The president-elect of the United States is in the process of forming his cabinet, which is expected to be finalized before he takes office on January 20, 2025. Throughout this week the names have been happening, up to a total of 17 positions at the close of this edition, and 80% are profiles with experience in private management and business, while close to 20% (a total of four) focus their careers on public management.
Elon Musk, appointed head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE, for its acronym in English and in reference to the world of cryptocurrencies), would not enter this count, since it is an entity created ad hoc that will operate “from outside the Government and will will partner with the White House and the Office of Management and Budget,” Musk himself said after his appointment.
Especially for his economic cabinet, Donald Trump wants to transfer the Wall Street method to politics, that is, basing his economic management as if he were doing his own business. That is why for this executive branch, the magnate has introduced profiles from the world of finance, investment and private business. A type of career that the Secretary of the Treasury (the equivalent of the Ministry of Finance and Economy in the rest of the countries) is also expected to have.
The most recent appointment was Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. Although he sounded for the Treasury, this investment expert is CEO and president of Cantor Fitzgerald and co-chairs Trump’s transition team.
Thus, Lutnick will be in charge of executing Donald Trump’s trade war plans with China and applying tariffs to the rest of the countries, including those of the European Union.
For its part, the Ministry of Energy falls into the hands of the director of the hydraulic billing company (commonly known as fracking) Liberty Energy and He is often described as a climate change denier. He also runs a foundation to promote the expansion of fossil fuel production as a solution to the world’s problems, trying to disprove theories about the “climate crisis.” Wright will also serve on Trump’s newly created National Energy Council.
Among the few civil servant profiles is Attorney General Pam Bondi, former attorney general of Florida. Bondi was not Trump’s first choice at all. The Republican chose Matt Gaetz, a Hollywood-born lawyer and member of the Florida House of Representatives, until he was elected Republican representative in 2017. Gaetz resigned from his position, before the Trump Administration got underway, ensuring that his appointment had “unfairly” become a distraction. Gaetz was in the crosshairs of the Congressional Ethics Committee since they claimed that they had records that he had had sexual relations with a minor.
The second appointment of this type is the Secretary of the Interior, Doug Burgum. Is governor of north dakota and a proponent of expanding fossil fuel production. Likewise, Trump appointed him the position of “energy czar.” This new surname will have to carry out plans to repeal climate regulations, eliminate subsidies for renewable energy and boost oil production across the country.
Kristi L. Noem is the third name in the most traditional group of managers. Governor of the state of South Dakota since 2019, she was an active supporter of Trump’s 2024 campaign and now serves as Secretary of Homeland Security. He is the profile with the least experience compared to his predecessors in office.
Finally, for CIA director he chose John Ratcliffe, former Texas congressman and federal prosecutor. This is a play-off for Trump, since he held this same position between 2020 and 2021, under the Republican’s first term.
A crucial figure
At press time, the president-elect had not yet named his Treasury secretary. The election of this position is being very difficult, since many names are being mentioned and even the local media speaks of “internal struggles” to hold this relevant position in the Trump Administration. However, everything indicates that, for such an important responsibility, Trump will once again lean towards a person with a Wall Street pedigree.
Among the candidates is former investment banker and former Federal Reserve official Kevin Warsh. Likewise, hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, who is also seen as a possible candidate to lead the White House National Economic Council, could also be elected to the position.
Another name that also echoes between the walls of the Capitol is that of Marc Rowan, CEO of the Apollo Global Management fund. In it Financial Times They claim that Rowan “rose through the ranks” when Trump chose Lutnick as Secretary of Commerce.
Finally, there is only a purely political profile among the candidate lists. The senator from Tennessee, Bill Haggerti He also came to the fore as a possible candidate to lead the Treasury Department in this ninth term.
The new person who holds this position will be in charge of convincing the market that the magnate’s fiscal plan, based on the expansion of tax cuts, the application of tariffs and mass deportations, will be something good for the country. Likewise, it will also task you with reducing debt while making that rate cut.
