Widely elected last week, former and future Republican President Donald Trump is progressing in the formation of his future administration, by appointing his closest collaborators to key positions and demanding that they be able to assume their functions while avoiding a laborious process. confirmation in the Senate.
After entrusting the fight against immigration to Tom Homan, the 78-year-old businessman chose Elise Stefanik, a 40-year-old New York state representative, for the post of ambassador to the United States. United at the United Nations.
“Elise is an America First fighter, incredibly strong, tenacious and intelligent”justified the one who is preparing to return to the White House in January.
Elected to Congress in 2014 at just 30 years old, Elise Stefanik has gradually established herself among Donald Trump's most ardent supporters.
She made national headlines for her impetuous defense of the president during his first impeachment proceedings in 2019, then refused to certify the presidential election won in 2020 by Joe Biden.
More recently, in December 2023, she was the protagonist of a sequence that went viral on social networks, where we see her questioning in an extremely tense manner Claudine Gay, the president of Harvard University, about pro-Palestinian slogans heard on campus. Ms. Gay then resigned.
Elise Stefanik accused the UN in mid-October of “languishing in anti-Semitism”.
Strong support from Israel
Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, congratulated Ms. Stefanik on Monday. “At a time when hatred and lies fill the halls of the UN, your resolute moral clarity is more necessary than ever”he wrote.
In American political life, the post of United States Ambassador to the United Nations often serves as a springboard towards higher functions, as evidenced by the careers of Madeleine Albright, Secretary of State under Bill Clinton, Susan Rice, advisor in National Security under Barack Obama, or even George Bush Sr., who became president.
Donald Trump also announced that he would entrust the burning issue of immigration control at the borders to Tom Homan, a hard-liner. Mr. Homan will be responsible for implementing the candidate's promise to carry out the largest deportation of illegal immigrants in United States history.
Rubio head of diplomacy?
US President-elect Donald Trump is considering nominating Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio as secretary of state, the report said Monday. New York Times by quoting “three people familiar with his thinking”.
The influential senator of Cuban origin, vice-chairman of the Senate Committee on Intelligence, had at one time been tipped to become Mr. Trump's vice-president, indicates the daily according to which the future president “could still change your mind at the last minute”.
Among the candidates mentioned to succeed Antony Blinken, appointed by outgoing Democratic President Joe Biden, Marco Rubio seemed the “toughest” because he is a supporter of a muscular foreign policy on the part of Washington towards its geopolitical rivals like the China, Iran and even Cuba.
In recent years, Marco Rubio has expressed positions similar to those expressed by Donald Trump, who has in the past criticized former US presidents for dragging the United States into costly and futile wars.
The new Trump administration will face a more volatile world and greater tensions than when the Republican first took office in the White House in January 2017, between the war in Ukraine, conflicts in the Middle East and rapprochements between China, Russia and Iran.
Deregulate
The president-elect also appointed Lee Zeldin, another close friend of his, to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
“He will ensure rapid and fair deregulation decisions are made that will boost the strength of American businesses, while maintaining the highest environmental standards”justified the future Republican president.
Mr. Zeldin is also a former New York State Representative. “We will restore America's energy leadership, revitalize our auto industry to bring back jobs to Americans, and make the United States the world leader in artificial intelligence. This while preserving access to clean water and air”wrote the chosen one on X.
The winner of the presidential election should finally appoint Stephen Miller as deputy director of his office, one of his close advisors since the time of his first successful campaign for the White House.
Mr. Miller is known for advocating extremely strong measures against illegal immigration.
Waltz national security advisor
Republican Congressman Mike Waltz, a hard-line loyalist on China, was chosen to serve as White House national security adviser.
This is a very influential role, and one for which appointments do not require Senate approval.
Tim Waltz, former Green Beret and ex-colonel of the National Guard, will be responsible for keeping Donald Trump informed of key national security issues and coordinating the operation of dedicated federal agencies.
Currently chairman of a subcommittee of the House of Representatives which oversees military logistics, Tim Waltz has long been present in political circles in Washington. He was the director of defense policy for Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates at the Pentagon, before entering Congress in 2018.
Very critical of the administration of outgoing Democratic President Joe Biden for the chaotic withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in 2021, Tim Waltz simultaneously welcomed Donald Trump's positions on foreign policy.
He denounced Beijing's activity in the Asia-Pacific and expressed in the past the need for Washington to prepare for a potential conflict in the region, saying he believed that the American army was not currently able to face such a scenario.
Regarding Ukraine, the Republican elected official indicated that his opinion had changed. After initially calling on the Biden administration to send more weapons to kyiv, he has since said the United States needs to reassess its goals.
“Is it in America's interest to deploy time, money, resources, which we sorely need now in the Pacific? »he asked at an event in October.
Bypass the Senate
Donald Trump has demonstrated his desire to bypass the laborious confirmation processes, by senators, of the people he appoints, despite the fact that the Republicans have regained control of the upper house of Congress.
To do this, he plans to use a clause that allows the president to make temporary appointments when the Senate is not in session.
“Any Republican senator interested in the coveted position of Majority Leader of the United States Senate must agree to (this clause), without which we will not be able to have individuals confirmed on time.”wrote Mr. Trump, who will be received at the White House on Wednesday by Joe Biden.
The 45th and soon 47th American president made his first major appointment on Thursday by choosing a woman, Susie Wiles, to head his cabinet.
Ms. Wiles was the architect of the Republican's successful election campaign, which won 312 voters to Kamala Harris's 226, and appears on track to capture a majority of the popular vote.
After regaining control of the Senate, the Republicans are also favorites to win the House of Representatives by a narrow margin, but in certain constituencies, notably in California, the count has still not been completed.
