During his transition so far, President-elect Donald Trump has made several moves that suggest he has learned from his first term in office and aims to avoid some of the missteps that hindered his agenda previously. From ceremonial actions and personnel choices to his interactions with congressional leaders and restructuring of White House decision-making, Trump’s second transition stands in sharp contrast to the post-2016 election period. The tone for his return to the White House has been notably more cordial, highlighted by his meeting with President Joe Biden on Wednesday—a step he chose not to take in 2020.
“Politics is tough, and in many cases not a very nice world, but it is a nice world today,” Trump said while meeting with the commander-in-chief. The structure of Trump’s government appears to be taking shape much more swiftly than during the previous transition. Public interest in his cabinet picks is high, with the president-elect announcing his selections in quick succession, akin to a sports draft. While some of his choices have raised eyebrows, they provide important insights into Trump’s priorities and approach, Just the News reported.
Trump’s first cabinet was marked by instability, with many senior officials either resigning in frustration or being dismissed over the course of his four years in office. Some of these personnel issues stemmed from his selection of establishment Republican figures and neoconservative war hawks for key roles. For example, former Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus was appointed chief of staff but lasted less than a year in the position.
Many of Trump’s ex-military appointments, such as Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Chief of Staff John Kelly, also parted ways with him over policy and personality clashes. National Security Advisor John Bolton was also dismissed following intense foreign policy disagreements with Trump. While Trump’s new cabinet is still taking shape, his picks for key positions have shown a notably different direction. Instead of choosing a national GOP figure, Trump selected Susie Wiles, who led his campaign, as chief of staff, ensuring a loyalist remained close by in the White House, the outlet noted further.
He also publicly confirmed that he would not invite former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo back into the administration, both of whom are considered neoconservatives and hawkish figures in the GOP. For the military, Trump chose Pete Hegseth as secretary of defense. A Fox News weekend host and combat veteran, Hegseth’s selection was seen as unconventional.
Trump and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., often clashed during the 2016 primary and throughout Trump’s first term. Trump was also at odds with the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who famously opposed Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. McConnell will no longer lead Senate Republicans in Trump’s second term. On Wednesday, the Senate selected Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., to serve as majority leader. The leadership contest saw Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., mount another bid for leadership, hoping to challenge Senate norms, Just the News added.
Thune defeated Scott and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. Before the vote, Thune, the South Dakota Republican, had urged Trump to stay out of the race. While many of Trump’s surrogates publicly supported Scott, Trump himself refrained from endorsing a candidate in the contest. Thune and Cornyn had both been vocal critics of Trump after he left office, though they worked to rebuild their relationships with him leading up to the vote. By staying neutral in the contest, Trump seems to have avoided a potential conflict with the candidates and Senate leadership—a sharp contrast to his more confrontational approach during his first term.
Most Senate Republicans who voted to impeach Trump will not be in office when he returns to the White House. However, several remain, and with a narrow majority in the Senate, Trump can ill afford to alienate too many of those lawmakers.
In 2016, Trump faced challenges securing the confirmation of his initial cabinet picks, with several key appointments taking months and requiring tie-breaking votes to finalize. This time, Trump is working to avoid a repeat of that process by utilizing recess appointments. His primary involvement in the leadership race was to demand that candidates agree to support recess appointments to ensure his cabinet could be established quickly.
“Any Republican Senator seeking the coveted LEADERSHIP position in the United States Senate must agree to Recess Appointments (in the Senate!), without which we will not be able to get people confirmed in a timely manner,” he posted this week. “Sometimes the votes can take two years, or more. This is what they did four years ago, and we cannot let it happen again. We need positions filled IMMEDIATELY!”
Trump’s first administration faced widespread leaks to the press, some of which undermined his agenda. Leaks within the Department of Homeland Security, in particular, often disrupted deportation efforts. To prevent similar developments, Trump has promised a “major crackdown on government leakers who collude with the media to create false narratives, pressing criminal charges when appropriate.”
Additionally, Trump’s appointment of former acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Homan as “border czar” is expected to help shield his deportation efforts from leaks within the Department of Homeland Security. Trump has also named Stephen Miller, a staunch immigration hawk, as his deputy chief of staff for policy. Together, the two will centralize much of the immigration and border security decision-making in the White House, bypassing entrenched executive agencies, the outlet noted.
Disclaimer: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.