{"id":37260,"date":"2025-01-15T08:29:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-15T14:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/?p=37260"},"modified":"2025-01-15T21:32:29","modified_gmt":"2025-01-16T03:32:29","slug":"trump-assembles-his-wrecking-crew-as-he-tries-to-take-on-washington","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/?p=37260","title":{"rendered":"Trump assembles his wrecking crew as he tries to take on Washington"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Editor\u2019s Note: This is the third of a five-part series that looks at how Donald Trump mounted the greatest comeback in American political history, how he is preparing for what he and his own team describe as a potentially tumultuous second term, and what all that might mean for those who support him \u2014 and those who don\u2019t. Read parts one<\/u><\/a> and two<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the MAGA faithful, Matt Gaetz might be the perfect pick for US attorney general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Florida congressman has defended Donald Trump at every turn, embraced the lie of a stolen 2020 election and pushed the idea that perhaps Trump supporters weren\u2019t really responsible for the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. When Trump was on trial in New York in his hush money case and on his way to being convicted, Gaetz joined the procession of Republicans trouping in to support their leader. Along with a photo of himself standing behind Trump, Gaetz posted a phrase associated with the far-right, extremist Proud Boys: \u201cStanding back and standing by, Mr. President.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Trump\u2019s social media platform, Truth Social, the president-elect writes in mid-November, \u201cMatt will end Weaponized Government, protect our Borders, dismantle Criminal Organizations and restore Americans\u2019 badly-shattered Faith and Confidence in the Justice Department.\u201d A shockwave rolls through that department, which Gaetz has called so partisan it should be radically reformed or abolished. Then something at least modestly peculiar happens. Gaetz resigns his House seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some Republicans say by stepping down from the 118th Congress promptly, Gaetz could help the party quickly replace him through a special election, protecting one more vote in the next Congress for Trump\u2019s agenda. But critics note a detail: His resignation will halt a long investigation of Gaetz by the House Ethics Committee. And suddenly here is Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, another Trump booster, saying since the Cabinet pick from Florida is no longer in Congress, any findings should remain sealed. \u201cI\u2019m going to strongly request that the Ethics Committee not issue the report,\u201d Johnson says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a brief time, the buttress holds. But information from the investigation is soon splintering off to lawmakers and the media. The rumbles grow more intense, and everything comes crashing down. Not too many days after Gaetz is tapped for the top law enforcement job in America, his coveted nomination is in ruins. He bows out to the disappointment of Trump and the relief of some who were to sit in judgment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere were a lot of Republican senators who were concerned about defying Trump,\u201d CNN\u2019s Manu Raju reports from Capitol Hill, \u201cbut just could not get themselves to supporting Matt Gaetz\u2019s nomination.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the report is released after much wrangling, it is every bit as bad as Republicans feared. Gaetz is rocked with allegations he paid women<\/u><\/a> tens of thousands of dollars for drugs or sex \u2013 among them, a 17-year-old. He repeatedly denies having sex with a minor or paying for sex. Gaetz admits to unsavory behavior in his younger years but denies committing crimes, and commentators note he was never charged with breaking laws despite a Justice Department investigation. However, weeks later, when it is announced on the House floor that the MAGA firebrand will not be reclaiming his seat, some members of Congress applaud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commentators note it is the first and biggest failure for Trump since his November victory. Trump issues a terse thanks to Gaetz and pulls in former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi as a replacement, noting on social media, \u201cI have known Pam for many years \u2014 She is smart and tough, and is an AMERICA FIRST Fighter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mindful of the urgency to charge out of Inauguration Day staffed and ready for action, Trump is now stacking up his other Cabinet picks fast. He\u2019s made a safe bet choosing Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state. Although the Florida senator has been the butt of many of Trump\u2019s jokes, he is an experienced political pro who will likely draw relatively little heat. New York Rep. Elise Stefanik is picked for United Nations ambassador \u2014 a tidy fit for Trump\u2019s more combative views about international relations. Former pro-wrestling executive and big Republican donor Linda McMahon gets tapped for the Department of Education, which Trump is threatening to shutter. Howard Lutnick, head of the big financial firm Cantor Fitzgerald, is chosen for the Department of Commerce. \u201cHe will lead our Tariff and Trade agenda,\u201d Trump posts. There are more names.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each selection will face the gauntlet of confirmation, but the Republican grip on the new Senate and a long tradition of giving incoming presidents freedom mean most of them will likely get through. CNN\u2019s Jeff Zeleny says even if the votes for some seem shaky, Team Trump has a quick way of shoving reluctant GOP senators back in line \u2014 the danger of their own party pushing a more agreeable candidate in the next primary. \u201cThey\u2019ve managed to whip the MAGA base into a menacing enough threat,\u201d he says, \u201cso look \u2026 I think he will get largely the nominees that he wants.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Gaetz saga, however, is a cautionary tale that indicates some of Trump\u2019s picks may be hard sells. Among the hardest is an outlier from a legendary Democratic political dynasty: Robert F. Kennedy Jr.