Transition Team/Cabinet Thread

[Heisenberg]

Heitkamp staying in the Senate.

I'm such an idiot for falling for that one. Someone else also on PredictIt posted this fake Anderson Cooper tweet. The fact that Heidi's last name was spelled wrong is a dead giveaway. Not just that, but go to his Twitter account and it isn't even there.

[Heisenberg]

I don't really like where this is going...

Politics1.com ‏@Politics1com
US Sen Joe Manchin (D-WV) told Chuck Todd he's "miserable" in Senate (not a "DC Democrat" type); & says Tillerson "has the heart of a lion"

Didn't little Marco say the same thing?

He'd be better off leaving and having Jim Justice appoint a real dem to his position

A real Dem would lose to just about anyone except Stupid Alex.

[KingSweden]

I don't really like where this is going...

Politics1.com ‏@Politics1com
US Sen Joe Manchin (D-WV) told Chuck Todd he's "miserable" in Senate (not a "DC Democrat" type); & says Tillerson "has the heart of a lion"

Didn't little Marco say the same thing?

He'd be better off leaving and having Jim Justice appoint a real dem to his position

A real Dem would lose to just about anyone except Stupid Alex.

Tomblin would be formidable, I'd have to think?

[The Other Castro]

Some pretty interesting tidbits in this story about how Trump ended up with Tillerson for State:

-Giuliani was the first choice, and was pushed hard by Gingrich, but Trump was concerned with his stamina and ego. Giuliani would only take State, so he walked away from anything else.

-Romney was the next choice, just behind Giuliani. He had a sense of duty and would only take State, but Trump's team was against Romney. A Romney ally claims Trump had requested a public apology from Romney, but Romney refused (Trump's team denies this).

-Corker stayed in the mix, but was mostly considered as a backup choice.

-Petraeus then became the focus, but consideration ended following news about his probation.

-Trump then met with Bob Gates, who recommended Tillerson. Gates' recommendation appears to have been key in Trump's decision.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-wasnt-happy-with-his-state-department-finalists-then-he-heard-a-new-name/2016/12/13/0727658e-c161-11e6-8422-eac61c0ef74d_story.html?utm_term=.63bc91710151

[Heisenberg]

I don't really like where this is going...

Politics1.com ‏@Politics1com
US Sen Joe Manchin (D-WV) told Chuck Todd he's "miserable" in Senate (not a "DC Democrat" type); & says Tillerson "has the heart of a lion"

Didn't little Marco say the same thing?

He'd be better off leaving and having Jim Justice appoint a real dem to his position

A real Dem would lose to just about anyone except Stupid Alex.

Tomblin would be formidable, I'd have to think?

True, but since his views are a lot like Manchin, I don't think he's a "real Dem" to him.

[The Other Castro]

Non-Cabinet, White House Trump team news:

Press Secretary:
-Sean Spicer is the leading candidate

Communications Director:
-ABC's Chris Vlasto, and Trump spokesman Jason Miller are candidates
-FOX's Laura Ingraham and Monica Crowley are under consideration, but likely longshots
-Katrina Pierson auditioned for the job, but is not a top contender

http://money.cnn.com/2016/12/14/media/white-house-press-secretary-sean-spicer-laura-ingraham/index.html

[Santander]

Katrina Pierson is an amazing woman who I admire a lot and I would love to see her play a role in the Trump Administration.

[ApatheticAustrian]

Katrina Pierson is an amazing woman who I admire a lot and I would love to see her play a role in the Trump Administration.

compared to her i think mister trump himself is not only far more disciplined, he is also a much quicker thinker and much more cultivated.

[KingSweden]

Some pretty interesting tidbits in this story about how Trump ended up with Tillerson for State:

-Giuliani was the first choice, and was pushed hard by Gingrich, but Trump was concerned with his stamina and ego. Giuliani would only take State, so he walked away from anything else.

-Romney was the next choice, just behind Giuliani. He had a sense of duty and would only take State, but Trump's team was against Romney. A Romney ally claims Trump had requested a public apology from Romney, but Romney refused (Trump's team denies this).

-Corker stayed in the mix, but was mostly considered as a backup choice.

-Petraeus then became the focus, but consideration ended following news about his probation.

