Ugly, overweight: Old reply of Trump's Cabinet pick on abortion protesters viral

At a time when President-elect Donald Trump's choice of controversial Congressman Matt Gaetz as his attorney general has raised eyebrows, an old video of the Republican defending his controversial remarks on women attending pro-abortion rights rallies has gone viral. Gaetz, an anti-abortion advocate, had stoked a controversy in 2022 by calling abortion rights protesters "ugly" and overweight.

In the video that has gone viral, Gaetz is seen doubling down on his remarks he made at a summit that women protesting for reproductive rights were too unattractive to be impregnated. When asked by a reporter about his reply to those who found his comment offensive, Gaetz replies nonchalantly, "Be offended".

The firebrand Florida politician had made the controversial remarks as protests broke out all over the US in response to the Supreme Court striking down national abortion rights (Roe vs Wade).

Speaking to college students at a summit in Tampa, Gaetz called the pro-abortion protesters too overweight to march and "just disgusting".

"Why is it that the women with the least likelihood of getting pregnant are the ones most worried about having abortions? Nobody wants to impregnate you if you look like a thumb," Gaetz had said. His remarks had invited a fierce backlash from Democrats and famous personalities.

Gaetz, who was chosen by Trump to lead the Justice Department, has been a controversial figure and was the subject of a federal sex trafficking investigation. However, no charges were pressed against him.

The fiery politician, known for his foot-in-the-mouth remarks, was also the subject of an ethics investigation in the House of Representatives into allegations of illicit drug use and misuse of campaign funds.