Trump Administration

Politico reports: President-elect Donald Trump said Tuesday that he is selecting former U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador Ronald Johnson to be the next U.S. ambassador to Mexico. Johnson, a Green Beret who spent more than 20 years at the Central Intelligence Agency before a diplomatic posting in San Salvador, would bring significant foreign policy expertise to one of the most …

Politico reports: Trump has picked Brooke Rollins as his Agriculture secretary, after weeks of intense internal fighting over the role. Rollins served as director of the Office of American Innovation and acting director of the Domestic Policy Council during the first Trump administration. Since her time in the White House, Rollins has co-founded and helmed the America First Policy Institute …

CNN reports: President-elect Donald Trump on Friday named former NFL player and White House official Scott Turner to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development. If confirmed by the Senate, Turner would lead an agency that enforces fair housing laws, administers mortgage insurance to prospective homeowners and gives rental subsidies to lower-income families, among other things. Turner serves as …

The New York Times reports: Lori Chavez-DeRemer, a first-term Republican representative from Oregon who narrowly lost her House seat this month, was chosen on Friday to serve as labor secretary in the coming Trump administration. “Lori has worked tirelessly with both business and labor to build America’s work force, and support the hardworking men and women of America,” President-elect Donald …

Axios reports: President-elect Trump is looking more seriously at Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) for Treasury secretary — giving Trump three serious options for one of the few roles where he’s taking his time, transition sources tell me. Hagerty, a former private-equity investor who was Trump’s ambassador to Japan, is one of three apparent finalists, along with former Fed governor Kevin …

The New York Times reports: President-elect Donald J. Trump on Sunday chose Brendan Carr to be chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, naming a veteran Republican regulator who has publicly agreed with the incoming administration’s promises to slash regulation, go after Big Tech and punish TV networks for political bias. Mr. Carr, who currently sits on the commission, is expected …

Politico reports: Elon Musk is backing Donald Trump’s transition co-chair Howard Lutnick to lead the Treasury Department, touting the billionaire CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald as a potential secretary who “will actually enact change” from the most powerful economic post in Trump’s Cabinet. Musk labeled another prime contender for the post, hedge fund CEO Scott Bessent, a “business-as-usual choice,” he posted …

CNN reports: Donald Trump has chosen John Ratcliffe to serve as his CIA director, the president-elect announced in a statement Tuesday. Ratcliffe had been high on the list of potential attorney general candidates, sources told CNN. He is currently a co-chair at the Center for American Security at the America First Policy Institute, a Trump-linked think tank. Ratcliffe stayed in …

CNN reports: President-elect Donald Trump has selected South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as his next secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, according to two people familiar with the selection. Noem will be tapped to take over the agency as two key immigration hardliners — Stephen Miller and Tom Homan — are slated to serve in senior roles, signaling Trump …

The New York Times reports: President-elect Donald J. Trump is expected to name Senator Marco Rubio of Florida as his secretary of state, three people familiar with his thinking said on Monday, as Mr. Trump moves rapidly to fill out his foreign policy and national security team. Mr. Trump could still change his mind at the last minute, the people …

CNN reports: President-elect Donald Trump is expected to announce in the coming days that Stephen Miller, his top immigration adviser, will serve as White House deputy chief of staff for policy, two sources familiar with the plans told CNN. Miller, who served as a senior adviser to Trump during his first administration and has been a leading advocate for more …

The Washington Post reports: President-elect Donald Trump has announced that Tom Homan, former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, will serve as “border czar” in his incoming administration. “I am pleased to announce that the Former ICE Director, and stalwart on Border Control, Tom Homan, will be joining the Trump Administration, in charge of our Nation’s Borders,” Trump wrote …

Posted just now to Trump’s Truth Social account: I am reading reports that failed former Lt. Governor of Georgia, Jeff Duncan, will be testifying before the Fulton County Grand Jury. He shouldn’t. I barely know him but he was, right from the beginning of this Witch Hunt, a nasty disaster for those looking into the Election Fraud that took place …

The New York Times reports: Three years after receiving a $700 million pandemic-era lifeline from the federal government, the struggling freight trucking company Yellow is filing for bankruptcy. After monthslong negotiations between Yellow’s management and the Teamsters union broke down, the company shut its operations late last month, and said on Sunday that it was seeking bankruptcy protection so it …

NBC News reports: NBC News reached out to 44 of the dozens of people who served in Trump’s Cabinet over his term in office. Most declined to comment or ignored the requests. A total of four have said publicly they support his run for re-election. Several have been coy about where they stand, stopping short of endorsing Trump. Then there …

The Washington Post reports: Federal prosecutors announced new charges against Donald Trump in his alleged hoarding and hiding of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago home, alleging the former president and a newly-charged aide tried to keep security camera footage from being reviewed by investigators. Trump was also hit with a fresh charge, in addition to the 31 counts he already …

The Associated Press reports: Criminals and gangs grabbed the money. But so did a U.S. soldier in Georgia, the pastors of a defunct church in Texas, a former state lawmaker in Missouri and a roofing contractor in Montana. All of it led to the greatest grift in U.S. history, with thieves plundering billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief aid …

The Associated Press reports: President Joe Biden has fired the embattled Architect of the Capitol, the official who oversees the U.S. Capitol complex, officials said. The White House said Monday that Brett Blanton’s appointment was terminated. It comes as House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he’d lost confidence in Blanton’s ability to do the job. Blanton allegedly misrepresented himself as a …

CNN reports: A US military intelligence report from last year that focused on China’s use of high-altitude balloons mentioned sightings in Hawaii and Florida during the Trump presidency, according to an excerpt of the report reviewed by CNN. The April 2022 report, titled “People’s Republic of China High-Altitude Balloon,” found a Chinese spy balloon “circumnavigated the globe” in 2019 – …

The Daily Caller reports: Then-first lady Melania Trump sat in one of the Situation Room’s most important chairs during the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and offered former President Donald Trump advice after the attack, former acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller reveals in his new book. Melania Trump’s presence in the Situation Room was “unexpected,” and she entered …