# Trump's Cabinet of Curiosities **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 10, 2016, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367 "2016-11-10T16:28:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 27
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/521 "2016-12-13T16:49:02Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Romney himself bears some of the blame. What I’d like him to do now is publicly apologize for auditioning to be a part of the incoming criminal administration and double down on the nasty things he said about Cheeto before. I’d give Romney the benefit of the doubt. He’s not a terrible person. Maybe he thought he could be the grown up in the room in case of emergency. ---
**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:** [December 13, 2016, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/522 "2016-12-13T16:55:16Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I’d give Romney the benefit of the doubt. He’s not a terrible person. Maybe he thought he could be the grown up in the room in case of emergency. Perhaps. Maybe he thought he could provide adult supervision in the administration. But I still think he should wash his hands of it. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/523 "2016-12-13T17:00:28Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I’d give Romney the benefit of the doubt. He’s not a terrible person. Maybe he thought he could be the grown up in the room in case of emergency. That was always my feeling too. Obviously I don’t know what was going through Romney’s head, but I can see him thinking that he could be a voice of reason inside the admin. I don’t think there’s much hope of any sane person having real influence in the Trump admin, so if that _was_ Romney’s plan, I think it was doomed. He probably would have wound up like Howard Campbell in _Mother Night_, playing along with the insanity and warming himself with his secretly virtuous insides. But I give him the benefit of the doubt for trying. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/524 "2016-12-13T17:23:04Z")
There were 3 or 4 SDMB Republicans who voted against Trump in November. Have they weighed in on Trump’s Cabinet? Maybe they’ve come around and are happy DJT is the Prez with a right-wing Dream Team coming in to view. Carson for HUD, Betsy “I hate public schools” de Vos for Education, an Islamophobe as NSA, Jeff “I ain’t no racist but nigras need to know their place” Sessions for Atty General, climate change denier for EPA, Rick “Abolish the DOE” Perry for DOE, an anti-labor guy for Labor, etc. etc. – what’s not to love? Republicans must think they’ve won the whole candy store. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/525 "2016-12-13T18:02:53Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > There were 3 or 4 SDMB Republicans who voted against Trump in November. Have they weighed in on Trump’s Cabinet? Maybe they’ve come around and are happy DJT is the Prez with a right-wing Dream Team coming in to view. > > Carson for HUD, Betsy “I hate public schools” de Vos for Education, an Islamophobe as NSA, Jeff “I ain’t no racist but nigras need to know their place” Sessions for Atty General, climate change denier for EPA, Rick “Abolish the DOE” Perry for DOE, an anti-labor guy for Labor, etc. etc. – what’s not to love? Republicans must think they’ve won the whole candy store. And for the _coup de grâce_, they can burn down the White House and finish what the British couldn’t in 1812. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/526 "2016-12-13T18:19:24Z")
With the nomination of Perry as Sec of Energy, I’m convinced this is the most epic trolling of all time. This is a Cabinet-level shot fired between the eyes of someone standing on Fifth Avenue. Trump knows what he’s doing and it’s absolutely insane. Does anyone in power have the balls to tell him to put the gun down? ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/527 "2016-12-13T18:30:15Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > There were 3 or 4 SDMB Republicans who voted against Trump in November. Have they weighed in on Trump’s Cabinet? Maybe they’ve come around and are happy DJT is the Prez with a right-wing Dream Team coming in to view. I don’t qualify, since I ultimately voted for Trump, albeit with significant reluctance, but from my perspective, I’m quite a bit happier with Trump’s cabinet nominees, in general, than I am with Trump as President. The feeling I get when I think about his nominees so far is “encouragement”, or perhaps “relief”. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/528 "2016-12-13T20:20:44Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > …Does anyone in power have the balls to tell him to put the gun down? No. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/529 "2016-12-13T20:49:09Z")
Carly Fiorina for [director of national intelligence](http://www.politico.com/blogs/donald-trump-administration/2016/12/fiorina-intelligence-about-russia-hacking-232514). :eek::smack::smack::smack: ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/530 "2016-12-13T20:59:35Z")