-Trump then met with Bob Gates, who recommended Tillerson. Gates' recommendation appears to have been key in Trump's decision.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-wasnt-happy-with-his-state-department-finalists-then-he-heard-a-new-name/2016/12/13/0727658e-c161-11e6-8422-eac61c0ef74d_story.html?utm_term=.63bc91710151

I would imagine, if Tillerson goes down, Corker is the backup choice (should have been Choice 1 from beginning but that's neither here nor there)

[The Other Castro]

As it turns out, Vlasto just took himself out of the running for Communications Director. Looks like Jason Miller is pretty likely now.

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/12/trump-communications-good-morning-america-232655

[Illiniwek]

Katrina Pierson is an amazing woman who I admire a lot and I would love to see her play a role in the Trump Administration.

Gag

[PresidentSamTilden]

This Tillerson pick is wild to me. Everything else aside (climate, interest conflicts), the fact that he is so connected to Russia is a real issue. Especially with all of this info coming out about them interfering in the election and wanting Trump to win.

If nothing else, shouldn't the administration distance itself from these claims? What kind of message does this send to our allies? Are we just gonna hand everything over to the Russian influence so Trump and his business buddies can make more money? Does that actually benefit the country, or do you guys just think what's good for Trump is good for us all now?

Even some of you blue avatars have to be wondering about this...

[Blue3]

[Anna Komnene]

Trump picks Cramer for Agriculture

Nice nice.

From some light reading, Zinke actually seems like a really solid choice for Interior (from a GOP perspective). He's one of the only Western GOPers who is against selling off public lands and seems to have a conservationist streak. Much better than, say, Raul Labrador

Agreed.  And much better than CMR on that.  It's not a complete disaster anyway.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

-Trump then met with Bob Gates, who recommended Tillerson. Gates' recommendation appears to have been key in Trump's decision.

I view Robert Gates as one of America's finest public servants.  Six presidents agree, including Obama.

[Sir Mohamed]

-Trump then met with Bob Gates, who recommended Tillerson. Gates' recommendation appears to have been key in Trump's decision.

I view Robert Gates as one of America's finest public servants.  Six presidents agree, including Obama.

I don’t know whether it’s rumors; but I heard the Trumpster only rejected Romney because he refused to apologize. No idea whether that’s the actual reason he picked the oil dude.

[The Other Castro]

Jennifer Jacobs ‏@JenniferJJacobs
TRUMP MEETINGS TODAY
Joel Kaplan, ex Bush staffer
Pete Hegseth, VA secretary candidate
Dan DiMicco, possible US trade rep
US Rep Peter King.


Also, Graham is likely a NO on Tillerson.

Toluse Olorunnipa ‏@ToluseO
Sen. Lindsey Graham said on Fox News that if Rex Tillerson doesn't acknowledge Russia hacked election and support *new* sanctions, he's a no

Manu Raju ‏@mkraju  23m23 minutes ago
I asked Lindsey Graham what it would take for him to back Tillerson: "Adopt my position" on Russia

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

I wish Lindsey Graham and John McCain would both STFU and go away for good.

[The Other Castro]

Maggie Haberman ‏@maggieNYT  24s25 seconds ago
Trump transition said to be eyeing Navy Admiral Michelle Howard to head the VA. Link tk

[ApatheticAustrian]

I wish Lindsey Graham and John McCain would both STFU and go away for good.

the gop has no place anymore for patriots and conservatives i guess...especially for those who support democracy.

[ag]

I wish Lindsey Graham and John McCain would both STFU and go away for good.

If they could get just one more Senator in the Dem caucus with them, it would really be great!

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

I wish Lindsey Graham and John McCain would both STFU and go away for good.

the gop has no place anymore for patriots and conservatives i guess...especially for those who support democracy.

No, it doesn't. It's support of Trump has made that very clear.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Maggie Haberman ‏@maggieNYT  24s25 seconds ago
Trump transition said to be eyeing Navy Admiral Michelle Howard to head the VA. Link tk

Seems like another decent choice.

Veterans' issues are another area I care a lot about, although I'm not as knowledgeable about them as I wish I were.

[President Johnson]

Maggie Haberman ‏@maggieNYT  24s25 seconds ago
Trump transition said to be eyeing Navy Admiral Michelle Howard to head the VA. Link tk

Seems like another decent choice.

Veterans' issues are another area I care a lot about, although I'm not as knowledgeable about them as I wish I were.

The number of women in his administration is still horrifying.

[Mike67]

Lindsey Graham and John McCain should just leave and shut the hell up.