CNN
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Days after President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, allies described his approach to the transition as far more disciplined than the initial period after his 2016 victory.
The next 24 hours continued, starting with President Trump’s nomination of Fox News host Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense on Tuesday night and his nomination of former Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence on Wednesday. A series of negotiations spanning several years culminated in the selection of a bomb. Later that day, he upended that perception by ousting Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as attorney general.
Their selection comes after other candidates Trump has interviewed in the past have found them boring and looking for incendiary lines, making the president-elect’s “America It symbolized the superiority of the “Make Great Again” orbit.
And they emphasized the quality the next president values most as he prepares to return to the Oval Office: loyalty.
President Trump’s recent cabinet announcements surprised much of Washington. But the gruesome nature of Trump’s selection was intended as a feature, not a bug, said people briefed by the team.
“The idea was to put people in a state of shock. That’s exactly what MAGA gangs want,” said one Trump ally, who requested anonymity to discuss private deliberations with the president-elect’s team. spoke. “They want people who will radically challenge the system.”
President Trump visited Washington on Wednesday, meeting privately with President Joe Biden for nearly two hours and visiting with members of Congress. At the Capitol, Republican lawmakers were meeting to choose party leaders for the next Congress. House Speaker Mike Johnson retained the gavel and South Dakota Sen. John Thune won a three-way race for the top Senate Republican position.
But the real action is at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club, where old and new fans, including Elon Musk, who was present during Trump’s Wednesday meeting with House Republicans in Washington, D.C. Surrounded by political allies. President Trump joked that he can’t get rid of the billionaire Tesla and SpaceX pioneer he named co-leader of what he calls the new Department of Government Efficiency.
“He loves Mar-a-Lago,” Trump said of Musk.
At Trump Tower in 2016, candidates straddled a line of press ropes before entering the elevator to meet Trump, but at Mar-a-Lago they entered to kiss Trump’s ring. There are no cameras to capture the candidate’s gauntlet. Among conservative think tanks and members of President Trump’s own transition, there is a sense that this time around, the president will scrap former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s 2016 transition strategy and start from scratch. Extensive work had already been done on opening day policy.
Trump’s transition team includes nearly 100 people, some working at Mar-a-Lago and others in campaign offices in Palm Beach and Washington. The team creates a list of candidates for key positions, thoroughly considers the president-elect’s strengths and weaknesses, and then narrows down those lists for interviews. Some of the names of potential candidates will be passed on to a research firm for scrutiny.
And then there’s Susie Wiles, Trump’s chief of staff. His iron grip on Trump is said to be one of the main qualities that got her the job. Those close to the transition said some of the unpredictable appointments shouldn’t betray the discipline Wiles instilled.
“The discipline is that none of it was leaked,” one person close to the transition said, referring to the selections of Hegseth, Gabbard and Gates.
President Trump’s transition efforts began with relatively orthodox choices, including Wiles, who was leading the Trump campaign as chief of staff. CNN reported on Monday that President Trump is likely to nominate Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, and the official announcement was made on Wednesday.
But Trump, frustrated by the short list of nominees for Pentagon chief, chose Hegseth, a military veteran and fierce Trump supporter, to host Fox News. Hegseth was suddenly called up to go to Mar-a-Lago on Monday and announced: During their meeting the next day, Trump selected him as Secretary of Defense.
And on Wednesday, President Trump announced that Gabbard, who left the party in 2022 to seek the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, would be appointed director of national intelligence. This is another nomination that will spark a major confirmation battle.
Gabbard, like Trump, served in the Army National Guard before joining the Army Reserve and has expressed an isolationist approach to foreign policy. And like President Trump, she often pushes for more favorable positions not only against U.S. adversaries, but in some cases against foreign leaders widely seen as murderers, including the presidents of Syria and Russia. is.
Trump’s longtime ally Steve Bannon told CNN that he took Gabbard to meet with Trump in 2016 about joining his first administration.
“It didn’t work then, but now one of the most powerful America First figures has been named in charge of an out-of-control and destructive intelligence community,” Bannon said.
Indeed, MAGA favorites have been sidelined by other roles. Donald Trump Jr. supported the nomination of longtime Trump supporter Richard Grenell as secretary of state, despite questions about whether Grenell would be confirmed.
