Democrats must not relent in opposing Trump’s cabinet and senior officer nominees. Although it can be tiresome to continually focus on the unfitness of those nominees, Trump is hoping that we will lose interest and go away.
But the mere passage of time cannot be allowed to normalize allegations of rape, public drunkenness, white supremacist tattoos, unnatural sympathy for Putin and Bashar al-Assad, promotion of QAnon conspiracies and election denialism, and profound ignorance and lack of qualifications for important and sensitive jobs.
The nomination of Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense has come back from the brink as Senator Joni Ernst expressed lukewarm support for Hegseth after MAGA extremists threatened to challenge her in Iowa’s GOP primary for US Senate in 2026. See Talking Points Memo, At Risk Of Being Primaried, Joni Ernst Throws Pete Hegseth A Line.
The fact that Ernst, a distinguished military veteran with service in the Iraq War, could be so easily frightened into supporting a candidate manifestly unfit to lead the Department of Defense is a betrayal of the men and women of the military. It is not too late for her to do the right thing. She needs to hear from more service personnel and constituents in Iowa who do not want the Department of Defense led by a man deemed unfit to serve as part of the security detail in Washington, D.C. on January 6, 2021.
Trump is doing everything in his power to quash voices of dissent against Pete Hegseth’s nomination. A NewsMax host lambasted Hegseth’s nomination during a broadcast last Friday. That act of disloyalty to Trump resulted in an “all hands” meeting among producers and on-air reporters at NewsMax, who were told that they could not criticize Hegseth, but should instead characterize the allegations as unfounded. See Mediaite, ‘Will Result in Termination’: Newsmax Bans Criticism of Pete Hegseth After Trump Fumed Over Host’s Attack.
Meanwhile, Tulsi Gabbard’s interview tour on Capitol Hill began amid new questions about her relationship with Bashar al-Assad after the fall of Syria. See MSN, Gabbard kicks off Capitol Hill meetings amid questions over Syria. Even Senate Republicans are skeptical but seem to be trying to find their way to “Anything Trump wants is good enough for us!”
Trump compounded his disastrous choices of Kash Patel to head the FBI and Pam Bondi to lead the DOJ by nominating Harmeet Dhillon to lead the Civil Rights Division of the DOJ. Dhillon has a history of voter suppression lawsuits on behalf of Republican groups and candidates. She also has a history of anti-trans activism.
Given that the Civil Rights Division is charged with protecting voting rights and civil liberties of all people—including trans people—Dhillon represents the antithesis of the Civil Rights Division. Dhillon is another nominee who seems designed to undermine and obstruct the agency she has been nominated to lead. See The Guardian, Trump picks Maga darling Harmeet Dhillon to lead civil rights cases at DOJ.
As Trump tries to destroy the organs of democracy with anti-democratic avatars, he is simultaneously extending his ongoing grift by appointing family and friends to important positions for which they have no qualifications.
Two weeks ago, Trump nominated Ivanka’s father-in-law, Charles Kushner, to be US Ambassador to France. Kushner was convicted of tax fraud and witness tampering but was pardoned by Trump—and then rewarded with an ambassadorship to a key US ally.
On Tuesday, the press simultaneously reported that Don Jr. and his fiancé, Kimberly Guilfoyle, had split and that Trump was appointing Kimberly Guilfoyle as US Ambassador to Greece. See CNN Politics, Trump chooses Kimberly Guilfoyle as his pick for Greece ambassador.
As some observers noted, Trump has replaced his ubiquitous “non-disclosure agreements” and “hush money settlements” with US ambassadorships. So, Trump is now using US taxpayer dollars to buy the silence of former Trump family girlfriends.
But it doesn’t stop there. Trump is reportedly pressuring Republican Governor Ron DeSantis to appoint Lara Trump—Eric Trump’s wife—to replace Florida Senator Marco Rubio. See Fox News, Trump pressing DeSantis to name Lara Trump as Rubio’s Senate successor: source.
Trump apparently believes putting Lara Trump in the Senate will allow him to take control of the Senate, according to Elon Musk’s mom. See Irish Times, Elon Musk’s mom slams ‘old man’s club’ Senate and wants Lara Trump in charge.
If DeSantis appoints Lara Trump to replace Rubio, she will need to stand for election in November 2026.
Speaking of blatant family nepotism, Robert Kennedy Jr. is pushing for his stepdaughter and former campaign manager, Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, to serve as the Deputy Director of the CIA. See Axios, Scoop: RFK Jr. pushes his daughter-in-law for CIA deputy director.
Although Fox Kennedy served in the CIA for ten years as an agent, she broke CIA rules when she published a memoir about her time in the agency without submitting her book to the CIA for a security review and pre-clearance—as required by her employment contract with the CIA.
So, Fox Kennedy’s leading qualification for the CIA is that she appears to be unable to follow rules designed to keep the spy agency’s secrets secret. In other words, like almost every other Trump pick, she is the antithesis of what the position demands of a qualified applicant.
Trump may be playing “flood the zone” with unqualified candidates as a way of ensuring that some of those candidates make it through the process. He is counting on the fact that Senators and the public will grow weary of opposing every awful candidate who deserves to be opposed. We can’t let that happen.
Keep this link at hand to contact your US Senators: U.S. Senate: Contacting U.S. Senators. The confirmation hearings will begin after January 3, 2025. Call or write your Senator early and often. Speak from the heart as a concerned constituent and American citizen who will hold the Senator accountable for their vote for or against unqualified and unfit Trump nominees.