Trump’s cabinet choices point to a different second term : NPR

We take a look at some of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks and how his choices will differentiate his second and first terms.

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

President-elect Donald Trump has announced a number of nominees for Cabinet posts, many of which are controversial. His choices of Matt Gaetz and Pete Hegseth for the Justice Department and Defense Department, respectively, have also raised concerns among some Republicans. Ron Elving joins us. Ron, thanks for being with us.

RON ELVING, BYLINE: Great to be with you, Scott.

SIMON: The charges against Matt Gaetz presented to the House Ethics Committee are serious – sexual misconduct, illegal drug use, improper gifts, and attempted obstruction of a government investigation. Is this too much of a burden for the person nominated to be America’s top law enforcement officer?

ELVING: As much as it may seem like it, it doesn’t seem to prevent him from being nominated by his longtime ally Donald Trump. This is a return of loyalty to Trump, as Gates has supported him. President Trump has said he wants to get back at some of the people in the Justice Department who he views as tormenting him, and Gaetz has made clear his intentions to do the same.

You mentioned the criminal charges against Gates in Florida. They are being investigated by the FBI without facing criminal charges. The House Ethics Committee is still investigating and was due to report yesterday. That didn’t happen because Gaetz resigned from the House in midweek when he was nominated by President Trump to be attorney general.

This means the House committee no longer has jurisdiction over him, so they closed their books. In the Senate, where Gaetz now needs to be confirmed, there are signs that at least some Republican senators are reluctant to approve him. They don’t think this is the best investment of President Trump’s hard-earned political capital at this point. However, some of the details of that report may be starting to leak, so we’ll see if it impacts the nomination. There are also reports of allegations against Fox News weekend host Pete Hegseth, who was nominated by President Trump to the Pentagon. That’s still a developing story, and NPR has not confirmed it.

SIMON: Ron, what about the labels liberal and conservative? Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were progressive Democrats not too long ago. DNC Vice Chair Tulsi Gabbard. Kennedy is a lawyer who is passionate about environmental activities. What has changed in American politics today to make them candidates for the Trump administration?

Elbing: It’s clear that we need more than one label, and we need more colors than just red and blue. Both RFK Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard, at least in recent years, have been at odds with Democrats as much as they have been aligned with them. Both hold positions that are abhorrent to mainstream Democrats. President Kennedy denied the safety of vaccines, and President Gabbard defended Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and blamed it on NATO.

If confirmed, they will be at odds with many, if not most, of the people they will oversee and work with from day one. And it’s hard to escape the impression that this is what President Trump wants. He feels he was mistreated by the intelligence and medical establishment during his first term, and he wants to do something about it.

SIMON: For those of you who remember the first Trump administration, there was tremendous chaos. He became the fourth chief of staff by the end of his term. I think Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was also fired for a tweet. Will we see a similar turnaround in the second Trump administration?

ELVING: Same amount – that’s a high standard. You mentioned four chiefs of staff, and the longest-serving, retired Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly, has been the most critical of Trump publicly, at least in recent years. Mr. Trump did not compete for the top spot with others as often. But officials whose jobs were most closely tied to Trump’s own success or failure tended to be fired.

Trump won the popular vote and electoral votes this month, which are very important to him. It strengthens his invincible attitude. There were still guardrails in the first period, but it’s hard to discern how many there are now.

SIMON: NPR’s Ron Elbing – there’s no better person to talk to at a time like this. Thank you very much for joining us.

ELVING: Thank you, Scott.

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