# Harris political appointments reaching out to Republicans/conservatives **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** kamala-harris\ **Created:** [July 29, 2024, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940 "2024-07-29T08:42:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/21 "2024-07-29T13:52:39Z")
In normal times, I’d say yes, a few cabinet posts and ambassador positions should be held by members of the loyal opposition. But we no longer have a loyal opposition. The Republican Party is now a terrorist organization, bent on bringing forth a MAGA dictatorship by violence if need be. If and when the fever breaks and the party is either dissolved or comes to its senses, then Democrats can consider working with them. ---
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/22 "2024-07-29T13:53:54Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > we no longer have a loyal opposition. I think Romney and Cheney and Kinzinger qualify. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/23 "2024-07-29T13:54:10Z")
So we’re making Harris cabinet appointments already. ---
**Author:** ![GailForce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/dfb087/32.png) [@GailForce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GailForce)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/24 "2024-07-29T13:57:47Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > making Harris cabinet appointments already. Trump’s cabinet 2.0 has been the subject of discussion for weeks and months, so no biggie. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/25 "2024-07-29T13:57:55Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > And what Democrats did Diaper Don include in his cabinet? Harris should include just as many Republicans in hers. I think we can agree anything Trump did was out of the norm. And I don’t think we should be setting practices by Trump’s actions. > [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > Any Republican she contacts and who doesn’t rebuff her publicly will instantly face the fury of Trump and the GOP, so it will be a rare person who accepts. Probably, but it highlights the contrast and shows that Dems want collaborative government and are open to bipartisanship. > [@GailForce](#): > > Of course, since these appointments would be for Republicans/conservatives who have proved themselves helpful to the Harris campaign, they would necessarily consider their careers as R/c dead, so no harm in accepting them. I wouldn’t necessarily need them to be helpful to her campaign, just reasonable conservatives in the old mold that have been less obstructive and shown integrity and ethics. I know that makes for a short list. That’s why I’m asking for opinions. Romney is an example of the type. Adam Kinzinger is another. I feel Liz Cheney deserves some recognition for standing up to Trump and the MAGA crowd, but I’m not sure what role would work. All the of them are currently pariahs in the Rep Party now, so they don’t have much to lose. > [@snowthx](#): > > If the Republicans want to earn some points here, the ones in Congress need to start working much more across the aisle. Those are the ones I’m talking about. I know there aren’t many. > [@snowthx](#): > > Why waste a prized and influential seat in government on the opposition? It signals putting America over Party, it shows openness to bipartisanship, it rewards conservatives that are cooperative and signals what the norms should be. It’s all about finding the right opposition to reward, and the right role where they would be a good fit and be able to follow administration policies, but their own agendas. Geez, I can’t believe I’m having to explain that here. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/26 "2024-07-29T14:00:15Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > So we’re making Harris cabinet appointments already. As I said in the OP, they are already doing it for real. This is supposed to be for “fun”. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/27 "2024-07-29T14:02:43Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > feel Liz Cheney deserves some recognition for standing up to Trump and the MAGA crowd, but I’m not sure what role would work. She’s so solidly a Republican except for the Jan 6th stuff, I’d just give her an ambassadorship rather than put her in the Cabinet to fight me everyday. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/28 "2024-07-29T14:02:54Z")
I haven’t heard that candidate Harris is already weighing cabinet appointments, but I’d love to read any articles about it. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/29 "2024-07-29T14:10:05Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Geez, I can’t believe I’m having to explain that here. If they have qualifications to do the job, then it’s worth a look. But we don’t need token appointments. However, if they are carrying water for “The Big Lie” then I’ll pass. It’s a simple test. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/30 "2024-07-29T14:23:30Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > As long as she puts a Democrat in charge of the FBI I’ll be happy. Why wouldn’t she just keep Director Wray (nb. a Republican, Trump appointee, term limit is 2027)? Are there plans to dismiss him? Is he planning on retiring? Won’t a President Harris keep the _entire_ Biden-Harris administration? At this stage, why would she alienate the base by distancing herself from Biden? If elected, she will certainly appoint individuals as vacancies arrive. But how can we speculate before knowing the vacancy? Maybe I’m missing the point of this thread. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/31 "2024-07-29T14:32:54Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > Why wouldn’t she just keep Director Wray (nb. a Republican, Trump appointee, term limit is 2027)? At the expense of sounding over-dramatic, I wouldn’t keep a potential enemy that close. And a lot of Biden’s team signed up to work for him. Replacing some of them at least signal that she’s moving in a different direction. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/32 "2024-07-29T14:34:22Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > I wouldn’t keep a potential enemy that close. And yet, Director Wray _is_ the director of the FBI. And he isn’t exactly a team player for Trump. > [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > Replacing some of them at least signal that she’s moving in a different direction. Which is a bad signal to send _right after_ Biden passed the torch. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/33 "2024-07-29T14:42:33Z")
