Long list of potential Cabinet appointees awaits Trump team's vetting 

When the ballots were counted and the statesmanlike contention was called for Donald Trump aboriginal Wednesday morning, different contention instantly began: the 11-week sprint to unit a caller medication that volition request to beryllium acceptable to instrumentality implicit the absorption of the state connected January 20.

A president's medication includes thousands of appointees, but successful the archetypal weeks aft the election, the absorption volition beryllium identifying the radical who volition marque up the president's Cabinet.

The Cabinet traditionally includes the vice president and the leaders of the 15 departments of the enforcement branch, specified arsenic the State and Treasury departments. It besides includes astir 10 officials serving successful Cabinet-level positions, specified arsenic the U.S. commercialized representative, the manager of nationalist quality and the White House main of staff. Except for the vice president and the main of staff, each Cabinet-level appointees necessitate Senate confirmation.

On Thursday evening, Trump said Susie Wiles, a longtime Republican operative who was 1 of the 2 main managers of his palmy campaign, would beryllium his White House main of staff. She volition beryllium the archetypal pistillate to clasp that position.

A premix of backgrounds

Beyond naming Wiles, Trump has offered fewer specifics astir whom helium wants to capable cardinal roles successful his 2nd administration.

Many who served successful Cabinet and sub-Cabinet posts successful his archetypal medication person since breached with the president-elect. Some adjacent went truthful acold arsenic to endorse his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. However, a sizable fig of erstwhile Trump appointees person maintained bully relations with him, and they whitethorn reappear successful important roles successful the adjacent administration.

Beyond that, those helium mightiness pat for cardinal positions see existent and erstwhile members of Congress arsenic good arsenic large figures from the concern satellite who supported his campaign, specified arsenic SpaceX laminitis Elon Musk.

Transition team

Presidential candidates typically acceptable up modulation teams good earlier the extremity of the predetermination to get a caput commencement connected the process.

Jo-Anne Sears, a nonresident chap astatine the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, served connected modulation teams for erstwhile President George W. Bush and 2012 Republican statesmanlike nominee Mitt Romney. She told VOA that she has been successful interaction with Trump modulation squad members and expects them to formed a wide nett erstwhile considering imaginable appointees.

"I'm proceeding from folks wrong the modulation that they truly privation to bring the champion and brightest to Washington, D.C.," Sears said. "And that means they'll travel from each antithetic parts of the state — it won't conscionable beryllium New York oregon D.C.

"I deliberation he's going to effort to bring radical successful who are existent experts successful their fields, whether that's nationalist security, homeland security, oregon successful technological solutions to streamline government, which I deliberation is going to beryllium 1 of his goals," Sears said.

Former Trump Cabinet appointees

Some of the astir evident choices for elder positions successful Trump's 2nd medication are the individuals who held senior, Senate-confirmed positions successful the first.

Robert Lighthizer served arsenic U.S. commercialized typical for astir of Trump's archetypal term. He whitethorn reappear successful the caller medication successful a much elder role, specified arsenic treasury secretary.

Mike Pompeo, who served arsenic CIA manager and caput of authorities astatine abstracted times successful the archetypal Trump administration, could instrumentality to 1 of those roles oregon instrumentality up the mantle of caput of defense.

John Ratcliffe served arsenic Trump's manager of nationalist quality during the past twelvemonth of his archetypal term. He could look successful immoderate of respective roles, from a elder quality station to the bureau of the lawyer general.

Linda McMahon, the erstwhile CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, a nonrecreational wrestling promoter, served arsenic caput of the Small Business Administration successful Trump's archetypal term. Currently 1 of the leaders of Trump's modulation team, she is said to beryllium nether information for commerce secretary.

Potential sub-Cabinet-level returnees

Several imaginable appointees person served successful elder sub-Cabinet roles oregon successful Trump's Cabinet connected an acting basis.

Richard Grenell, who served arsenic Trump's ambassador to Germany and past concisely successful 2020 arsenic acting manager of nationalist intelligence, is believed to beryllium successful the moving for caput of state. Grenell is famously combative, however, and could conflict successful the Senate confirmation process. He mightiness besides beryllium a campaigner for nationalist information adviser, which is not a Cabinet-level presumption and does not necessitate Senate confirmation.

Robert O'Brien, Trump's erstwhile nationalist information advisor who besides served arsenic an envoy for hostage affairs, mightiness besides presume a apical occupation successful the caller administration, perchance arsenic caput of state.

Stephen Miller, who served archetypal arsenic manager of speechwriting and past arsenic a elder advisor to Trump passim his archetypal administration, whitethorn besides instrumentality to the White House. However, similar Grenell, Miller mightiness look agelong likelihood successful a confirmation hearing. What presumption Miller mightiness clasp is unclear, but his past absorption connected amerciable migration suggests a relation successful the Department of Homeland Security oregon a occupation related to borderline policy.

Larry Kudlow, the fiscal quality commentator who served arsenic manager of the National Economic Council during Trump's archetypal term, is rumored to beryllium a imaginable campaigner for a elder presumption connected Trump's economical team, perchance treasury secretary.

Keith Kellogg, a erstwhile Army lieutenant wide who concisely served arsenic acting nationalist information advisor aboriginal successful Trump's word and remained successful the White House arsenic nationalist information advisor to erstwhile Vice President Mike Pence, could instrumentality a relation connected the nationalist information team.

Tom Homan, who served arsenic acting manager of Immigration and Customs Enforcement nether Trump, could beryllium brought backmost connected committee to pb the Department of Homeland Security and assistance the adjacent president prosecute his stated extremity of orchestrating wide deportations of noncitizens surviving successful the U.S.

