Rafael Perez: Donald Trump’s nominees must tread carefully
Looking down the barrel of a gun, you look up to see a round figure in the distance. It is your dear Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un. You were told that you failed at the impossible task that was asked of you, and now you face execution. Seated next to the big man is your replacement. What must he be thinking? Is it disconcerting to him that he was fifth in line to take the job?
To a much less dramatic extent, many of Trump’s picks to fill his administration should be feeling a bit uneasy about their future roles. Trump had a remarkably high turn-over rate during his last term and made it a habit to very publicly lambast his departed staff. By some estimates, his administration’s turn-over rate reached as high as 92% by the end of his term. This means that incoming appointees should essentially believe that they will most likely be fired or forced to resign under pressure, perhaps within the first few months, unless they behave differently from their predecessors.
Jeff Sessions, the Trump-appointed Attorney General, chose to retain a semblance of his honor by recusing himself from the Russia probe. What did he get in return for his compliance with the law? Trump fired him and later called him “weak”, “ineffective”, and an “idiot”, among many other insults.
It was a clear trend that staffers would be replaced if they expressed just a bit too much opposition to Trump’s plans. After clashes with Trump about how to handle several international conflicts, and some name-calling, Rex Tillerson was also fired and was later called “dumb as a rock.”
Prospective aides are well aware of what happens when an underling departs from Trump’s orders, so they must not be planning to do so. Presumably, if they intend to take the job, the plan isn’t to get fired immediately. But from their perspective, what exactly is the motivation for accepting the nomination given what dozens of former Trump allies have said about him?
The people who have actually held those positions and worked closely with Trump are telling you that your future boss is an awful person, a danger to our country, and a “wannabe dictator”, who is wholly unfit for office. These aren’t far-left democrats either, they are staunch republicans who at one point or another expressed support and allegiance to Trump.
If you’re considering whether to accept a Trump nomination, it has to be with the understanding that there is a very good chance that Trump will ask you to do something immoral or illegal or both. Most notably, Pence was asked to violate the democratic process following the results of the 2020 election, a request that he thankfully declined.
So for prospective picks, the options are twofold. They can take the job in the hopes of being in a position to place guard rails around Trump, thereby risking his ire, or they can follow all of Trump’s directives, perhaps even illegal ones, to avoid his wrath while risking legal consequences.
Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis chose the former – writing about his experience in the cabinet, he stated “I did as well as I could for as long as I could.” Clearly, Mattis was attempting to steer Trump away from some of his more moronic ideas but when it became clear that Trump would instead follow his own uninformed thoughts, Mattis resigned.
According to the Mueller report, several Trump aides refused Trump’s orders to interfere with the investigation, including Jeff Sessions, White House counsel Don McGahn, and national security adviser K.T. McFarland. What do they all have in common? They all vacated their posts prematurely.
If we look at the nominees that have been announced thus far, it’s clear that Trump is keeping his promise to fill the government with loyalists who he hopes will carry out his vision without question. He learned from his last term that those who had no previous ties to him were more likely to present resistance later on.
For individuals like Mike Walz and Pete Hegseth, it’s an opportunity to further their ambitions and yet, their knowledge of Trump’s treatment of past staff suggests that they do not plan to repeat their mistakes – not good news for us.
The only hope that we have is that Trump’s picks have a strong enough sense of self-preservation that they refuse to place themselves in legal peril on behalf of the president. We certainly can’t count on the likes of Matt Gaetz or Marco Rubio to prioritize our best interests when deciding whether to follow Trump’s orders, so perhaps the fear of being held accountable will suffice. What we know for certain is that we should expect another flood of memoirs by 2028.
Rafael Perez is a columnist for the Southern California News Group.