttigieg said during a summit of progressive local and state officials in Washington, D.C.

He told MSNBC that he's not sure what his next step is, but regardless is looking forward to spending more time with his children and whatever he decides will have "a little distance" between himself and D.C.

"I know I will make myself useful, later, I just don’t know how," he said.

-ABC News' Brittany Shepherd

The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gary Gensler, will step down on Jan. 20, 2025, the agency announced Thursday.

Gensler has faced fierce opposition from the cryptocurrency industry and Wall Street over his tough regulatory agenda. Trump had vowed to fire him, drawing praise from the crypto industry.

Gensler's five-year term was not set to run out until 2026, but it was widely expected that he would resign.

"The SEC has met our mission and enforced the law without fear or favor," Gensler said in a press release.

His resignation will leave a key post for Trump to fill -- the SEC serves as Wall Street's top regulator.

-ABC News' Elizabeth Schulze

The woman who accused Pete Hegseth of sexual assault in 2017 told police at the time that he took her phone and blocked her from leaving his hotel room on the night of the incident, according to a 22-page police report obtained by ABC News.

The report, compiled in Oct. 2017 by the Monterey Police Department, provides graphic new details of an alleged altercation that now threatens to derail Hegseth's bid to become President-elect Donald Trump's Defense Secretary.

The report documents a police investigation that did not result in charges against the former Fox News star. It includes interviews with the woman, who is identified only as Jane Doe, and Hegseth, who told police that the encounter was consensual.

Read more here.