How many of these do we have? We got a director of CIA, director of NSA, one for Homeland Security, and one for “national intelligence”? ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/531 "2016-12-13T21:03:43Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > Carly Fiorina for [director of national intelligence](http://www.politico.com/blogs/donald-trump-administration/2016/12/fiorina-intelligence-about-russia-hacking-232514). > > :eek::smack::smack::smack: Guess she’s forgiven him for making fun of her face. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/532 "2016-12-13T21:11:17Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > How many of these do we have? We got a director of CIA, director of NSA, one for Homeland Security, and one for “national intelligence”? I think the DNI is kind of the head honcho of all of them. The current DNI is James Clapper: [https://www.dni.gov/index.php/about/leadership/director-of-national-intelligence](https://www.dni.gov/index.php/about/leadership/director-of-national-intelligence) > [@](#): > > The Honorable James R. Clapper was sworn in as the fourth Director of National Intelligence (DNI) on August 9, 2010. As DNI, Mr. Clapper leads the United States Intelligence Community and serves as the principal intelligence advisor to the President. > > Mr. Clapper retired in 1995 after a distinguished career in the U.S. Armed Forces. His career began as a rifleman in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and culminated as a lieutenant general in the U.S. Air Force and Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency. His intelligence-related positions over his 32 years in uniform included Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence at U.S. Air Force Headquarters during Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm and Director of Intelligence for three war-fighting commands: U.S. Forces Korea, Pacific Command, and Strategic Air Command. Of note, he also served two combat tours during the Southeast Asia conflict and flew 73 combat support missions in EC-47s over Laos and Cambodia. > > Directly following his retirement, Mr. Clapper worked in industry for six years as an executive in three successive companies with his business focus being the Intelligence Community. Mr. Clapper also served as a consultant and advisor to Congress and to the Departments of Defense and Energy and as a member of a wide variety of government panels, boards, commissions, and advisory groups. He was a member of the Downing Assessment Task Force that investigated the Khobar Towers bombing in 1996, and was vice chairman of a commission chaired by former Governor Jim Gilmore of Virginia on the subject of homeland security. > > Mr. Clapper returned to the government in September 2001 as the first civilian director of the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA). He served as Director for five years transforming it into the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) as it is today. > > Prior to becoming the Director of National Intelligence, Mr. Clapper served for over three years in two Administrations as the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence, where he served as the principal staff assistant and advisor to the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense on intelligence, counterintelligence, and security matters for the Department. In this capacity, he was also dual-hatted as the Director of Defense Intelligence for DNI. > > Mr. Clapper earned a bachelor’s degree in government and politics from the University of Maryland, a master’s degree in political science from St. Mary’s University, San Antonio, Texas, and an honorary doctorate in strategic intelligence from the then Joint Military Intelligence College. > > His awards include three National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medals, two Defense Distinguished Service Medals, the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, the Coast Guard’s Distinguished Public Service Award, the Department of Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Award, and a host of other U.S. military and foreign government awards and decorations. He was named as one of the Top 100 Information Technology Executives by Federal Computer Week in 2001, and has been singled out by the NAACP in the form of its National Distinguished Service Award, and has been awarded the Presidentially-conferred National Security Medal. What’s with this guy, though? Hardly any business experience? Not even an MBA? Wait till Fiorina comes in a shakes things up. She’s a real turnaround expert. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/533 "2016-12-13T21:14:49Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > I think the DNI is kind of the head honcho of all of them. The current DNI is James Clapper: > [https://www.dni.gov/index.php/about/leadership/director-of-national-intelligence](https://www.dni.gov/index.php/about/leadership/director-of-national-intelligence) > What’s with this guy, though? No business experience? Not even an MBA? Wait till Fiorina comes in a shakes things up. She’s a real turnaround expert. Yeah, she flew Hewlett-Packard straight into the ground. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/534 "2016-12-13T23:05:20Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > Guess she’s forgiven him for making fun of her face. I can’t imagine caring enough about my own ambitions to overlook the personal attacks that people like Cruz and Fiorina took, and then crawl on hands and knees to this guy. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/535 "2016-12-13T23:32:12Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I can’t imagine caring enough about my own ambitions to overlook the personal attacks that people like Cruz and Fiorina took, and then crawl on hands and knees to this guy. May as well get used to that position. They’ll be using it a lot. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/536 "2016-12-13T23:36:34Z")
