When Donald Trump won the election, the best thing that we — the 81% who didn’t vote for him — could hope for was that Trump would keep his best and break his worst campaign promises. As the protests erupted, I brainstormed with progressive activists about if & how progressives might be able to team up with Trump’s supporters to hold him to his more progressive policy ideas (like opposing the TPP & the effort to #DrainTheSwamp) while standing against awful economic, immigration, & “law & order” policies. If Trump was serious about fighting government corruption & big money in politics, I hoped that progressive democrats, leftists, & other like-minded independents would be able to cooperate with the president & his supporters on those issues, at least.

This hope of mine, however, has been so utterly & irrevocably smashed that not even the tiniest, glimmering sliver of it remains — this became clear as I studied the individuals that are being considered for Trump’s cabinet…

What is the President’s Cabinet ?

The “cabinet” was originally a term for the room where the president met with their most trusted advisers — originally the cabinet was just the Secretaries of State, Treasury, War, the Attorney General, & the Postmaster General. As the US grew larger, more & more cabinet positions were invented so that the president could delegate their executive authority to people they trusted. Today, the cabinet officially includes the vice president and 15 people who are the heads of 15 executive departments — in addition, there are 7 appointed positions that aren’t officially part of the cabinet but are considered “cabinet level.”

Unlike congress & the president, the people don’t get to vote on the cabinet — instead, cabinet members are appointed by the president, though many of them must be approved by a majority in the senate. Cabinet positions often go mostly ignored by the public (can you tell me who our current Secretary of Commerce is?) but they can be very important. For instance, the Secretary of State usually ends up determining a lot of our foreign policy and the Attorney General has a lot of influence over our “justice system,” while positions like the Chief of Staff or the National Security Adviser tend to have quite a bit of indirect but powerful influence on the president’s policies.

So, now that we understand their importance, let’s look at who Trump is considering for his cabinet…

Trump’s Cabinet:

The Opposite of “Draining the Swamp”

Jeff Sessions – Attorney General Summary: Alabama Senator who proposed a national ban of gay marriage, supported the Iraq war, & supported “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the military. The National Journal ranked Sessions as the 5th most conservative senator in 2007. Position : Attorney General

In charge of : Heads the Department of Justice. The Attorney General is basically the “final boss” of the legal system — they take the government’s side, if your case makes it to the Supreme Court.

Major Concerns : Sessions, a man who once said the NAACP & ACLU were “un-American” & “communist-inspired” for “shoving civil-rights down people’s throats, would determine how laws are enforced as head of the DOJ. : Attorney General: Heads the Department of Justice. The Attorney General is basically the “final boss” of the legal system — they take the government’s side, if your case makes it to the Supreme Court.: Sessions, a man whothe NAACP & ACLU were “un-American” & “communist-inspired” for “shoving civil-rights down people’s throats, would determine how laws are enforced as head of the DOJ. Top 5 Donors Southern Co (Electric/ Telecommunications Corp)

Balch & Bingham (corporate law firm)

Harbert Management (investment)

Drummond Co (coal)

WPP Group (marketing & media planning) Source: OpenSecrets Status : Trump’s Confirmed Pick Trump’s Confirmed Pick

It was probably naive of me to believe that Trump was at all serious when he (or his speech-writers) wrote that he’d work to end the “decades of special interest dealing” and support “ethics reforms to make our government honest once again.” That sounds great — but actions speak louder than words.

Everything this guy says is nonsense — if Trump opposed the influence of special interests, he wouldn’t appoint a vulture capitalist to head our Department of Commerce. If Trump were serious about draining the corrupt swamp of the establishment to “give new voices a chance to go into government service,” he wouldn’t appoint the top party-official of the GOP to be his Chief of Staff.

If it were really Donald Trump’s “prayer” that we “heal our divisions and move forward as one country,” he wouldn’t have appointed a racist to head the Department of Justice nor would he have appointed someone who publicly stated that Islam is “a malignant cancer” to be his National Security Adviser. If “bringing prosperity to our inner cities” was “so important” to Trump, as he said in his Thanksgiving address, he wouldn’t have appointed someone who said that we “shouldn’t even think about entitlements” to be Secretary of Housing & Urban Developments.

