Trump's strategic cabinet picks signal policy shifts ahead

Donald Trump decisively won the presidential election in the USA. Returning to the White House means the Republicans must form a new administration. American media closely scrutinises Trump's initial selections and reflects on his first term (2017-2021) in this context. Several certain or nearly specific candidacies can be discussed a week after the election.

CBS News reports, citing "two sources familiar with the matter," that Trump will nominate Marco Rubio, a senator from Florida, as the candidate for Secretary of State. The 53-year-old Rubio competed with Trump in 2016 for the Republican presidential nomination. Trump and Rubio have improved relations in recent years despite sharp verbal exchanges.

Rubio, a member of the Senate's Foreign Relations and Intelligence committees, advocates a hard-line foreign policy towards China. Initially, he championed military support to Ukraine but has recently become one of the opponents of another military aid package for Kyiv.

You don't have to be a fan of Vladimir Putin to want to end the war - said Senator Rubio.

In the context of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Rubio emphasised that despite the brave resistance of Ukrainians, America should not fund a "stalemate war" and the conflict should be brought to an end. "The NYT" reminds readers that Rubio was elected to the Senate in 2010 and adopted a "hawkish" stance in foreign policy, taking a steadfast position against Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba.

Donald Trump also officially announced in a statement that Susie Wiles would become the chief of staff of the White House. She will be the first woman in this position.

The 67-year-old Wiles was responsible for both the current and previous Trump presidential campaigns. She also worked on Ronald Reagan's campaign in 1980.

Stephen Miller, former chief advisor to Trump on immigration, will take up the position of deputy chief of staff of the White House for policy in his second administration. This is according to CNN, whose journalists based their findings on "two sources familiar with the plans." As Trump's advisor, Miller was an advocate of restrictive immigration policy. CNN confirmed these reports with James David Vance, whom Trump appointed as the vice president of the USA.

CNN reminds that Trump's second administration aims to significantly increase the number of deportations – up to a million people annually. On Fox News, the 39-year-old Miller admitted to agreeing to mass deportations as quickly as possible. - They will begin on inauguration day, right after taking the oath - Miller said on CNN. Already in 2023, he announced that in Trump's second term, the U.S. military would also create centres for immigrants at risk of deportation. He said they would appear "in open areas of Texas near the border."

According to the "Wall Street Journal," the president-elect has chosen Republican Congressman Mike Waltz, a former U.S. National Guard colonel, as his national security advisor. The "WSJ" reported on Monday, citing two sources familiar with the matter. The choice fell on a leading critic of China's policy. First elected to Congress in 2018, Waltz chairs the Armed Services subcommittee and is also an Intelligence Committee member. He has not yet confirmed these reports.

Waltz is 50 years old. Before entering politics, he served in Afghanistan, the Middle East, and Africa, and worked at the Pentagon. In his opinion, the U.S. military is currently not prepared for a major conflict with China in the Indo-Pacific region.

Regarding Russia's aggression in Ukraine, his views have changed. After the invasion in 2022, he called on the Biden administration to provide Kyiv with more weapons, but by autumn 2023, he became sceptical about further military aid. He wrote an article for Fox News entitled "The era of congressional blank cheques for Ukraine has ended."

In an interview with the "Financial Times," he stated that Trump will force Russia to the negotiating table by threatening to "collapse its economy" by lowering oil and gas prices if the Kremlin refuses. - We have economic leverage over Russia – Waltz said. At the same time, he called Trump's promise to initiate negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv at the current stage of the war "completely reasonable."

Trump himself announced on his Truth Social profile that he has chosen Tom Homan, former director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, as the border commissioner. He is a former police officer, immigration official, and a Republican "hawk" on deportation matters.

He emphasised that the 62-year-old Homan will also be responsible for maritime and aviation security in his administration. "I've known Tom for a long time, and no one is better at overseeing and controlling our borders. Homan will be responsible for all deportations of illegal immigrants back to their countries of origin. I have no doubt he will do a fantastic and long-overdue job" - Trump stated. He even called him "the border czar."

Media note that in Homan's case, Trump is acting quickly as this appointment does not require Congressional approval.

Trump also appointed a congressman from New York, 44-year-old Lee Zeldin, to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Zeldin announced that he accepted the nomination. CNN reports that after Zeldin lost the 2022 New York governor race, he began maintaining close relations with Donald Trump. During the 2024 campaign, he regularly appeared at Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence.

Zeldin voted against Biden's 2022 climate bill – as did other Republicans in the House of Representatives. The year before, he also opposed funding from the EPA for zero-emission school buses, cleaning up toxic industrial sites, and financing the replacement of lead pipes nationwide.

Trump also announced online that he has appointed a Republican congresswoman from New York, Elise Stefanik, as the U.S. ambassador to the UN. Born in 1984, Stefanik has Polish and Dutch roots. She has previously worked, among other things, on fundraising for Republicans. She entered Congress in 2014, becoming the youngest woman in U.S. history to hold a seat in the American parliament.

In recent months, during student protests, Stefanik called for immediately removing Columbia University's chancellor. This happened after demonstrators occupied a university building and blocked it from the police. Stefanik defended Trump to the end during the impeachment process, which he underwent - as the only U.S. president in history - twice.

The Associated Press reported Tuesday that Trump's nomination for the new Secretary of Defence, who will take over from Lloyd Austin, remains unclear. AP notes that Trump will likely choose a "loyalist," a tried and trusted individual, making the Pentagon heavily dependent on the president. During the Republican's first term, five people held the position of Secretary of Defence.

Among the potential candidates currently mentioned are Republican Mike Rogers from the House of Representatives and retired General Keith Kellogg, a former national security advisor to the Vice President of the USA (2018-2021). Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was also mentioned, but the president-elect dispelled these speculations, assuring Pompeo would not be joining the new administration.