The national debt “is approaching record levels,” point out the Committee for a Responsible Budget (CRFB, for its acronym in English. A non-political entity that is dedicated to analyzing the fiscal maremagnum that is the United States.
From the think tank they reiterate that legislators “will have to consider how to cut spending substantially, as income increases to put the national debt on a more sustainable path.”
In January, the United States had a debt that exceeded $35.7 trillion, according to data published by the Treasury Department. This represents 124% of the country’s total GDP and makes it the most indebted nation in the world, along with China. Something that needs to be addressed.
According to the fiscal monitor of the International Monetary Fund, the United States debt will close this year at 121% of GDP and will continue to expand until the end of 2029 at 131.7%. Regarding the deficit, it closed 2023 at 7.1% of GDP and the multilateral institution’s forecasts indicate that in this year it will grow to 7.6%, to correct slightly to 6% in 2029.
In that sense, the person in office will have to work again to accommodate the debt ceiling. In April of last year, the Senate (with a Democratic majority) managed to approve an agreement to suspend the debt ceiling until 2025, the year in which Donald Trump enters the Oval Office.
The negotiations to review that ceiling again will have to happen but, having a Republican majority in the Senate, it will be much easier to renegotiate that debt ceiling again.
The Secretary of the Treasury must inform Congress that the country has reached its ceiling and present the extraordinary measures that he will implement to avoid this possible non-payment of obligations. It is possible that Janet Yellen will present those initial measures, since The deadline ends on January 2 and Donald Trump’s inauguration is not expected until the 20th of that month.
But, after the transfer of powers, it will be the incoming secretary who continues with the measures, supervising the ability to pay the bills and will have to keep legislators informed.
At the same time the Treasury secretary works on reducing the debt, he will have to address the expiring provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017.
This figure will be the one who coordinates the complicated work. Some mandate extensions that experts expect will cost the public coffers between 4 and 4.5 trillion dollars.
The range of temporary tax cuts in this law reduced many components of income taxes, including the maximum rate from 39.6% to 37%, the maximum bracket of this tax.
Tax Foundation economists explain that “some of Trump’s tax proposals They are well designed and would be efficient ways to promote long-term economic growth, such as the permanent accounting of expenditures on machinery, equipment and research and development.
On the other hand, they warn that other proposals are “poorly designed” and what they are going to do is “worse” the structure of the tax code, “they would only create a moderate impact on long-term economic growth, such as exemptions for tips and Social Security income.
In this sense, the CRFB calculated that their fiscal plan would increase the country’s debt by 7.75 trillion dollars.
Television profiles
The rest of the profiles that are already known in the magnate’s cabinet come from the world of television or entertainment. Among them stands out Linda McMahon, a major donor to the Republican Party and Retired World Westling Entertainment (WWE) executivea media and entertainment company tasked with organizing fully scripted wrestling matches and broadcasting the show on television.
The Secretary of Defense also comes from the world of television. Peter Hegseth is a war veteran and Fox News host. A position that no one expected would fall on his shoulders and a tough hearing awaits him in front of the Senate to ratify his appointment. He served as an infantryman in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars as a member of the Minnesota National Guard.
His Fox Business colleague, Sean P. Duffy, will be in charge of the Secretary of Transportation. In addition to being a congressman, he was one of the first reality television stars in the 1990s, appearing on a show on the famous entertainment network MTV. He was district attorney for Ashland County, Wisconsin, before being elected to Congress as part of the Republican wave in 2010.
This profile is very relevant since he will be responsible for the safety of vehicles and also for space launches, Elon Musk’s two key businesses, and will serve as a bridge in the relationships of the billionaire’s companies with the Government.
The position of vice president was more than known before the election results were known. JD Vance, a 40-year-old senator from Ohio, will be the youngest vice president in US history and was Trump’s right-hand man throughout the campaign, despite having been critical of him in the past.
There are still many names missing but, once the list is formed, Trump will have to present the list to the Senate so that they approve some positions.
Having a Republican majority in the Upper House, it is unlikely that they will reject any of the candidates on the list that the president-elect will pass to them in the coming weeks.
#Trump #creates #team #profiles #experience #private #management
