Trump cabinet live updates: Burgum named energy czar and interior secretary as ethics report hangs over Gaetz
Former Florida congressman among controversial picks to join Donald Trump’s cabinet including Robert F Kennedy Jr, as campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung named as White House head of comms
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has announced that Doug Burgum will lead the Interior Department and be chair of the newly-created National Energy Council.
If confirmed, the North Dakota Governor would be responsible for both federal lands and maximizing energy extraction, with the president-elect reiterating his call to “drill baby drill”.
Trump’s selection of scandal-plagued Matt Gaetz to be his attorney general continues to cause a stir in Washington with Speaker Mike Johnson saying he will request the House Ethics Committee to not release its report into allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use made against the former Florida Congressman.
Meanwhile, Robert F Kennedy Jr was branded “dangerous” and “unserious” by Democratic Senator Ed Markey after Trump announced he had picked the vaccine-skeptic to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
Former Vice President Mike Pence has also spoken out over the choice, given Kennedy’s stance on abortion.
Others included in the string of controversial picks for the future cabinet, include veteran and Fox News contributor Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence, and billionaire Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to jointly lead a new Department of Government Efficiency.
Trump warned his second term would mean ‘retribution’. His alarming cabinet picks show he means it
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Analysis: Trump warned his second term would mean ‘retribution’. His alarming cabinet picks show he means it
A Fox News host who lobbied Donald Trump to pardon troops accused of war crimes and doesn’t want women serving in combat could be leading the nation’s military. An accused sexual predator who has taken up Trump’s promise to destroy his political rivals could be the nation’s top law enforcement officer. A prolific conspiracy theorist who doesn’t hold a single medical or public health degree but plans to immediately halt vaccine development could be in charge of the nation’s health agencies.
An Evangelical preacher who espouses end-times theology and has said “there’s no such thing as a Palestinian” could be the nation’s ambassador to Israel. A former congresswoman who secretly met with Syria’s Bashar al-Assad and has blamed US and NATO for Russia’s assault in Ukraine could direct the nation’s intelligence. The world’s wealthiest man will recommend drastic cuts to the government’s budget in a made-up “efficiency” agency.
Two of his attorneys who helped him get off criminal charges have been nominated for top roles at the Department of Justice.
Trump’s first wave of cabinet nominations and White House appointments, within the week after he won the 2024 presidential election, have stunned members of Congress, veterans and active-duty service members, public health advocates and democratic advocates, who have warned for years that he is building a government of loyalists to fulfill his campaign-trail promises to deliver “retribution” by destroying the “deep state.”
They’re shocking choices, but they shouldn’t be surprising. When Trump formally launched his 2024 campaign from Waco, Texas, he declared himself a “warrior” and the election a “final battle.”
Alex Woodward reports:
Trump promised ‘retribution’ in his second term. His cabinet picks show he means it
Analysis: Trump’s cabinet choices are shocking, but not surprising, Alex Woodward reports
House Ethics Committee abruptly cancels meeting amid calls for release of Matt Gaetz report
The House Ethics Committee has abruptly canceled its meeting scheduled for Friday as calls continue to mount to release the findings of its investigation into Donald Trump’s new Attorney General pick Matt Gaetz.
This week, Trump sent shockwaves around Washington on Wednesday when he tapped the Florida Rep Gaetz for the role as the top law enforcement officer in the country.
The MAGA stalwart best known for sex-trafficking accusations and for orchestrating the ousting of the former House speaker Kevin McCarthy quit Congress with immediate effect.
His resignation effectively tanked a years-long House Ethics Committee investigation into Gaetz centered around accusations of sexual misconduct.
That investigation, Punchbowl News then revealed, had culminated in a “damaging” report that was going to be released on Friday. Now that Gaetz is no longer under the committee’s jurisdiction, the probe is over.
The committee was due to meet for closed-door meeting on Friday but the meeting was suddenly canceled Thursday, a source told Politico.
It is not clear why the meeting was axed.
Both Republicans and Democrats are calling for the committee to still release the report.
Meet Leonard Leo – Trump’s secret weapon powering a religious war on woke
With ties to the controversial Project 2025 and as a kingmaker of the Supreme Court, the faith-driven operator is the spider at the centre of the new conservative movement declaring war on liberal America. After their success with overturning abortion rights, they are now setting their sights on everything from gay marriage to access to contraception. Alex Hannaford reports:
Meet Leonard Leo – Trump’s most powerful weapon in his religious war on woke
With ties to the controversial Project 2025 and as a kingmaker of the Supreme Court, the faith-driven operator is the spider at the centre of the new conservative movement declaring war on liberal America. After their success with overturning abortion rights, they are now setting their sights on everything from gay marriage to access to contraception. Alex Hannaford reports
Roger Stone claims it’s a ‘tragedy’ he lost bid to buy Alex Jones’s Infowars
On Thursday, satirical news publication The Onion won a bidding to buy Alex Jones’s Infowars.
Roger Stone – a staunch ally of Jones and Donald Trump – also made a bid to snap up the operations but was outbid.
Following his loss, he quickly claimed it was “not fair” and urged Matt Gaetz, Trump’s attorney general pick, to investigate the auction if or when he takes the helm of the DOJ.
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