Ahead of his second presidential term, which begins on Jan. 20 of next year, President-elect Donald Trump has begun declaring his nominations for key Cabinet and White House staff. Positions include cabinet secretaries, directors of federal agencies, White House staff and ambassadors. A full list of his nominees, as of Nov. 18, has been reported by CBS News.
It is common for United States presidents to completely overhaul the government positions associated with the upper levels of the executive branch. Notably, presidents Barack Obama, Joe Biden and Donald Trump’s first term had no overlap within any major cabinet positions, according to their respective White House archives. Trump’s proposed staff for his second term is entirely different from his staff during his first term as president.
Trump’s proposed staff also does not include a secretary of education — a position currently belonging to Miguel Cardona under the Biden administration, according to the White House website.
One of Trump’s campaign promises was to “close the Department of Education in Washington, D.C. and send it back to the States,” according to his official platform. Closing an entire department, however, would require congressional approval.
Trump’s proposed nominees hail from various corners of the political landscape. The most famous names on his list include Marco Rubio, Matt Gaetz, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Pete Hegseth.
Nominations to Trump’s administration require Senate approval to be officially sworn in. However, it is possible for Trump to make temporary administration appointments without Senate approval, provided the Senate is in recess. According to CNN, the Senate would need to take a recess of ten days or more to justify recess appointments — a type of recess that hasn’t occurred since 2016.
Rubio, a Republican senator from Florida, is expected to replace the current secretary of state, Antony Blinken. If Rubio is approved by the Senate, he will act as the United States’ leader in foreign affairs and diplomacy.
Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida posted on X that Rubio is “expected to resign from the Senate to assume duties as Secretary of State when the Trump administration takes power on January 20th.” The open seat in the Senate will be filled by a candidate selected by DeSantis.
Gaetz has been nominated for the role of attorney general, a position currently held by Merrick Garland. The attorney general represents the United States in legal matters, and the position is often held by former lawyers and judges. Gaetz was voted in as a Republican representative in Florida but resigned from the position when his nomination was announced.
The House Ethics Committee revealed, in a June 18 press release, that Gaetz was being investigated for allegedly having “engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, dispensed special privileges and favors to individuals with whom he had a personal relationship and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct.” The committee has yet to make a final decision on these claims against Gaetz, although the allegations may affect how the Senate votes when the time comes to approve or deny this nomination.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been nominated to replace Xavier Becerra as the secretary of health and human services. Kennedy ran against Vice President Kamala Harris and Trump in this year’s election as an independent but dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump.
Kennedy’s nomination has sparked controversy among opponents, including his cousin, U.S. ambassador Caroline Kennedy, who has openly criticized his views on vaccines. An article from MSNBC notes that “despite overwhelming scientific evidence that supports the safety and efficacy of vaccines, Kennedy has repeatedly promoted debunked theories inaccurately linking vaccines to autism and other health issues.”
According to CBS News, “it will be Kennedy’s decision alone to decide who sits on the [Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices for the Center for Disease Control]. Kennedy’s pick to head the CDC would also have the authority to override the panel’s votes, as was done in 2021 to roll out some COVID-19 booster shots.”
Hegseth, who has been nominated to take the role of secretary of defense, has also faced controversy. The former Army National Guard officer and Fox News commentator was previously accused of sexual assault in 2017, according to the Washington Post. The Post also noted that Hegseth paid the woman who accused him “as part of a nondisclosure agreement, though he maintained that their encounter was consensual.”
In addition to his nominations to his administration, Trump has also proposed a Department of Government Efficiency. According to NPR, this department will be led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who “will focus on regulating government spending.”
NPR noted that “it is not yet clear whether this entity will exist within the federal government or outside,” although “an official government agency cannot be created without an act of Congress.”
All nominations must be approved by the Senate in order to officially assume their proposed positions. Additionally, nominations are not permanent, and Trump is free to change nominations as he wishes.