Politics
Trump faces new setbacks as he tries to fill his Cabinet
Over the last 24 hours, Donald Trump lost his pick to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration. His choice for Defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, is struggling to gain support from Senate Republicans. The president-elect is now even considering his one-time rival, Gov. Ron DeSantis, to lead the Pentagon.
And these shake-ups to his not-yet-formed administration come after former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration as Trump’s choice for attorney general.
All told, the setbacks are raising new questions about Trump’s power over his party, whether Republicans would submit to any and all of his demands — and the expectation that his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, would bring order to Trump’s transition and White House.
On Tuesday, Chad Chronister, Trump’s choice for DEA administrator, abruptly withdrew from consideration just days after being announced, saying in a post on X he made the decision “as the gravity of this very important responsibility set in,” without citing a specific reason. Chronister, a county sheriff in Florida, had drawn criticism from some conservatives over his actions during the Covid-19 pandemic but was not seen as one of Trump’s more controversial administration picks.
He was the second Trump nominee to drop out of consideration in as many weeks, following Gaetz’s brief, whiplash-inducing candidacy, which thrust Capitol Hill into chaos over a sealed ethics report into the former Florida congressman. Trump ultimately replaced Gaetz with former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi.
And now, as new reports come out about Hegseth that could further impede his confirmation by the Senate — including allegations of sexual assault and alcohol abuse — Trump is considering dropping the former Fox host and installing another Florida man: his, and Wiles’, old foe DeSantis.
Hegseth took to Capitol Hill on Wednesday to meet with Senate Republicans, including the chamber’s incoming leadership and Sen. Joni Ernst, who is seen as a potential swing vote on his nomination. He told reporters he was still in the race — and that Trump himself had told him to “keep fighting.”
“Why would I back down? I’ve always been a fighter,” Hegseth said.
Trump’s thinking on potentially replacing Hegseth with DeSantis was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Trump has also floated other names, including Ernst, a Senate Armed Services Committee member and sexual assault survivor, and Elbridge Colby, a Trump ally and former Pentagon official, according to the Journal.
Swapping Hegseth for DeSantis could be politically savvy for Trump: DeSantis is a rising star in the party who, as governor, likely has far fewer skeletons in his closet than Trump’s other, more controversial picks. But it would also sting for Trump, who sparred publicly with DeSantis during his shortlived GOP primary campaign — which Wiles is credited with obliterating as part of a longstanding feud.
A Trump transition spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
SEATTLE — Some American fans walking toward Lumen Field on Friday morning were playfully jeering their Australian peers whenever they spotted a telltale yellow jersey. But a major driver of the local economy offered a kinder greeting to the visiting team.
Cranes in view of the stadium gates have been outfitted with the Australian flag and a WELCOME message from the Northwest Seaport Alliance, which manages the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, along with dockworkers’ union ILWU Local 19.
The seaport alliance and the labor union representing its workforce are mounting a similar display throughout the World Cup, rotating flags out to reflect the pair of teams that will face off next in Seattle. But keeping the Australians happy is a more urgent cause for Seattle harbor interests than, say, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Qatar.
Australia is one of the ports’ top trading partners, with the 14th largest source of container volume at the Port of Seattle, but ranks much higher when it comes to the dollar value of goods that come from there. (New Zealand, for example, sends more volume to Seattle than Australia but it’s worth only half as much.)
Meat, including beef and lamb, and minerals comprise the biggest categories of goods that Australia ships to the United States, although some of the most valuable exports — gold and pharmaceuticals — are more likely to land at Sea-Tac airport than via the harbor.
The U.S. and Australia have had a free-trade pact since 2005, although President Donald Trump’s tariff regime threatens to disrupt some trade flows. Australia is currently pushing back on its inclusion on an American list of countries alleged to use forced labor in its supply chains, which the U.S. Trade Representative is using as the basis to impose a 12.5 percent tariff.
The Wisconsin Republican’s legislation follows a string of high-profile episodes of alleged insider trading on the new markets…
Read More
The best-selling newspaper in Sydney, Australia, is out with a pep talk for the country’s national team ahead of its match today against the United States:
- The Americans who want to see Australia do well
- Steil pushes bill to ban lawmakers from political prediction markets
- Australian media are launching a MAGA counterpress
- The clock is ticking on an Iran talks. Here’s what still has to get done.
- New York mayor, other leaders push to ban horse-drawn carriage rides after Indian teen’s death
- Sen. Duckworth urges FAA to reject pressure to approve Trump’s triumphal arch
- The Pentagon says the Iran war cost $29 billion. Experts say it’s far more.
- Republicans raise concerns that Trump’s Iran deal could come at Israel’s expense
- The clock is ticking on an Iran talks. Here’s what still has to get done.
- Steil pushes bill to ban lawmakers from political prediction markets
-
Politics1 year agoFormer ‘Squad’ members launching ‘Bowman and Bush’ YouTube show
-
The Dictatorship1 year agoLuigi Mangione acknowledges public support in first official statement since arrest
-
Politics1 year agoFormer Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron launches Senate bid
-
Uncategorized2 years ago
Bob Good to step down as Freedom Caucus chair this week
-
The Dictatorship1 year agoPete Hegseth’s tenure at the Pentagon goes from bad to worse
-
The Josh Fourrier Show2 years agoDOOMSDAY: Trump won, now what?
-
Politics1 year agoBlue Light News’s Editorial Director Ryan Hutchins speaks at Blue Light News’s 2025 Governors Summit
-
The Dictatorship9 months agoMike Johnson sums up the GOP’s arrogant position on military occupation with two words