The incoming President of the United States, Donald Trump, is getting a handle on who will make up his administration when he is sworn in on January 20, 2025.
On Friday, he recently announced that 27-year-old Karoline Leavitt will become spokeswoman in the White House. She thus becomes the youngest member of the staff so far.
While Trump himself has a full mandate to fill some of the positions in the administration – for example his spokesperson – the future ministers must also be approved by the Senate once they have been appointed.
Below you can get an overview of Trump’s team – ranked as far as possible by influence, with ministers first and other staff further down:
* MARCO RUBIO (age 53) – Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Marco Rubio is a senator from Florida. He has previously criticized UN resolutions criticizing Israel’s settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. He has also said that Ukraine must enter into a peace agreement with Russia, even if this means that Ukraine must cede territories that Russia has occupied in the war.
* PETE HEGSETH (age 44) – Minister of Defence.
Pete Hegseth is the host of the conservative television station Fox News and has a background in the US military. He has also been director of several interest organizations for American veterans.
* MATT GAETZ (age 42) – Minister of Justice.
Matt Gaetz, who is elected to the House of Representatives, will be the Attorney General. He is considered one of the most right-wing Republicans in Congress.
* DOUG BURGUM (age 68) – Minister of the Interior.
Doug Burgum is a successful American businessman who has held senior positions at, among others, Microsoft and large capital funds before entering politics. He is the incumbent governor of North Carolina.
* ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR. (age 70) – Minister of Health.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is from a prominent political family who have always been Democrats. Kennedy Jr. ran for president as an independent and has since thrown his support behind Trump. He has caused a stir with vaccine-skeptic statements and conspiracy theories.
* KRISTI NOEM (52 years) – Minister for Internal Security.
The incoming secretary of homeland security comes from the post of governor of the state of South Dakota. Among other things, she will be responsible for the US immigration authority and is expected to follow Trump’s line on a strict immigration policy.
* SUSIE WILES (67 år) – Chief of Staff.
Susie Wiles was the first member of Trump’s incoming administration to be confirmed. Wiles spearheaded Trump’s election campaign, and she will be America’s first ever female chief of staff.
* LEE ZELDIN (age 44) – Head of the US Environmental Agency.
Lee Zeldin is a former Republican member of the House of Representatives. He will head the Environmental Protection Agency and is expected to roll back parts of Joe Biden’s environmental policy.
* TULSI GABBARD (age 43) – Chief of the intelligence services.
Tulsi Gabbard, ex-member of Congress, becomes head of America’s 17 intelligence agencies. She refers directly to the president. Gabbard is known for her outspoken criticism of the United States’ role in foreign wars and coups d’état. She has previously been elected to the House of Representatives for the Democrats.
* ELISE STEFANIK (40 years) – UN ambassador.
The new UN ambassador Elise Stefanik is a Republican member of the House and belongs to the right wing of the party. Both before the election in 2020 and before the election this year, she was mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate for Trump.
* JOHN RATCLIFFE (age 59) – Director of the CIA.
John Ratcliffe is the former Director of the US National Intelligence Service, NSA. He will henceforth serve as director of the CIA, which primarily deals with foreign affairs.
* MIKE WALTZ (age 50) – National Security Adviser.
Waltz comes from a seat in the House of Representatives, to which he was elected in 2018. He has worked for the military for 27 years and has, among other things, been deployed to Afghanistan. He is known to be a China-skeptic and has repeatedly voted against sending military aid to Ukraine.
* TOM HOMAN (age 62) – Border manager.
Tom Homan, who has a past as acting head of the US border agency ICE, has been appointed as Trump’s border chief – “The Border Czar” in Trump’s own words. He is expected to stand for a tough border policy.
* KAROLINE LEAVITT (age 27) – Spokeswoman in the White House.
Karoline Leavitt has served as spokeswoman during Trump’s election campaign and will now also handle the press in the White House. She is so far the youngest member of Trump’s incoming administration.
* STEVE WITKOFF (age 67) – Special Envoy to the Middle East.
Real estate investor Steve Witkoff becomes US special envoy to the Middle East. Witkoff is a friend of Trump’s and the two occasionally play golf together. Witkoff has financially supported the Trump campaign during the election campaign.
* ELON MUSK (age 53) and VIVEK RAMASWAMY (age 39) – Management of efficiency unit.
The wealthy Elon Musk, together with the entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, will be at the head of a new efficiency unit. Musk has supported Trump during the election campaign. Ramaswamy has previously tried to become the Republican presidential candidate. The two are tasked with reducing the bureaucracy of the United States government.
* WILLIAM MCGINLEY (age unknown) – Special Advisor to the White House.
William McGinley has served as Cabinet Secretary during Trump’s previous term as President. From now on, he will be a special adviser to the White House.
Source: Reuters.
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Source: www.kristeligt-dagblad.dk