President Trump was runner-up in the race for vice presidential nomination, especially after the Florida Republican stood by silently as comedian Tony Hinchcliffe disparaged Puerto Ricans. In the final stages, he believed that he owed a great debt to Mr. Rubio, who campaigned closely and bilingually with Mr. Trump. Madison Square Garden rally. Mr. Rubio, who then had to field questions from reporters about the matter, said it was “not a good idea” for Mr. Hinchliffe to attend the rally.
As final considerations for the State Department were discussed, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, who once urged his team not to choose a “neocon,” remained silent on Grenell’s defense. said the official.
Sources close to President Trump say that after the president-elect defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in the popular vote, he felt a sense of duty to fulfill campaign promises, including dismantling the Justice Department.
As with his pick for defense secretary, Trump was also frustrated with his choices for attorney general. Trump said he met in person with several candidates, including Mark Paoletta and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, but “no one was shocked” and no one “checked all the boxes.” ,” said a person familiar with Trump’s transition efforts. . Another source said Trump wanted a more incendiary presence.
The role of attorney general has long been considered one of the most important, if not the most important, position for President Trump. When he left office in January 2021, he privately complained that his biggest regret was who he chose to lead the Justice Department — especially the decision to replace Attorney General Jeff Sessions and William Barr before the end of his term. This means that it is considered dishonest.
President Trump now intends to end the Justice Department’s tradition of operating independently of political pressure from the White House. He was also reassured by the Supreme Court’s recent ruling granting presidents immunity for acts of official conduct. President Trump told those working on the transition that he wants to surround himself with people he can trust to carry out his policies, with loyalty being the first prerequisite this time around.
Mr. Gaetz, a longtime supporter of Mr. Trump and two people familiar with his plans said he spent several days at Mar-a-Lago over the past week, fits the bill. Even though he is a controversial figure disliked by many Republicans on Capitol Hill, one reason for that is: For his role in ousting former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023 and sending the party into weeks of turmoil.
The people added that he will be replaced by a series of deputy attorneys general who were expected to have less controversial reputations than Gates and will be tasked with running the Justice Department’s day-to-day operations.
Mr. Trump is seriously considering naming his chief lawyer, Todd Branch, to be the next deputy attorney general, the second-highest position at the Justice Department, two people familiar with his thinking said.
Blanche has been representing Trump for the past 18 months and defended him in his hush money criminal trial in Manhattan earlier this year. Because Mr. Branch is close to Mr. Trump and Mr. Trump trusts him, it is widely expected among the president-elect’s aides that if Mr. Branch wins, Mr. Branch will follow him into the federal government. was.
One person close to the matter cautioned that no final decision had yet been made.
In selecting Gates, President Trump is ignoring concerns about the Senate’s ability to confirm him, stemming from efforts by Florida Republicans to oust McCarthy and an ethics investigation into him.
Gaetz chose to resign from Congress on Wednesday. The decision could prevent the House Ethics Committee from releasing its long-awaited report, which was scheduled to be released as soon as Friday.
The commission said Gaetz “engaged in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, accepted inappropriate gifts, granted special privileges and benefits to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship, and regulated the government for his actions.” They were investigating allegations that he may have “attempted to obstruct the investigation.” Gates has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, including having sex with or paying for sex with minors.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Gaetz’s resignation would allow Florida to fill the seat closer to the start of the new Congress on Jan. 3, when Republicans will have a narrow majority.
“I’m grateful for that,” Johnson said.
But picks like Gaetz’s will soon test whether Republicans on Capitol Hill will follow Trump’s wishes.
There are already signs that a heated approval battle will ensue.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska called Gaetz a “dishonest candidate” to head the Justice Department. Maine Sen. Susan Collins, also a Republican, said she was “shocked” by the nomination. Asked whether he could win Gaetz’s confirmation, Texas Sen. John Cornyn said, “We’ll see.”
It has even been floated that Trump may bypass the Senate altogether by filling Cabinet positions through recess appointments. Thune said Wednesday that he would “consider all options” to confirm Trump’s choice.
“We always give the president the benefit of the doubt, but we still have to do our part from a due diligence standpoint,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, also a South Dakota Republican.
He did not say whether he would vote to confirm Gaetz or whether Gaetz would receive Senate confirmation.
“I don’t have a magic wand or even a crystal ball in front of me,” Lowndes said. “I can’t say that.”
CNN’s Alena Treen, Caitlan Collins, Annie Grayer, Danya Gaynor, Holmes Lybrand, Dana Bash, Haley Talbot, Jeremy Herb, Katie Beau Lillis, Ted Barrett, Manu Raju, Sarah – Ferris and Pamela Brown contributed to this report.
