by Josh Guckert
While some anticipate radical change in Donald Trump‘s cabinet, the reality is likely to be far less exciting. It is to be expected that Trump will be largely counseled on his choices by those who have been in politics, particularly given his unprecedented lack of expertise in the political arena.
His advisory team (and eventual Cabinet) will consist of numerous Republican faces from the past:
- Rudy Giuliani, the “mayor of America” who most famously worked hand-in-hand with President George W. Bush in the aftermath of September 11, 2001 who used this acclaim to become an early front-runner for the GOP establishment in the 2008 presidential election. He was previously appointed to be first a U.S. Associate Attorney General and later a U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York by President Ronald Reagan;
- Chris Christie, the former darling of the Republican establishment whom the GOP begged to run in 2012. As he stated (many, many times) during this year’s Republican primary, he was appointed as a U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey by President Bush shortly after the September 11 terrorist attacks;
- Newt Gingrich, who was first elected to the House of Representatives during the early beginnings of what would become the “Reagan Revolution.” He was selected as House Minority Whip at the beginning of George H.W. Bush‘s Presidency before being elevated to House Speaker in 1995 to oppose Bill Clinton. Though having some more recent scuffles with the establishment, particularly since his 2012 run for the presidency, he remains loyal to the GOP brand;
- Jeff Sessions, the incumbent U.S. Senator from Alabama who has served for twenty years in the upper body of Congress. He was previously appointed by President Reagan to be the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama.
- John Bolton, a renowned neoconservative who served in various roles under Presidents Reagan, Bush, and (younger) Bush, most prominently serving as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations to the latter.
This reality should also be apparent due to the last radical Republican “change of pace” presidency we had in Ronald Reagan. Just as Reagan promised in various terms to weed out corruption in the aftermath of Watergate, his own Administration included dozens of Republicans who had prominent roles in the Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford White Houses.
That mentality could just as easily carry over to Trump’s selection of Supreme Court justices. It is highly possible that the nominee to replace Antonin Scalia could more resemble John Roberts than Andrew Napolitano. With this all in mind, conservatives and libertarians should delay any anger or excitement until Trump’s plans become clearer.