Over the past few days, Donald Trump has named several cabinet members for his upcoming administration. As he continues to announce his selections, clouds of controversy loom over his top advisors.
In October, Trump stated on Joe Rogan’s podcast that the, “biggest mistake,” of his time in office was appointing “bad, disloyal people” to his administration. In his first term, Trump had a turnover rate of over 85%, higher than the previous five administrations.
“Donald Trump was given a mandate when he won the popular vote, the Electoral College, the House and the Senate. He’s made appointments that align with the MAGA Republican agenda, and they’re going to help him accomplish that,” said Dakota Driemeyer, a member of the USC College Republicans and a junior majoring in Law, History and Culture. “I’m incredibly pleased to see the appointments that we have thus far, and I look forward to seeing what he can do with this team.”
From the potential creation of a new department to the appointment of a formerly accused sex trafficker, Trump has been quick and controversial in making decisions about his cabinet. With more to come, it is important to stay informed about who these appointees are and what they mean for the future of our government.
Here are the cabinet member picks Trump has announced so far:
Matt Gaetz (Attorney General)
Matt Gaetz is a Florida congressman who has served in the House of Representatives since 2017. During his time in Congress, Gaetz focused on tax cuts, environmental change through business, and immigration.
In 2019 he proposed the ‘PANDEMIC Act’ which requires the deportation of all illegal immigrants in the U.S. in case of a national health emergency. He also championed the ‘Green Real Deal,’ which plans to use increased technological manufacturing in American markets to reduce carbon emissions.
Gaetz is also known for his alleged involvement in sexual misconduct and sex trafficking, misuse of state identification records, the use of campaign funds for personal use, and attempts to obstruct government investigations of his misconduct.
Tom Hollihan, Professor of Communication at the USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, noted grave concerns over Gaetz’s appointment given his unpopularity and ongoing ethics investigation.
“It would be hard to find a less popular figure in the Congress than Gaetz,” Hollihan said.”I think it’s really without precedent that you would pick someone to head the Justice Department that was coming in under such a dark cloud of suspicion.”
Gaetz’s appointment has yet to be confirmed by the Senate.
Tulsi Gabbard (Director of National Intelligence)
Tulsi Gabbard first served as congresswoman of Hawaii State Congress, before enlisting in the Army National Guard. She then served in Congress representing Hawaii’s 2nd congressional district for eight years before running for president as a Democrat in 2020. After that, she declared herself an Independent and then a Republican.
During her time in Congress, Gabbard originally promoted more liberal causes, which she championed during her run for president in 2020. After dropping out, she endorsed Biden.
By 2022, she left the Democratic Party and referred to them as an “elitist cabal of warmongers” driven by “cowardly wokeness” on an episode of her YouTube channel, The Tulsi Gabbard Show.
Gabbard was also criticized in 2017 after announcing she was “skeptical” that Syria’s Assad regime was behind a chemical attack that killed dozens of Syrians. Gabbard’s remarks on foreign affairs have also painted her in a favorable light with the Russian government amid the war in Ukraine.
Gabbard’s appointment has yet to be confirmed by the Senate.
Marco Rubio (Secretary of State)
Marco Rubio has served as a Senator for Florida since 2011. Throughout his more than decade-long tenure, he has been outspoken on foreign policy, especially regarding China and Venezuela.
Rubio has called for the U.S. to be more aggressive on China and the human rights abuses of the Uyghur people. He sponsored the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which Biden signed on December 23, to ensure that companies prove that their products are not made through slave labor.
Rubio is a staunch supporter of Israel and does not believe in a two-state solution. He has publicly opposed a ceasefire in Gaza, saying that Palestinians are an “impediment to peace.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis can appoint a temporary replacement for Rubio in the Senate until the next election.
Pete Hegseth (Secretary of Defense)
Pete Hegseth is a military veteran who was active as a reserve officer but is most known for being a Fox News personality. In 2019, Hegseth was vocal with Trump on issuing pardons for U.S. military members accused of war crimes.
In a recent episode of the Shawn Ryan Show on YouTube, Hegseth openly criticized the idea of women in combat positions, saying “everything about men and women serving together makes the situation more complicated.”
Hollihan referred to the nomination of the Fox News contributor as a “confrontational and unhappy selection,” considering his lack of experience in government and staggering comments on individuals within the military.
“In his first messages, Hegseth has attacked women in the military, in combat rules, even though they make up 20% of his force” said Hollihan. “He’s attacked diversity and inclusion initiatives, even though the military has long declared itself proud of the fact that it was the most racially diverse of all the government operations and programs. And it’s imperative that people work together regardless of their race.”
During Trump’s first term in office, five different men held this position.
