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President Elect’s Cabinet Appointments – “How is Trump’s Dream Team Shaping Up?”

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President Elect Donald J. Trump is pictured here with this wife and adult children during a recent interview with Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes. Trump spoke of his face-to-face meeting at the White House with President Obama and his plans to implement his campaign pledges in the new administration.
Trump announced that the coveted appointment as Chief of Staff would go to Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus
Steve Bannon, (formerly of Breitbart News) was appointed to be Trump’s chief strategist. Considered a leader of the alt-right movement, his appointment has generated much controversy as charges of white nationalism have been leveled against him. None of the charges has been substantiated thus far.
On Monday, rumors were swirling about in the media concerning the possible appointment of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani as Secretary of State
Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions is being considered by the Trump transition team for the august job of Secretary of Defense, among other cabinet positions
On Tuesday morning, former congressman Mike Rogers announced in a statement that he parted ways with the Trump transition team
Peter Thiel – Co-founder of PayPal, president of Clarium Capital, a managing partner in Founders Fund, co-founder and investment committee chair of Mithril Capital Management, co-founder and chairman of Valar Ventures, and co-founder and chairman of Palantir, entrepreneur, venture capitalist, hedge fund manager, and author. He is being considered for the post of Secretary of Commerce

President Elect Donald Trump continues to dominate the news cycle as he cobbles together an effective transition team that will ultimately provide a solid foundation for his future administration. Trump, who will become the 45th president of the United States of America, has witnessed six consecutive nights of protest marches targeted against him in most major cities across the nation since his historic upset victory in the presidential elections on November 8th.

Media outlets have reported that palpable strife and internal discord have marked the transition process. Disagreements among the denizens of Trump’s inner circle appear to be over cabinet appointments and key national security posts.

One source close to the Trump team has described the transition as a “knife fight.”

On Trump’s transition team is Vice President Elect Mike Pence who has been appointed as chairman as well as six vice chairmen including New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, former GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson, former Speaker of the house, Newt Gingrich, Lt. General Michael Flynn, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Alabama Senator, Jeff Sessions.

The transition team also has an Executive Committee which includes: Rep. Lou Barletta, Rep. Marsha Blackburn, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, Rep. Chris Collins, Rep. Tom Marino, Rebekah Mercer – director of the Mercer Family Foundation and daughter of major Trump donor Robert Mercer, Steven Mnuchin, Rep. Devin Nunes, Anthony Scaramucci, Peter Thiel – Co-founder of PayPal, president of Clarium Capital, a managing partner in Founders Fund, co-founder and investment committee chair of Mithril Capital Management, co-founder and chairman of Valar Ventures, and co-founder and chairman of Palantir, entrepreneur, venture capitalist, hedge fund manager, and author. Also included are Trump’s own adult children, Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner the husband of Ivanka and owner of the New York Observer

On Sunday, November 13, Trump announced that the coveted appointment as Chief of Staff would go to Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus. What has stirred a tidal wave of controversy, however, has been the more non-traditional appointment of Steve Bannon, (formerly of Breitbart News) as Trump’s chief strategist. Considered a leader of the alt-right movement, Bannon has been raked over the coals in the media with charges of promulgating White Nationalism, Anti-Semitism and Xenophobia, among others. Thus far, none of these allegations have been substantiated but the media keeps harping away in what some Conservative pundits say is the first witch hunt against Trump.

A particular challenge is lack of clarity about the division of power among Priebus, Bannon and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who also has a key role in transition decisions.

On Monday, rumors were swirling about in the media concerning the possible appointment of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani as Secretary of State. Media outlets have reported that he is Trump’s favorite for the post, while establishment Republicans have voiced their preference for former United States Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton for the post.

On Tuesday morning, former congressman Mike Rogers announced in a statement that he parted ways with the Trump transition team. Rogers’ participation was seen as a heartening sign to many of the establishment side of national security advisers, according to a CNN report.