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An independent candidate for most of the presidential contest, RFK Jr. suspended his campaign in late August and mounted the stage alongside Trump in a shower of fireworks. Trump told the cheering crowd, Kennedy is \u201ca man who has been an incredible champion for so many of these values that we all share.\u201d Now he is Trump\u2019s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. It\u2019s an odd pairing, considering that Kennedy formerly accused Trump of betraying his MAGA followers, and Trump called Kennedy \u201cthe most radical left candidate in the race.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if Trump can push aside the differences, some lawmakers and healthcare advocates are deeply concerned<\/u><\/a> about a choice that strikes them as unusual to the point of unhinged. Although Kennedy denies being against vaccines, he has long suggested they should be voluntary. He\u2019s raised unfounded questions about the safety of inoculations and promoted unproven links to autism. He says fluoride should be removed from the nation\u2019s water supplies<\/u><\/a>, even though it has long been considered key to preventing childhood tooth decay. He\u2019s promoted conspiracy theories about AIDS,<\/u><\/a> saying it comes from wearing down the immune system with drug use, which is not true. And he once allegedly chainsawed a dead whale<\/u><\/a> on a beach and dumped a dead bear<\/u><\/a> in Central Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Worries about what he might do in the nation\u2019s top health role are so profound, 77 Nobel laureates send a letter to the Senate urging his defeat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019re not going to lose the polio vaccine. That\u2019s not gonna happen,\u201d Trump tells reporters as the drumbeat against RFK grows. \u201cI think he\u2019s going to be much less radical than you would think. I think he\u2019s got a very open mind, or I wouldn\u2019t have put him there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump\u2019s choice of another former Democrat to be director of national intelligence triggers more outcry. Former Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is an Army National Guard veteran and Reserve officer who, like Trump, has shown an unusual affinity for some of America\u2019s top adversaries. Republican Sen. Mitt Romney once accused her of \u201cparroting false Russian propaganda.\u201d The sudden overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the midst of Trump\u2019s transition brought fresh headlines about Gabbard\u2019s trip to see Assad in 2017, and her eventual pronouncement that the brutal dictator was \u201cnot an enemy of the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonetheless, Trump stands firmly by Kennedy and Gabbard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He stands by Pete Hegseth too. When Trump taps the telegenic Fox News host and combat veteran to head the Department of Defense, some critics accuse the incoming president of trying to staff the government like a reality show \u2014 with people long on looks and short on experience. To be sure, Hegseth\u2019s resume holds little to suggest he would know how to lead an organization of millions of people. What\u2019s more, media coverage quickly focuses on how Hegseth had disparaged the role of women in combat and has faced allegations<\/u><\/a> of sexual assault, drinking problems and financial mismanagement at veterans\u2019 advocacy groups<\/u><\/a>. Even his tattoos draw scrutiny. Hegseth, who denies the assault claim, excessive drinking in the workplace and reports of financial mismanagement, works the hallways of Congress fighting to dodge the fate of Gaetz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But even ironclad Trump allies such as South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham see a brutal battle ahead. \u201cHe obviously has a chance to defend himself here,\u201d Graham says, \u201cbut some of this stuff is \u2013 it\u2019s going to be difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump made no secret during his campaign about what kind of team he would assemble: people who will be fiercely loyal to him, clear away legal and regulatory barriers and scramble expectations. Many of his choices seem distinctly suited to help him build a presidency free of internal opposition and unfettered by advisers who might bring too much of the kind of experience, education or independence that might constrain his impulses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis time around, he\u2019s putting people in place \u2026 who are not experts in their field,\u201d says CNN\u2019s Jim Acosta. After years of covering Trump, he believes the incoming president is seeking a kind of grand, political experiment. \u201cHe\u2019s almost a mad scientist in a way because I think he wants to go back into the laboratory and see what happens if there are no guardrails. In the way that we learned the consequences of having a post-truth presidency, we might learn the consequences of having a post-expertise presidency.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just before Thanksgiving, Trump goes to Texas with his new government makeover mogul, Elon Musk, to watch the launch of a massive SpaceX rocket. The tech billionaire later shows up at Trump\u2019s side at the Army-Navy football game too. Close observers say the pair is growing tighter by the day. The richest man in the world is helping the president-elect make picks for the new team and has shown a taste for dabbling in the issues. And the two new buddies are not waiting for the inauguration to flex their muscles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018President Musk\u2019<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Outside the White House, a jubilation of song and dance heralds the lighting of the National Christmas tree. President Joe Biden, who has kept his public appearances low-key since the election, seems once again in his element \u2014 smiling, clapping, enjoying the season. \u201cMy wish for you and for the nation, now and always,\u201d he says to the cheering crowd, \u201cis we continue to seek the light of liberty and love, kindness and compassion, dignity, and decency. Merry Christmas, America!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that was a few days ago. Now, two miles away, where Biden was inaugurated in a ceremony Trump unceremoniously skipped, the grand white dome of the Capitol is covering an uproar. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has negotiated a delicate bipartisan budget deal called a \u201ccontinuing resolution\u201d to avoid a government shutdown before the holiday. Capitol Hill is joyful over the rare show of cooperation that produced the 1,500-page agreement. Then Musk blows it all up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis bill should not pass,\u201d he writes on his social media platform X. Through more than 100 posts in a day, he rips the deal as misguided, wasteful and \u201ccriminal.\u201d Never mind that some of his claims about it are provably false. He invokes the ever-present threat of retribution by the MAGA base, writing, \u201cAny member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump comes out against it \u2013 and injects a new demand of raising the nation\u2019s borrowing limit before he takes office. The bill collapses. Over the next few days, a stripped-down version is cobbled together, the votes are wrangled for approval, and all of official Washington furiously speculates about what the episode might portend for this new presidency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Democrats, like Washington state Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the read is easy: \u201cIt\u2019s clear who\u2019s in charge, and it\u2019s not President-elect Donald Trump. President Elon Musk spent all day railing against Republicans\u2019 CR, succeeded in killing the bill, and then Trump decided to follow his lead.\u201d Others on her side of the aisle start pushing \u201cPresident Musk\u201d and \u201cshadow president\u201d memes online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump, at least initially, gives no sign he is bothered. But voices inside his team indirectly suggest he is by insisting to journalists that Trump, not Musk, really is in charge. And again, there is an interesting detail: The final version of the budget bill does not contain the debt ceiling suspension Trump seems to badly want. Trump tells CBS he\u2019d like to go even further. \u201cThe debt ceiling should be thrown out entirely,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The move surprises Republicans who have frequently criticized Democrats who want more borrowing authority as economically careless. But many analysts say Trump\u2019s wish is underpinned by a simple reality. For all his talk of making government smaller and cheaper, he is proposing a combination of programs and tax cuts that could cost trillions of dollars. He may need all the money he can get. And if he can expand his right to borrow it on Biden\u2019s watch, so much the better to avoid future blame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, his party\u2019s congressional delegation has told him no. And in the rapid sequence of events that led to that moment, in the influence of Musk, and in this gentle but effective pushback from the party, Zeleny suspects potential future troubles for Trump. \u201cEven a month before Trump\u2019s second term starts,\u201d he says, \u201cwe (were) seeing these challenges of governing. Lot of cooks in the kitchen, and who is in charge?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Undaunted, the weekend before Christmas, Trump throws a fresh stunner into the headlines. He declares he wants the US to retake the Panama Canal, which President Jimmy Carter put under the control of Panama in a 1977 deal that guaranteed neutral, international access to the waterway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump ominously suggests that somehow China is up to shenanigans. And Panama is charging too much. \u201cWe\u2019re being ripped off at the Panama Canal,\u201d he declares in a cut-and-paste of his standard grievance, \u201clike we\u2019re being ripped off everywhere else.\u201d Within days he will expand his Christmas wish list to include American ownership of Greenland, as Donald Trump Jr. cavorts on the island territory taking selfies and handing out MAGA hats. His dad hints that it would also be nice to scoop up Canada and rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. And if force is needed, Trump indicates he might consider deploying the military to Greenland and Panama and putting an economic squeeze on Canada. Some world leaders shrug, some ridicule the idea, all imply any notion of America conquering their lands is ludicrous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the clock keeps ticking down to the final hours of 2024, and for better or worse, Trump keeps rolling out his aspirations and lining up his team. With the backing of agreeable judges he planted in the courts his first time around, he is bracing to meet the flurry of legal challenges his norm-shattering agenda will surely bring. He seems confident he can ignore any noise from the cornered Democrats, and unconcerned about any rebellions that might arise from Republicans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indeed, just as he did in his first term, only more so, Trump seems prepared to push the limits of presidential power as far as he can. And everyone knows if it works, he could become the most powerful chief executive in modern times. Maybe ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cnn<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s Note: This is the third of a five-part series that looks at how Donald Trump mounted the greatest comeback in American political history, how he is preparing for what he and his own team describe as a potentially tumultuous second term, and what all that might mean for those who support him \u2014 and those […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":37261,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[32022,22154,1230,1227],"class_list":["post-37260","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","tag-assemble","tag-crew","tag-trump","tag-washington"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37260","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=37260"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37260\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37262,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37260\/revisions\/37262"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/37261"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=37260"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=37260"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ustower.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=37260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}