Michael T Flynn Ben Carson Betsy Devos Steve Bannon Rudy Giuliani Wilbur Ross Reince Priebus Jeff Sessions Michael T. Flynn – National Security Adviser Summary: Retired army lieutenant general, vocal anti-Muslim author, & CEO of Flynn Intel Group, which offers intelligence services to businesses & governments. Position : National Security Adviser

In charge of : The National Security Adviser usually works closely with the Secretary of State & the Secretary of Defense and acts as the president’s main adviser on foreign policy & national security.

Major Concerns : Flynn, who may become a powerful influence on foreign policy, has repeatedly & publicly stated his belief that Islam is not a religion, that Islam is like a “malignant cancer,” & wrote, in his recent book, that Muslims “are dead set on taking us over and drinking our blood.” : National Security Adviser: The National Security Adviser usually works closely with the Secretary of State & the Secretary of Defense and acts as the president’s main adviser on foreign policy & national security.: Flynn, who may become a powerful influence on foreign policy, has repeatedly & publicly stated his belief that Islam is not a religion, that& wrote, in his recent book, that Muslims Status: Trump’s Confirmed Pick Ben Carson – Secretary of Housing & Urban Development Summary: Former candidate for RNC nomination & national chairman of “My Faith Votes,” a group that encourages Christians to vote by publishing pro-Israel, anti-abortion, & pro-“religious freedom” information. Position : Secretary of Housing & Urban Development

In charge of : Heads the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is, as the name implies, in charge of housing.

Major Concerns : A guy who said, “I don’t think we should even talk about entitlements [aka social welfare] until we fix the economy,” may be in charge of our housing. : Secretary of Housing & Urban Development: Heads the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is, as the name implies, in charge of housing.: A guy who“I don’t think we should even talk about entitlements [aka social welfare] until we fix the economy,” may be in charge of our housing. Top 5 Donors Logix Communications Co (Telecommunications Corporation)

Omega List (Brokers lists of emails for political fundraising)

Interpreta (health insurance data)

Comm’L Real Estate

Blue Ridge Companies (real estate development) Source: OpenSecrets Status : Likely, Pending Trump’s Approval Likely, Pending Trump’s Approval Betsy DeVos – Secretary of Education Summary: Billionaire, former chair of the Wisconsin Republican Party, co-chair of Windquest (an investment management firm), & chair of multiple special interest groups advocating for redirecting public funds from public schools system to vouchers for private charter schools. Position : Secretary of Education

In charge of : Heads the Department of Education, which is the link between state school-systems & the federal government. In charge of FAFSA student loans & accreditation.

Major Concerns : Aside from appointing a billionaire with no experience in education who wants to redirect public funds to unregulated & unevenly distributed private schools, there are no major concerns. Status: Trump’s Confirmed Pick Stephen Bannon – Chief Strategist Summary: Former investment banker at Goldman-Sachs, founder of Bannon & Co. (an investment bank, specializing in media), film producer, & founding member of Breitbart News, which he called “the platform of the alt-right,” whose publications have been a channel for misogynist, xenophobic, & racist ideologies. Position : Counselor to the President / “Chief Strategist”

In charge of : Any number of undefined things.

Major Concerns : It’s hard to say. Richard Nixon created the cabinet position of “Counselor to the President” in the ’70s and the position has been filled (or, in some cases, not filled) with varying numbers of people who’ve played quite different roles over the last fifty years. This position appears to be a kind of blank check, as it were. And Donald Trump appears to have made up the title of “Chief Strategist” — so, uh, I freely admit that I don’t quite know what to make of this one. The only thing we know for certain is that, whatever Bannon ends up doing, the public will be paying his salary… Status: Trump’s Confirmed Pick Rudy Giuliani – Secretary of State Summary: Former mayor of New York City, lawyer, investment banker, & former candidate for the republican presidential nomination. Position : Secretary of State

In charge of : Heads the State Department. The Secretary of State is in charge of foreign policy, often meeting with the leaders of other nations and acting as a spokesperson for United States’ interests.

