“You’re only as good as the people you hire.”...Ray Kroc
In the glow of a massive popular vote ‘mandate’ of 1.6%, Trump seems emboldened to seek many of his nominations for his administration from his family tree and Fox News. Experience and competency related to the proposed job? Not a requirement. Personal character? Not a concern. In fact, given many of the nominees, it appears relevant experience and good character might be seen as detriments.
So who are the relatives?
Charles Kushner, father of Jared and father-in-law to Ivanka; nominated for Ambassador to France. He’s a convicted felon having served two years in prison after pleading guilty to 16 federal counts of filing false tax returns. He also admitted to paying a prostitute to film sex with his brother-in-law to discourage him from cooperating with investigators (Forbes). In an interview with PBS in 2019, Chris Christy, who was the prosecutor, said the case against Kushner was “one of the most loathsome, disgusting crimes I prosecuted as U.S. attorney.” Trump pardoned Kushner in 2020. Oh, and does he speak French? Non.
Massad Boulos, father of Michael and father-in-law to Tiffany, was named as Trump’s Middle East advisor. A Lebanese American, he built his fortune selling cars in Nigeria. He took an active role in the campaign attempting to convince Arab Americans to vote for Trump. His experience in the Middle East is that he was born in Lebanon.
Lara Trump, yet another in-law, has thrown her hat in the ring to replace Marco Rubio as Florida’s senator, assuming he’s confirmed for Secretary of State. Whether that happens probably depends on how much pressure Trump exerts on DeSantis and how much DeSantis wants to get back into Trump’s good graces.
And then there are the TV nominees. Seems that one—and often the only—qualification is that you look like the job you’re being nominated for. Pete Hegseth, a Fox weekend host, will likely be the second nominee to fall, following Matt Gaetz, who never stood a chance. There’s talk of Gov. DeSantis as Hegseth’s replacement, but—he may not be tall enough. Mike Huckabee, former Governor and Evangelical Christian, has been nominated for ambassador to Israel, and is a former Fox TV host. He ought to scare the bejesus out of Israelis and Gazans alike. Sean Duffy was a former congressman and current Fox contributor until he was picked for transportation secretary. Then there’s Dr. Mehmet Oz, syndicated TV talk show host, to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, whose boss will be RFK Jr. tapped to head Health and Human Services. Junior’s radical views on vaccines and other scientific (oops, dirty word) medical miracles, his self-professed use of heroin in college (The Atlantic), plus his lack of managerial experience, is sure to make for a must-see confirmation hearing. Another interesting hearing will be Tulsi Gabbard’s, a former Democrat turned Republican and frequent Fox guest. Trump has chosen her to head the government’s intelligence community as the director of National Intelligence, coordinating the work of 18 different agencies. She has no experience in intell and no experience as a manager. The Washington Examiner, a conservative newspaper, reported she promoted Russian propaganda to the point where Russian state media referred to her as “our girlfriend.” Senator Mitt Romney said her “parroting false Russian propaganda” amounted to “treasonous lies.” And she met with President Assad of Syria on a personal ‘fact finding mission,’ reinforcing concerns about her allegiances. We could talk about Linda McMahan, a professional wrestling executive chosen to run the Department of Education, but since it’s due to be eliminated, she’s probably inconsequential. And let’s not forget John Phelan, nominated to be Secretary of the Navy. He was a major contributor to Trump’s campaign but never served in the military—in any branch (NBC News).
To summarize, Trump’s criteria for some of the nominations to the nation’s highest posts appear to include past (?) alcohol, and/or drug abuse issues, inappropriate/illegal sexual behavior and/or mistreatment of women, total lack of experience for the position named, an in-law, a big campaign contributor and/or looks good on TV.
None of this should come as a surprise. In fact, if Mr. Kroc is to be believed, between the nominator and nominees, they’re a perfect match.
Marsha Shearer is a resident of The Villages and the author of “America in Crisis: Essays on the Failed Presidency of Donald J. Trump.”
