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Trump Appointments Tag

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on December 05, 2016 12 Comments
Former presidential candidate and retired neurosurgeon, Dr. Ben Carson, has been tapped to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Earlier reports indicated Carson had turned down administrative offers. From the NYT:
Ben Carson, who took Donald J. Trump on a tour of blighted neighborhoods in Detroit during the presidential campaign, including his boyhood home, has been chosen by Mr. Trump to oversee one of the government’s main efforts to lift American cities as secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Mr. Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, was an early endorser of Mr. Trump after ending his own presidential bid.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 29, 2016 23 Comments
The New York Times reports Donald Trump will officially announce Steven Mnuchin's appointment to the post of Treasury Secretary as soon as Wednesday. Mnuchin as no government experience (though that's not terribly uncommon for Treasury Secretaries), but served as Trump's Campaign Finance Director.

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 29, 2016 26 Comments
President-elect Donald Trump has chosen former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao for Transportation Secretary. Chao served as Labor Secretary under George W. Bush and deputy secretary of transportation under George H. W. Bush. She is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Chao met with Trump last week at Trump Tower where they discussed "labor and transportation issues with a particular focus on America’s long-term infrastructure needs, and reducing or eliminating burdensome regulations."

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 29, 2016 16 Comments
A member of Trump's transition team confirmed Monday night that the president-elect has selected Rep. Tom Price (R-GA) to serve as the Secretary of Heath and Human Services. Rep. Price has been the Chair of the House Budget Committee these last two years, working closely with Speaker Ryan o deficit reduction. An orthopedic surgeon, Rep. Price has been a vocal opponent of Obamacare for it's high costs and obstruction of quality patient care. Unlike many members of the Outrage Brigade, Rep. Price has solutions to the Obamacare problem. From the New York Times:

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on November 27, 2016 23 Comments
Much of the commentary about Kellyanne Conway's Meet the Press appearance this morning has focused on her criticism of the prospect of Mitt Romney as Secretary of State. We'll discuss that in a "Note" below but would like to highlight a striking statement by Chuck Todd that immediately preceded the Romney discussion. Todd was grilling Conway over potential conflicts between Trump's business interests and his role as president. Conway eventually had enough, and observed "I went back and looked at what all the press clips and the conversations on shows like this eight years ago. It was basically debating just how cool Barack Obama is. . . . if we're not going to do that about President-elect Trump, we should at the very least trust him to do the right thing and comply with the law here." A visibly annoyed Todd shot back: "I understand. Every knee-jerk pushback is going to be to blame the media. It's a crutch. I get it. And I'm used to it. But it's not the fact."

Posted by Mary Chastain on November 26, 2016 4 Comments
President-elect Donald Trump has appointed Donald McGahn as White House counsel and Kathleen Troia McFarland as deputy national security advisor. McFarland currently works for Fox News as a national security analyst after working "under three Republican administrations." From The Hill:
“I am proud that KT has once again decided to serve our country and join my national security team,” Trump said in a statement. “She has tremendous experience and innate talent that will complement the fantastic team we are assembling, which is crucial because nothing is more important than keeping our people safe.”

Posted by William A. Jacobson on November 23, 2016 20 Comments
Numerous news outlets are confirming that Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina will be named as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. The Post and Courier reports:
President-elect Donald Trump is picking South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley to become his U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, The Post and Courier has learned. The move, expected Wednesday, continues the steep political rise of the daughter of Indian immigrants that started six years ago when the Bamberg native was elected as South Carolina’s first female and minority governor.

Posted by Leslie Eastman on November 22, 2016 42 Comments
It has been fascinating to watch the the elite media and Washington insiders reactions to the speed and efficiency of Trump's transition team organization and appointee selection. With so much happening so quickly, I wanted to keep an eye on one of the most troubling agencies under the Obama Administration: The Environmental Protection Agency. The response of the big government bureaucrats in the EPA is likely to offer a clue about how they are going to behave in other federal organizations. Legal Insurrection readers may recall that 27% of federal employees claimed they would quit their jobs if Donald Trump was elected. However, instead of quitting, it's more likely they'll exit a little less gracefully.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on November 20, 2016 26 Comments
As discussed many times recently, Democrats have a yuge problem stopping Trump from naming just about anyone he wants to the Supreme Court, Will Republicans press SCOTUS Nuclear Option button? In 2013, Democrats pulled the Nuclear Option, eliminating filibusters on all judicial nominees short of the Supreme Court. That was an imaginary line in the sand Democrats thought they could rely on to defend themselves in the future as to Republican nominees to the Supreme Court. Though Republican's sometimes threatened to go nuclear, only Harry Reid and the Democrats did it. Republicans warned Democrats that they would come to regret it, maybe sooner than Democrats expected:

Posted by Mike LaChance on November 19, 2016 25 Comments
Liberals in media have made their new mission clear. Now that they can no longer prevent Trump from winning the presidency, they intend to attack and smear anyone who might become a member of Trump's administration. Roll Call columnist Jonathan Allen went after Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions before he was even announced as Trump's pick for attorney general. Here are a few choice highlights from Allen's column:
Jeff Sessions Is Unfit for the Cabinet Witnesses testified that the Alabama Republican had called major civil rights organizations “un-American,” used racially insensitive language with associates and even said pot-smoking was the only reason he no longer thought the KKK was OK. His nomination was withdrawn after two fellow Republicans crossed the partisan divide on the panel to disapprove of his confirmation...

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on November 18, 2016 22 Comments
Say what you will about Donny Deutsch, but the man-about-Manhattan and the Hamptons moves in the Trump social circle and is well-connected there. So attention must be paid to Deutsch's declaration on today's With All Due Respect. Asked by Mark Halperin whether the talk about Romney being considered for Secretary of State is "real, whether Romney might end up with the job," Deutsch responded: "somebody very, very, very high up in the inner [Trump] circle yesterday told me it was very, very real," and that this person was "very excited about it." Halperin prefaced his question to Deutsch by mentioning that that the prospect of Romney as Secretary of State has been met with very favorable reactions. That might be a kiss of death among conservatives, but the fact is that Romney has demonstrated a good understanding of the opportunities and threats facing America around the world.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on November 18, 2016 20 Comments
Earlier this morning, reports indicated Trump's transition team had selected an Attorney General, CIA Director, and National Security Advisor. AG: Sen. Jeff Sessions CIA Director: Rep. Mike Pompeo National Security Advisor: Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn Politico confirms those individuals have accepted the posts:
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