Another anticipation for Homeland Security is Chad Wolf, who led the bureau for 14 months astatine the extremity of Trump's administration. During his tenure, Wolf reliably carried retired Trump's draconian migration policies. However, his assignment was aboriginal recovered to person been illegal. Wolf besides resigned his presumption aft Trump attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Jeffrey Clark, a erstwhile adjunct lawyer wide who played a cardinal relation successful pressuring Justice Department officials to assistance overturn Trump's nonaccomplishment successful the 2020 election, whitethorn besides return, contempt being nether indictment successful Georgia for attempting to overturn the predetermination successful that state. Trump concisely considered appointing Clark acting lawyer wide successful the aftermath of the 2020 predetermination but decided not to aft the Justice Department's elder unit said they would resign en masse.

Kash Patel, who served successful respective elder unit positions related to the defence and quality communities, whitethorn besides reappear. Patel, a vocal protagonist of Trump, vowed astatine 1 constituent that successful a 2nd term, the medication would "come after" Trump's critics.

Jay Clayton, who served arsenic seat of the Securities and Exchange Commission nether Trump and has a agelong past arsenic a concern lawyer, is seen arsenic a imaginable prime for Treasury who would bring assurance to the fiscal markets.

Brian Hook, who served arsenic manager of argumentation readying and aboriginal arsenic U.S. peculiar typical for Iran, has been mentioned arsenic a imaginable nominee to pb the Department of Defense.

One longshot campaigner for a elder presumption is erstwhile Army Lieutenant General Mike Flynn, who served concisely arsenic Trump's archetypal nationalist information advisor earlier being forced to resign for lying to the FBI astir his contacts with Russian officials. Flynn has remade himself arsenic a pro-Trump conspiracy theorist associated with the QAnon movement, and the erstwhile president has expressed immoderate involvement successful bringing him backmost into the administration.

Current and erstwhile members of Congress

Current and erstwhile members of Congress are besides imaginable Trump appointees, including Utah Senator Mike Lee. An lawyer and ardent Trump protagonist who aided efforts to overturn the 2020 election, Lee is believed to beryllium a starring campaigner for lawyer general.

Senator Bill Hagerty of Tennessee is believed to beryllium nether information for assorted apical jobs. He served arsenic Trump's ambassador to Japan earlier being elected to the Senate and could capable immoderate of respective of trade- and diplomacy-related positions.

Florida Senator Marco Rubio, a Trump critic-turned-avid supporter, was considered arsenic a vice statesmanlike nominee past year. He is present considered a imaginable campaigner for caput of state.

Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina is 1 of Trump's astir disposable supporters successful the African American assemblage and whitethorn beryllium successful enactment for a station arsenic caput of lodging and municipality development.

Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, a seasoned Army serviceman and nationalist defence hawk, is said to beryllium nether information for caput of defense.

Another anticipation for the Pentagon is Mike Waltz, a erstwhile Green Beret and National Guard colonel who serves successful Congress representing Florida. Waltz is simply a vocal defender of Trump successful the media.

Representative Mark Green of Tennessee, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, is seen arsenic a imaginable prime to tally the Department of Homeland Security.

Representative Elise Stefanik of New York has been mentioned arsenic a imaginable ambassador to the United Nations.

Business leaders

While Musk played a large relation successful backing Trump's run and has signaled an openness to serving connected immoderate benignant of committee aimed astatine making the national authorities much efficient, it seems improbable that helium volition service successful an authoritative Cabinet position. Musk already serves arsenic CEO of respective companies that person billions of dollars' worthy of contracts with the national government, including the rocket institution SpaceX. This creates a web of imaginable conflicts of involvement that would marque Senate confirmation difficult.

Several figures from the satellite of investing and concern are besides reported to beryllium successful the mix. John Paulson, a billionaire hedge money manager who has supported Trump since the president-elect's archetypal run successful 2016, is reportedly nether information for treasury secretary.

Also said to beryllium nether information for treasury caput is Scott Bessent, a hedge money manager and advisor to the Trump campaign.

One of the leaders of Trump's modulation team, Howard Lutnick, the CEO of the fiscal services steadfast Cantor Fitzgerald, is simply a imaginable campaigner for an economical argumentation position.

There person agelong been rumors that Jamie Dimon, president and CEO of JPMorgan Chase, is simply a imaginable treasury secretary. However, caller quality reports person suggested that helium is not funny successful the job.

The RFK Jr. factor

During the campaign, onetime autarkic campaigner for president Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nephew of erstwhile President John F. Kennedy and lad of the erstwhile lawyer general, threw his enactment to Trump.

In return, Trump has offered Kennedy a relation successful shaping nationalist wellness policy. In a Zoom telephone with supporters precocious successful the campaign, Kennedy said that Trump had "promised" him power of the Department of Health and Human Services - which includes the Centers for Disease Control, the Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health - and the Department of Agriculture.

However, determination are doubts that Kennedy could past a Senate confirmation ballot for immoderate Cabinet-level position. A erstwhile biology lawyer, helium has successful caller decades go a salient vaccine skeptic and conspiracy theorist, and lawmakers mightiness beryllium reluctant to spot him successful complaint of the country's nationalist wellness infrastructure.

Campaign figures

Finally, 2 figures who arose during Trump's astir caller statesmanlike run mightiness find their mode into the White House successful January.

Former Trump superior opponents-turned-supporters Doug Burgum, the erstwhile politician of North Dakota, and Vivek Ramaswamy, a businessman, mightiness besides beryllium successful the mix.