Donald Trump’s Cabinet Picks

I have a lot of regrets about Donald Trump.

In 2016, I spent way too much time covering the transition and reading way too much into Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks: Rex Tillerson (Secretary of State), Michael Flynn (National Security Advisor), Nikki Haley (Ambassador to the United Nations), Rick Perry (Secretary of Energy), John Kelly (Department of Homeland Security), “Mad Dog” Jim Mattis (Secretary of Defense), Reince Preibus (Chief of Staff). Steve Bannon also briefly served as Chief Strategist in 2017 before losing power.

In retrospect, the first Trump administration was a carousel with an unprecedented level of turnover as various people came and went through a revolving door. Michael Flynn didn’t make it two months. Steve Bannon hardly lasted a year. Rex Tillerson lasted a year. Nikki Haley lasted two years. Donald Trump had a bitter falling out with Jeff Sessions who only lasted two years. In contrast, Joe Biden appointed Alejandro Mayorkas to DHS and Antony Blinken as Secretary of State and they have served throughout his entire term as president, even as they presided over multiple disasters like the border, Ukraine and Gaza. Joe Biden disappeared and let his underlings run the show. Trump enjoys firing people.

Here are my thoughts on Donald Trump’s emerging Cabinet:

1. Kristi Noem at DHS – Thomas Homan is the Border Czar and Stephen Miller is running immigration policy. Noem is just a figurehead who will do whatever she is told to do.

2. Michael Waltz as National Security Adviser – I’m old enough to remember when Michael Flynn and John Bolton had this job. Trump basically ran his own foreign policy. He ordered the withdrawal of troops from Syria. He negotiated the withdrawal from Afghanistan. He became best buddies with Kim Jong Un. He sided with Putin against the FBI at the Helsenki Summit. Even with John Bolton whispering in his ear like Wormtongue as National Security Adviser, we didn’t go to war with Iran.

3. Marco Rubio as Secretary of State – I don’t remember much about what Rex Tillerson did as Secretary of State. He was replaced by Mike Pompeo who was a far worse neocon. In spite of this, Pompeo was not able to maneuver us into a war with Iran for the sake of Israel.

4. Elise Stefanik as Ambassador to the United Nations – No one gives a shit about the United Nations anymore and least of all Israel. Israel demonstrated this by blowing up Hezbollah’s leadership and its genocide in Gaza. I don’t remember anything that Nikki Haley did as UN Ambassador.

5. Lee Zeldin as EPA Administrator – Once again, I don’t remember Scott Pruitt who served in this role in the last Trump administration.

I will say this.

Insofar as Donald Trump screwed up bigly in his first term, his three biggest mistakes were empowering and deferring to Jared Kushner and Ivanka, empowering the generals (“Mad Dog” and Kelly) and allowing Reince Preibus and Mike Pence to staff his incoming government. I don’t see that happening again.

Note: I’m waiting to see who Trump picks as Attorney General. This choice actually matters.