Kristi Noem (Secretary of Homeland Security)
Kristi Noem is the current Republican Governor of South Dakota. During her time as Governor, she has been vocal on X about immigration and highly critical of President Biden’s border control. Since 2021, she has used South Dakota’s Emergency and Disaster Fund to cover the cost of sending National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border.
Noem was banned from all tribal lands in South Dakota after she claimed that tribal leaders were profiting from Mexican drug cartels. She also supported the Keystone XL oil pipeline, which various tribes opposed due to its harmful effects on the environment.
Noem has also been under scrutiny for having shot and killed her family dog over 20 years ago, which she admitted to in her memoir “No Going Back.”
Her new position would place her in charge of the immigration system as she is leveraged to execute Trump’s plans for large deportation operations.
Tom Homan (Border Czar)
Tom Homan has worked as a police officer and Border Patrol agent and was also the former head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during Trump’s first term in office.
Homan’s ideology on ICE’s family separation policy has garnered him scrutiny. In a CBS 60 Minutes interview, Homan was asked if there was a way to carry out mass deportation without separating families.
“Of course there is, families can be deported together,” he said in response.
At the Republican National Convention in July, Homan addressed the “illegal aliens” in the nation with aggression, saying “You better start packing now. You’re damn right. ‘Cause you’re going home.”
“I think you’re going to see a very big crackdown on illegal immigration coming across the southern border,” Driemeyer said. “Hopefully we re-implement in Mexico. I would love to see nationwide verified, full-on mass deportation efforts in these communities that have been overrun by illegal immigrants and people that have been committing crimes.”
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy (Department of Government Efficiency)
A week after Trump won his second term in office, he announced the creation of the Department of Government Efficiency, a department dedicated to reducing federal spending. This department is not officially recognized by the government as Congress holds authority over the nation’s spending.
Trump has appointed controversial billionaire businessman Elon Musk and Republican Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to spearhead this new “department.”
Musk has claimed that he will be able to cut $2 trillion from the $6.7 trillion federal budget. He wishes to reduce the number of federal agencies from 400 to just 99, according to CBS.
Hollihan recognizes the unconventionality of Musk’s appointment given his reputation and stature.
“Having a billionaire who achieves much of his fortune on government contracts and who has benefited from government development grants for his SpaceX program, et cetera, is highly unusual and probably is going to run afoul of ethics regulations along the way,” said Hollihan. “In addition, he’s had Musk engaged in speaking to foreign diplomats in foreign heads of state, which is extraordinary too.”
Vivek Ramaswamy ran for president in this past election cycle, building his campaign around an “Anti-woke” agenda. Ramaswamy has been criticized for supporting various conspiracy theories, especially regarding the Jan. 6 election, throughout his campaign. He has also unapologetically advocated for the elimination of the Department of Education.
Hollihan anticipates that Musk and Ramaswamy will face pushback in their new roles due to the reality that virtually all government programs are popular with some specific stakeholders.
“Any time you try to cut, you’re going to encounter resistance,” said Holliman. The second thing they’re going to find is that most of the money in the budget is already committed if social security payments or its Medicare payments or its service on the debt or its military expenses, Trump wants to increase military expenses.”
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Health and Human Services secretary)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is a known vaccine skeptic, promoting the disproven theory that vaccines cause autism, and said that he believed COVID-19 to be engineered to attack “Caucasians and Black people.”
In a book he wrote, he accused Anthony Fauci of conspiring with Bill Gates and drugmakers to sell COVID-19 vaccines. In January, the World Health Organization said that Covid-19 vaccines have reduced deaths by at least 57%.
He has also made claims that fluoride in water, a chemical meant to prevent cavities, causes a loss in IQ. He also stated that chemicals in water cause “sexual identification” and “gender confusion.”
Trump has selected Kennedy Jr. to be the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. However, he has yet to be confirmed by the Senate.
Dan Scavino (Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff)
Dan Scavino, although less recognizable in the media, has been a long-time supporter and colleague of Donald Trump, dating all the way back to the 1990s when he was Trump’s golf caddy.
More relevant to his newly appointed position is his former experience as White House social media director and “essentially the comms department of the White House,” as former chief strategist Steve Bannon called him.
Politico reported that Trump’s longest-serving aide is the man who “oversees [Trump’s] Twitter account”. Trump noted the role Scavino plays in his social media platforms and went so far as calling him “indispensable”.
“Oftentimes, I’ll go through Dan,” Trump said. “You know, I’ll talk it over. And he can really be a very good sounding board. A lot of common sense. He’s got a good grasp.”
John Ratcliffe (CIA director)
John Ratcliffe formerly served as the director of national intelligence during the final month’s of Trump’s presidency, amidst the Coronavirus pandemic. While in his designated position, Ratcliffe declassified Russian intelligence that was unverified in an effort to support allegations against 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
He is a current co-chair at the Center for American Security at the America First Policy Institute, a non-profit that has been described as a “think tank” and “White House-in-waiting”.
