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    • Who is RFK Jr.? Who is Matt Gaetz? What is HHS? Trump’s cabinet chooses
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    Who is RFK Jr.? Who is Matt Gaetz? What is HHS? Trump’s cabinet chooses

    Online Niel Posted on

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    President-elect Donald Trump is rapidly building his cabinet ahead of the 2025 inauguration.

    Trump has tapped some familiar names in conservative circles to help lead the United States for the next four years in the White House, not all of them politicians.

    This week, the Republican president-elect added the names of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Matt Gaetz, Marco Rubio, Tulsi Gabbard and Pete Hegseth to the list of those he wants to lead departments during his administration.

    More names are sure to come as 2024 draws to a close and Trump’s second and final term as president begins. Here’s a look at who was named and what spots will need to be filled.

    Who else has Trump nominated to head government agencies?

    All together, Trump has nominated eight people to the highest-ranking roles overseeing multiple agencies in the United States government.

    Here are the latest positions Trump has named since Thursday:

    Who is Matt Gaetz? What does the Attorney General do?

    Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla.was selected by Trump for the role of US Attorney General. Gaetz, a staunch supporter of MAGA, resigned his seat in the House of Representatives on Wednesday “effective immediately” after receiving approval from Trump.

    The Florida attorney has been a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 2017 and won re-election to his seat, but the seat needs to be filled.

    The resignation also put an end to it House Ethics Committee investigation into Gaetz.

    The ethics committee spent three years examining a variety of allegations that Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use, accepted “inappropriate gifts” and offered special favors. Gaetz has denied the allegations. The panel was to decide whether their report on the matter would be made public on Friday, but the investigation ended as soon as Gaetz resigned.

    House Judiciary Committee member Madeleine Dean, D-D., on Thursday called on the Ethics Committee to “come forward and transparently show us what they found, and then let the chips fall where they may.”

    Other lawmakers have weighed in on the information that has been released, especially since Gaetz is being tapped for the high office and could make a difference during Senate confirmation hearings.

    If confirmed by the Senate as US attorney general, Gaetz would head the Justice Department, which he has criticized in the past. He would also represent the United States in legal matters and provide advice and opinions to the President and the heads of executive departments of the government when needed.

    “I don’t think it’s a serious nomination for attorney general,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, D-Alaska, according to USA TODAY. “We need to have a serious attorney general, and I look forward to the opportunity to consider someone who is serious.”

    Who is Tulsi Gabbard? What is DNI?

    Former Hawaii GOP Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, a former 2020 Democratic presidential candidate turned Trump supporter, has been named Trump’s pick for the Department of National Intelligence.

    “I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our intelligence community, upholding our constitutional rights and securing peace through strength,” Trump said in a statement.

    Gabbard, 43, is a native of American Samoa who was a rising star in the Democratic Party before she left in 2022. She was an Army officer who deployed to the Middle East and later became a critic of the Iraq War, which helped her gain credibility. with progressives, USA TODAY reports.

    Gabbard’s intelligence experience is nominal compared to the current director, Avril Haines, who was deputy director of the CIA and deputy national security adviser before taking over. In addition to her time in politics, Gabbard was in the National Guard and was deployed during the Iraq War with a field medical unit and later returned to the Middle East as an officer to lead a military police platoon and as a trainer for the counter-terrorism unit of the Kuwait National Guard. .

    If confirmed by the Senate, Gabbard would be in charge of 18 agencies, including the National Security Agency, the FBI and the CIA.

    Who is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.? What is HHS?

    On Thursday, Trump announced the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), the department that oversees the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among others. .

    “The safety and health of all Americans is the most important role of any administration, and HHS will play an important role in ensuring that everyone is protected from the harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming crisis of health in this country,” Trump said in a statement about X.

    Kennedy, 70, is the son of Robert F. Kennedy, brother of President John F, Kennedy and former attorney general, whose 1968 bid for president was cut short when he was assassinated in Los Angeles, California.

    An environmental lawyer, Kennedy also ran for president this year as a third-party candidate before withdrawing and endorsing Trump. He became nationally known in part because of his opposition to vaccines—including the childhood measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines—based on debunked claims that they were linked to autism. USA TODAY reported. He also opposed COVID-19 vaccines during the pandemic.

    Kennedy also opposed the Food and Drug Administration, warning on X last month that the organization’s “war on public health is about to end.” He called the FDA’s decisions on psychedelics, raw milk, hydroxychloroquine, stem cells and ivermectin, among others, “aggressive suppression.”

    How many more cabinet posts does Trump have to fill?

    There are 16 more positions for which Trump has not announced nominations. Here is what needs to be completed:

    • Department of the Secretary of the Treasury
    • Secretary of the Department of the Interior
    • Secretary of the Department of Agriculture
    • Secretary of the Department of Commerce
    • Secretary of the Department of Labor
    • Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services
    • Secretary Department of Housing and Urban Development
    • Secretary of the Department of Transport
    • Secretary of the Department of Energy
    • Secretary of the Department of Education
    • Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs
    • United States Trade Representative
    • President of the Council of Economic Advisers
    • Small business business administrator
    • Director of the Office of Management and Budget
    • Director of the Science and Technology Policy Office

    USA TODAY contributed to this report

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