# Trump's new cabinet **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [November 6, 2024, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799 "2024-11-06T16:52:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 18
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/341 "2024-11-19T17:44:58Z")
Howard Lutnick, a Wall Street financier, as Secretary of Commerce. ---
**Author:** ![Ash\_trav511](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@Ash\_trav511](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ash_trav511)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/342 "2024-11-19T19:03:08Z")
Not announced by Trump yet but hearing Ben Carson is being considered…so if announced it’ll count. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/343 "2024-11-19T19:19:16Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Howard Lutnick, a Wall Street financier, as Secretary of Commerce. Just a leak, right? I wonder what the leaker’s motive is. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/344 "2024-11-19T19:28:52Z")
Here is the article: [Trump expected to pick Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick as commerce secretary](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-expected-pick-cantor-fitzgerald-ceo-howard-lutnick-commerce-secr-rcna180176) ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/345 "2024-11-19T21:22:27Z")
[Dr. Oz for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator.](https://www.abc27.com/news/top-stories/donald-trump-to-nominate-mehmet-oz-for-centers-for-medicare-and-medicaid-services/) Because why the hell not. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/346 "2024-11-19T21:27:48Z")
Came here to report this news. Every time I read about another appointment, my heart sinks. It’s currently trying to exit my heels. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/347 "2024-11-19T21:29:27Z")
That’s a bit of a surprise to me; it’s not a role that I expect to go to a celebrity. I don’t think I could even name any previous CMS administrator. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/348 "2024-11-19T22:16:25Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > it’s not a role that I expect to go to a celebrity. I don’t think I could even name any previous CMS administrator. Possibly silly concern, but I wonder how long each of these fabulous appointees need to serve at their jobs to earn pensions. Sure, not likely to make a big difference for some of them, and not a drop in the budget bucket. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/349 "2024-11-19T22:25:46Z")
In case you were wondering, this is what “qualified and capable” looks like for the CMS Administrator role: > **[Administrator | CMS](https://www.cms.gov/about-cms/who-we-are/leadership)** > > Chiquita Brooks-LaSure is the Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), where she oversees programs including Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health... And then, there’s Dr. Oz. I’m still torn. I can’t be sure how much this will be _kakistocracy_ and how much it will be _kleptocracy._ Obviously, it can be both. Maybe the Venn diagram circles overlap perfectly. People are saying … ---
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/350 "2024-11-19T23:14:20Z")
I’m at the point where I’m at least happy that he has a medical degree. Yes he promoted all kinds of crap on his television program but that was for ratings. He wouldn’t need to do that in this job. He has at least supported vaccines. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/351 "2024-11-19T23:19:05Z")
Actually, I don’t think having a medical degree is _needed_ to be CMS administrator. Looking in Wikipedia for the bios of several people recently in that role, I find people with a MPH, MPP or MBA degree. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/352 "2024-11-19T23:19:52Z")
Oz said sending kids back to school during COVID was “an attractive option” because the extra deaths resulting from it wouldn’t be too high. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/353 "2024-11-19T23:38:21Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Actually, I don’t think having a medical degree is _needed_ to be CMS administrator. Looking in Wikipedia for the bios of several people recently in that role, I find people with a MPH, MPP or MBA degree. For that matter, I’m not sure that a medical degree is particularly useful for running CMS. It’s not HHS or the Surgeon General’s office; one needs to understand public health, health insurance, and health networks. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/354 "2024-11-19T23:40:05Z")
That’s my point; it’s a very big, important administrative role. (For that matter Surgeon General is _also_ an administrative role, though one often or entirely given to physicians.) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/355 "2024-11-19T23:41:45Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > That’s my point; it’s a very big, important administrative role. I wasn’t disagreeing with you (apologies if it came across that way); I was just noting that being a medical doctor, in and of itself, probably doesn’t give a candidate any actual understanding of what makes CMS tick. Not that that stops Trump from some of these choices… ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/356 "2024-11-19T23:50:55Z")
Egads, if the Onion made this list for Trump’s proposed picks, we’d be laughing out asses of at how ridiculous, but deny it has any believability. I have a new theory. We all know the idea that Trump didn’t really expect to win the first time. We know Trump was a Democrat at one time. Ok,deep lunacy CT, Trump has actually been trolling the Republicans this entire time, to see how stupid he has to get before they realize it’s a hoax. Sort of like the original Colbert Report, but more covert. Hear me out. 1. He started with Birther nonsense. It sold much better than he hoped. 2. He launched his campaign riding _down_ an escalator, symbolizing taking the country downhill. The Dems saw this and laughed. The Reps didn’t see it. 3. He was nasty and rude to the Republican candidates, and people ate it up. He won the R nomination, to his own surprise. 4. He flirted with White Supremists and dog whistles, but the dems heard them as alarms, the reps heard them as a call. 5. The Dems ran Clinton against him, who a lot of even democrats didn’t like. The email issue was an own fail. Comey handed Trump a surprise win. 6. Trump picked poorly qualified staffers and cabinet, expecting pushback from the Senate, but got them confirmed. 7. He ham-handed his way through the first Presidency, waiting to be Impeached and ejected, but the Rs just kept defending him. 8. He went after abortion rights. He knew the dems would get activated. He thought the personal freedom conservatives would oppose him. They didn’t. 9. He lost the election, but kept pushing because the Rs just kept defending him. 10. He increased the trolling by attacking Biden for being “too old”, but only being a couple of years younger - and will be inaugurated at an older age. The Rs didn’t see the irony. 11. Biden dropped out and Harris replaced him. So he pivoted to being the old, deteriating guy. He started bumbling words, making “mental mistakes”, etc, but the Rs were oblivious. 12. He amped up the trolling by swaying through a rally, and abandoning his followers in the desert. They defended him and blamed the dems. 13. He started working with Musk, and then brought in RFK. The Dems called him out. The Rs went along with him. 14. Despite all his best efforts, he won. 15. So he’s gone all-in. His Cabinet picks are a deliberate cry for help to the American people. He’s screaming to patriots, WAKE UP! I’M TRASHING THE CONSTITUTION AND YOU ARE HELPING ME! He’s daring the Rs to defy him, to say “enough is enough”. And stupid America is _still_ falling for it. Yeah, I know he faced real legal troubles. This story isn’t real. He isn’t smart enough to have done this intentionally. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/357 "2024-11-19T23:56:46Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > That’s my point; it’s a very big, important administrative role. > > I wasn’t disagreeing with you (apologies if it came across that way); I was just noting that being a medical doctor, in and of itself, probably doesn’t give a candidate any actual understanding of what makes CMS tick. Not that that stops Trump from some of these choices… Another thing; CMS administrator isn’t really a public-facing position so why would Dr Oz want the job? ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2024, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/358 "2024-11-20T01:34:41Z")
> [@Locrian](#): > > Oz said sending kids back to school during COVID was “an attractive option” because the extra deaths resulting from it wouldn’t be too high. Sorry, it was “an appetizing option”. Much less sinister that way. My Dr. sister said since he’s a cardiac surgeon, he knows nothing on vaccines. [https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dr-oz-coronavirus-apology-mortality/](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dr-oz-coronavirus-apology-mortality/) ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2024, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/359 "2024-11-20T01:42:08Z")
He may see it as a sinecure. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2024, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799/360 "2024-11-20T02:06:59Z")
So Linda McMahon is reportedly Trump’s pick for [Secretary of Education.](https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/19/politics/linda-mcmahon-education-secretary-trump?cid=ios_app) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799.md?page=17) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-new-cabinet/1009799.md?page=19)