In his announcement of Ratcliffe’s appointment, Trump placed full support behind the former Texas Congressman, according to CNN.
“From exposing fake Russian collusion to be a Clinton campaign operation, to catching the FBI’s abuse of Civil Liberties at the FISA Court, John Ratcliffe has always been a warrior for Truth and Honesty with the American Public,” Trump said.
Lee Zeldin (EPA Administrator)
Lee Zeldin’s most recent position was serving as the U.S. representative for New York’s 1st congressional district from 2015 to 2023. During his time as a House member from 2017-2021, Zeldin was a stark supporter of Trump and served as a member of the incoming president’s defense team during the 2020 impeachment trial. NBC News found that Zeldin appeared in more than 500 transcripts in defense of Trump during the initial House impeachment process.
Records on his environmental stance are strikingly little aside from his outspoken support of Trump exiting the Paris climate agreement in 2017, which “recognizes the need for an effective and progressive response to the urgent threat of climate change.”
Zeldin posted a reaction to his appointment to X.
“It is an honor to join President Trump’s Cabinet as EPA Administrator,” Zeldin said. “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI. We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water.”
Elise Stefanik (UN Ambassador)
Elise Stefanik, another fierce supporter of Trump, has served five terms representing the North Country of New York. She made history as the youngest woman to ever be elected to Congress in 2014 at the age of 30. The representative is currently serving as chair of the House Republican Conference, where she is the most senior woman in a leadership position.
New York Rep. Elise Stefanik has been extremely vocal about the “morally bankrupt” college leaders on various campuses.
“Northwestern, Rutgers and UCLA negotiated with pro-Hamas terrorist encampments, bent the knee to the radical antisemitic mob and surrendered their campuses to illegal antisemitic encampments while repeatedly ignoring the harassment and violence against Jewish students and faculty,” Stefanik said.
Trump gave a statement to the New York Post about her appointment and gives great credit to her character. “I am honored to nominate Chairwoman Elise Stefanik to serve in my Cabinet as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations,” said Trump. “Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter.”
Susie Wiles (Chief of Staff)
Wiles was co-chair of both of Trump’s presidential campaigns and makes history as the first woman to hold the position of chief of staff. Though she chooses to stay away from a public-facing career, many staffers and close colleagues of Wiles refer to her as a mentor and coach.
Aside from her role with the Trump Administration, Wiles worked to help Ron DeSantis win the position of Florida governor in 2018, which she referred to as the “biggest mistake of her career.”
Wiles has a long history of working as a dominating force in various Republican campaigns.
She was deputy director of operations for the vice presidential campaign for James Danforth Quayle in 1988. During Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential bid, Wiles served as co-chair of his Florida advisory council. Wiles held a position as scheduler for former President Ronald Reagan and worked in Reagan’s Labor Department, according to Politico.
James Blair (Deputy Chief of Staff)
Blair was Trump’s political campaign director for the 2024 presidential election and the Republican National Committee. He is the founder and president of Rapid Loop Consulting, which is a “full-service political consulting and public affairs” based in Tampa, Florida.
He has a strong presence in a multitude of campaigns during the 2022 election where he worked for Governor, U.S. Senate, and Congressional races, most notably in Arizona, Florida, Michigan, and Ohio. He is a former Deputy Chief of Staff to Governor Ron DeSantis and served as a Senior Advisor in his 2018 campaign.
Taylor Budowich (Deputy Chief of Staff)
Budowich filled senior roles in Save America, which is Donald Trump’s Leadership PAC. Moreover, he holds the title of CEO of MAGA Inc, a single candidate super PAC in support of the incoming president. He denied any activity or relations with the Jan.6, 2021 attack on the Capitol when a congressional committee found “credible evidence”.
Trump announced the appointments of Dan Scavino, Stephen Miller, James Blair, and Taylor Budowich in a joint statement.
“Dan, Stephen, James, and Taylor were ‘best in class’ advisors on my winning campaign, and I know they will honorably serve the American people in the White House,” Trump said. “They will continue to work hard to Make America Great Again in their respective new roles.”
Trump’s cabinet selections so far are a signal of his commitments to fulfilling the commitments made during his rallies. Like Trump’s first term, norms and customs are rejected when approaching the upcoming return to the White House in what Hollihan calls more of “a reality show than a presidential cabinet.”
“I think the litmus test for Trump is loyalty to him personally,” said Hollihan. “I think the second goal is to illustrate to the Republications in the senate that he owns them, that he holds all the power and that he’s essentially daring them to defy him and face the wrath of his base when they run for reelection or try to raise money.”