Major Concerns : Rudy Giuliani has been regarded as perhaps the most vocal cheerleader for Bush’s war on Muslims and continues to defend the Iraq War. While Giuliani has sometimes expressed more enlightened views on immigration than most republicans, he remains quite a bit to the right of them on foreign policy. Top 5 Donors Ernst & Young (“Professional services,” 11th largest private corp in the US)

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (banking)

Merrill Lynch (investment, big player in the 2008 financial collapse)

Credit Suisse (investment banking)

Citigroup (investment banking) Source: OpenSecrets *List from 2008. It’s alsoworth mentioning that Giuliani’s top 5 donors could also be used as a list of companies that destroyed the economy in 2008.

Status : No longer on the list, unlikely No longer on the list, unlikely Wilbur Ross – Secretary of Commerce Summary: Billionaire, banker, investor, & vulture capitalist known for buying out struggling & failing companies, either increasing their profitability by reducing employees or liquidating them. Position : Secretary of Commerce

In charge of : Heads the Department of Commerce. Charged with promoting American business, with a vague goal “to foster, promote, and develop the foreign and domestic commerce.” Oversees the seemingly unrelated Census and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Major Concerns : A guy whose main job has been firing people & liquidating assets may be in charge of commerce. Status: Expected Pick, Pending Confirmation Reince Priebus – Chief of Staff Summary: Current chair of the Republican National Committee, which basically makes Priebus the head honcho of the GOP. He is largely credited with leading the republicans back to unity in the wake of the Tea Party movement. Position : White House Chief of Staff

In charge of : Sometimes referred to as “the Gatekeeper” to the president, the Chief of Staff usually manages White House staff, the presidential schedule, & often controls who gets an appointment with the president. Depending on a president’s leadership-style, the chief of staff may also act as the president’s negotiator with congressional leaders.

Major Concerns : There is concern among Trump’s anti-establishment voters that appointing Priebus, who is seen as the spokesperson for the GOP establishment, will seriously threaten any progress toward “draining the swamp” in Washington DC. Status: Trump’s Confirmed Pick Jeff Sessions – Attorney General Summary: Alabama Senator who proposed a national ban of gay marriage, supported the Iraq war, & supported “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in the military. The National Journal ranked Sessions as the 5th most conservative senator in 2007. Position : Attorney General

In charge of : Heads the Department of Justice. The Attorney General is basically the “final boss” of the legal system — they take the government’s side, if your case makes it to the Supreme Court.

Major Concerns : Sessions, a man who once said the NAACP & ACLU were “un-American” & “communist-inspired” for “shoving civil-rights down people’s throats, would determine how laws are enforced as head of the DOJ. : Attorney General: Heads the Department of Justice. The Attorney General is basically the “final boss” of the legal system — they take the government’s side, if your case makes it to the Supreme Court.: Sessions, a man whothe NAACP & ACLU were “un-American” & “communist-inspired” for “shoving civil-rights down people’s throats, would determine how laws are enforced as head of the DOJ. Top 5 Donors Southern Co (Electric/ Telecommunications Corp)

Balch & Bingham (corporate law firm)

Harbert Management (investment)

Drummond Co (coal)

WPP Group (marketing & media planning) Source: OpenSecrets Status : Trump’s Confirmed Pick Trump’s Confirmed Pick

Trump isn’t going to drain the swamp — he’s going to institutionalize it. Those who voted for Donald Trump because they wanted to burn the establishment down need to look beyond what Trump is saying to what Trump is doing & who Trump is appointing. Believe me, I want to drain the cesspool of Washington DC, too — but this isn’t what that looks like.

In solidarity,

John Laurits #SeeYouInDC

P.S. I’ll create updated versions of this article, with new profiles, as new appointments become known — also, if you haven’t, check out the new page on this site, called “Citizen Journalist Toolkit,” and let me know what you think!

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