As Donald Trump prepares for his return to the White House, his Cabinet curation has generated a media frenzy. Trump’s nominations include some controversial figures, like U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida for Attorney General, former environmental attorney and anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy as Secretary of Health and Human Services, and billionaire entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswami to cohead the newly created “Department of Government Efficiency.”
Kennedy and Ramaswami recently ran for president. Neither they nor Musk have political experience. Gaetz has served as a congressional representative from Florida since 2017. But he was also the subject of a sex trafficking investigation by the Justice Department and of an ongoing House Ethics Committee probe.
USC students are trying to navigate the confusion around the upcoming changes. Some students we asked were unfamiliar with the Cabinet news, but others shared with us how they feel about Trump’s picks.
On the nomination of Elon Musk for ‘Department of Government Efficiency’...
Carson Hader: I’m pretty indifferent when it comes to Elon Musk...what he’s done with Tesla and SpaceX is, frankly, pretty amazing. But I think having someone like him who doesn’t have any experience in politics, especially policy making, could definitely be risky.
Matt Sharp: I think it’s a pretty big jump but could be interesting. I mean, I think he’s been very successful, in terms of business, it definitely is kind of a huge jump in power, though I would say....Yeah, I would just think that would be...interesting. It could work, but it’s risky. I feel like it’s definitely risky.
One the nomination of Matt Gaetz for Attorney General...
Carson Hader: Wasn’t he an alleged sex trafficker, sex offender or something to that degree? Yeah, no. I’ve seen posts about it on Instagram.
On the nominations in general...
Rachel Barrus: It’s like, when you when you hire your friend to do something even though they don’t have any experience, I don’t know. It’s stupid.
As nominations continue to roll in, we’ll continue to give a voice to students. Trump will be inaugurated in 67 days on January 20, 2025.