Agree 100%. It used to be that there wasn’t a particularly Democratic or Republican way to be director of many federal departments and bureaus. For now, it still is generally. The FBI goes after corruption whoever’s committing it, NOAA and the Weather Service collect measurements and collate them into forecasts. But in the era of Project 2025, _every_ federal agency is the object of politicization and subversion by the Grand MAGA Party. When it comes to Republicans in a Dem administration, the opposite of LBJ’s maxim is correct: better they be outside the tent pissing in (critiquing, or more likely insulting, Dem officials) than inside the tent pissing out (screwing up policy and implementation out in the world). ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/34 "2024-07-29T14:43:08Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Liz Cheney should be rewarded for her ethical stand against Trump and the MAGAs, but in what capacity? Her politics are dreadful and far out of line from Harris. Let’s please stop lionizing (‘lionessing’? ‘lionessizing’?) Liz Cheney for her purely self-serving act of not towing the MAGA line and virtually fellating Donald Trump. Not only her politics but her express and vigorous defense of her father’s neoconservative, pro-corporate policies (and clear willingness to continue them should she ever be elected to a higher office) make her just as ethically bankrupt and morally odious as Trump, just not in such an obviously proto-fascistic way. Liz Cheney will do fine for herself appearing on Fox News and MSNBC as the archetypal voice of pragmatic, ‘balanced’ conservatism. If Harris ‘needs’ to put some conservative personalities in Cabinet roles or ambassadorships there are plenty of actually honest (more or less) conservatives who have left the political field in the wake of the Tea Party and Trumpism. But except for the sake of appealing to a counter-MAGA movement, I don’t see the need for it; there are already plenty of ‘Center Right’ voices right within the ranks of Democrats, and the last thing we need is a repeat of the Bill Clinton era where he leaned so hard into showing that he could also be ‘tough on crime’ and against ‘the welfare state’ (not to mention heavily into dismantling regulation and loving up Big Corporate donors) that he basically became an honorary Reagan. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/35 "2024-07-29T14:44:41Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > And yet, Director Wray _is_ the director of the FBI. Yes, he is. So? I still wouldn’t trust him. Again, maybe I’m over-dramatic. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/36 "2024-07-29T14:46:44Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > And yet, Director Wray _is_ the director of the FBI. And he isn’t exactly a team player for Trump. There has never been a Democrat head the FBI in the agency’s history. That needs to change. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/37 "2024-07-29T14:46:52Z")
> [@GailForce](#): > > Appointments such as ambassadorships would be harmless to make Republicans eligible for. Making Cheney our ambassador to China would be reasonable–her job would be to implement President Harris’s policies. Of course, Cheney would have to be extremely helpful in the Harris campaign for such appointments to be made. I’m of mixed feelings about giving out ambassadorships as political rewards. For some, in countries that are already stanch allies, or that are relatively unimportant on the geopolitical stage, sure, it’s an easy job that doesn’t really need to do much, so go ahead. But China? That’s the most powerful country in the world, outside of the US, and a country with which we have an extraordinarily complicated relationship. The ambassador to China absolutely must be someone with extensive diplomatic experience, who’s intimately familiar with the culture and politics of China and the rest of Asia, and who is completely in line with the President’s foreign policy. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/38 "2024-07-29T14:48:44Z")
> [@Max\_S](#): > > Won’t a President Harris keep the _entire_ Biden-Harris administration? At this stage, why would she alienate the base by distancing herself from Biden? There’s almost always some churn in the cabinet after an election. Doing a high-profile, high-stress job like that takes a toll, and I suspect at least a few will want to step down. There may also be shuffles, when Harris thinks a person would be better for her in a different position. So there’s lots of opportunities for change, without looking like she’s “cleaning house” after Biden is out of office. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/39 "2024-07-29T14:50:57Z")
When you wrote that you wouldn’t keep him “that close”, I assumed you meant you would prefer he was dismissed. My point is that he has actually served the Biden administration for three and a half years so far, without being dismissed. In fact Biden promised to keep Director Wray on during the 2020 campaign, in an explicit move to restore the political independence of the FBI following the Trump era. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2024, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940/40 "2024-07-29T14:54:54Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > There has never been a Democrat head the FBI in the agency’s history. That needs to change. If Director Wray serves his full term, the next President will appoint his replacement in 2027. ~Max [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/harris-political-appointments-reaching-out-to-republicans-conservatives/1004940.md?page=3)