> [@Fiveyearlurker](#): > > I can’t imagine caring enough about my own ambitions to overlook the personal attacks that people like Cruz and Fiorina took, and then crawl on hands and knees to this guy. Dude, Trump insinuated Cruz’s father had something to do with the Kennedy assassination. Like, has he no decency? ---
**Author:** ![Neo-Calredic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/96bed5/32.png) [@Neo-Calredic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neo-Calredic)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2016, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/537 "2016-12-13T23:47:00Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > Dude, Trump insinuated Cruz’s father had something to do with the Kennedy assassination. Like, has he no decency? You couldn’t find Trump’s decency with an electron microscope. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2016, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/538 "2016-12-14T01:02:23Z")
[Trump taps Montana congressman Ryan Zinke as Interior secretary](http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-ryan-zinke-interior-secretary-donald-trump-20161213-story.html). Gee, here’s one we may be able to live with. Not perfect but, whaddya think Dopers? ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2016, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/539 "2016-12-14T01:11:01Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > [Trump taps Montana congressman Ryan Zinke as Interior secretary](http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-ryan-zinke-interior-secretary-donald-trump-20161213-story.html). > > Gee, here’s one we may be able to live with. Not perfect but, whaddya think Dopers? I did bet myself that all staffers had to pass the Trump test: “Do you deny science? Good, you are in.” Won the bet again … ☹ [http://www.montanademocrats.org/news/From-Climate-Change-Supporter-to-Climate-Change-Denier:-The-Ryan-Zinke-Story](http://www.montanademocrats.org/news/From-Climate-Change-Supporter-to-Climate-Change-Denier:-The-Ryan-Zinke-Story) > [@](#): > > Before running for Congress, Zinke supported subsidizing renewable energy & climate change legislation. In 2009, he supported subsidizing new wind, solar and biomass facilities by taxing oil imports in a guest column in the Flathead Beacon. In 2010, he signed a letter urging the President and Congress to pass climate change legislation. > > But now, Zinke does not believe that climate change exists despite the litany of climate change research saying otherwise. > > Zinke told the Bozeman Chronicle “he has seen no scientific evidence… that climate change is changing the weather.” He also implied that volcanoes are the reason behind increased levels of CO2. > **[Hawaiian Volcano Observatory](https://volcanoes.usgs.gov/observatories/hvo/hvo_volcano_watch.html)** > > USGS: Volcano Hazards Program - Hawaiian Volcano Observatory USGS: Volcano Hazards Program Hawaiian Volcano Observatory It is the blind leading the blind cabinet. ---
**Author:** ![soonerblue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soonerblue/32/3302_2.png) [@soonerblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soonerblue)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2016, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367/540 "2016-12-14T03:01:09Z")
> [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](#): > > This one? [Riding With Mittens – CLAYTOONZ](https://claytoonz.com/2016/03/03/riding-with-mittens/) Thanks for trying, but, no, the one I remember had Trump in the back of a long black limo. Apparently cartoonists couldn’t resist the dog on vacation with diarrhea story. I always wondered if the dog got sick because he was terrified, being strapped on top of a car going 70 mph… In Romney’s defense, maybe he’s a patriotic man who was willing to ‘take a bullet’ for the country because Trump needs adult supervision. He probably thought his presence in Trump’s administration would help calm the nerves of our allies and the rest of the world. As for Rick Perry, I first thought someone has a twisted sense of humor - not Trump, who seems to have NO sense of humor - but one of his advisors. Then why would they want the least qualified candidates most opposed to the goals and purpose of the departments they are chosen to lead? Are they trying to do away with certain departments by using sabotage from within? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367.md?page=26) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-cabinet-of-curiosities/771367.md?page=28)