Despite the polemical debates that are purportedly raging within the Trump camp and among the panoply of media pundits and commentators, it appears that Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions is now the leading contender for attorney general and is also under consideration for the post of Secretary of Defense, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the transition.

Moreover, Retired Lt. General Ron Burgess, former director of the DIA, is a leading contender for director of national intelligence. Retired General Michael Flynn is leading candidate for national security adviser.

As a former federal prosecutor and mayor of New York, Giuliani has negligible foreign policy experience but has been a vocal advocate of Trump’s since early on in the campaign. Many have thought he would be better suited to assume the post of attorney general, considering his impressive legal background but sources told CNN that Giuliani had expressed his preference for the secretary of state position as opposed to the post of attorney general.

Other possible candidates for Secretary of State are Richard Armitage, Former Deputy Secretary of State, Henry Paulson, Former Secretary of Treasury, Goldman Sachs CEO, and Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House, Richard Haass, President of the Council on Foreign Relations, John Bolton, former US Ambassador to the UN, Bob Corker, Senator from Tennessee

Others being considered for the job of attorney general are New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions.

CNN reported that during his own run for the presidency in 2008, Giuliani espoused a fairly conventional Republican foreign policy view, calling on continued US engagement abroad and robust efforts to fight terrorism and stabilize Iraq and Afghanistan.

John Bolton, a diplomat in the George W. Bush administration, backed Trump soon after he secured the nomination and would be one of the more conventional choices.

A source familiar with the transition said the Trump team acknowledges that Bolton’s confirmation might be difficult but they think it would be less tough than it was 10 years ago.

He also has elements of the conservative mainstream in his corner; he was endorsed by the influential National Review magazine in an open letter to President-elect Trump over the weekend.

Bolton has consistently advocated for unilateral and interventionist approaches to foreign policy challenges.

Like Trump he has opposed the Iran nuclear deal going so far as to call for airstrikes against Iran, penning a 2015 op-ed in the New York Times titled “To Stop Iran’s Bomb, Bomb Iran.”

As for the position of Secretary of Defense, it appears that Senator Jeff Sessions is being considered for that post while simultaneously being considered for the role of United State attorney general. Sessions served as a captain in the U.S. Army Reserve for 13 years and currently sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Being a veteran on Capitol Hill, he can navigate the political waters of the Pentagon.

Also being considered for Secretary of Defense are Jim Talent, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, Jon Kyl, Senior counsel at Covington and Burling, and Duncan Hunter, a congressman from California

As to the post of National Security Advisor, speculation is leaning towards retired Lt. General Michael Flynn. Flynn served as the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency from 2012-2014. He’s also served as assistant director of National Intelligence and served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has been a vocal and sometimes fiery advocate for the president-elect during the campaign, has also echoed Trump’s rhetoric of fighting terrorism, boosting ties with Russia, and casting a more critical eye on NATO.

The rumor mill is apparently in full swing as pundits have reportedly said that the job of communications director might be going to Jason Miller. Miller has advised the Trump campaign on communications strategy since June. He previously worked on Rudy Giuliani’s 2008 presidential bid.

On Monday evening, Tucker Carlson on FOX News suggested that his colleague, Laura Ingraham might be in contention for the position of press secretary. As a conservative pundit and radio talk show host, Ingraham is a provocative voice although she has also worked as an attorney and clerked for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. She was a Trump supporter and spoke at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

Rudy Giuliani and Michael McCaul, a Congressman from Texas are being considered for the post of Secretary of Homeland Security. Rumor also has it that former Congressman Pete Hoekstra is being considered for the post of Director of National Intelligence as was Mike Rogers. Hoekstra is a former Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, He represented Michigan for 18 years on Capitol Hill. Since leaving office he has run unsuccessfully for both governor and senator.

Billionaire, Paypal cofounder, and Trump donor Peter Thiel is rumored to be under consideration for the post of Secretary of Commerce as is investor Wilbur Ross, RNC Finance Chairman, Lewis Eisenberg, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, investor Ray Washburne and former wrestling magnate, Linda McMahon

By: Ariella Haviv

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