Donald Trump’s second-term cabinet was shaped less by experience and more by loyalty, personal favors and petty infighting, according to a new book that pulls back the curtain on how top roles were handed out.
In Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign That Changed America, journalist Jonathan Karl describes a West Wing where “obviously unqualified” picks could rise as long as the right person whispered in Trump’s ear.
One example dominates Karl’s early chapters: Kristi Noem.
Shortly after his election victory, Trump tapped the South Dakota governor to run the Department of Homeland Security, a sprawling agency that oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement, FEMA and even the Secret Service.
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Noem, Karl writes, had not been vetted, was not on the transition team’s list and had zero law enforcement background. But she had one advantage: Corey Lewandowski.
“When a surprised Trump advisor asked the president-elect why he had decided to nominate Noem to be secretary of Homeland Security, he had a simple answer. ‘I did it for Corey,’ he said. ‘It’s the only thing Corey asked me for.’”
Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign manager, had long-running rumors tied to Noem, though both deny an affair. But Karl says the favor was enough to land her one of the most sensitive positions in government.
Even Trump allies, he writes, were stunned. Steve Bannon told Karl two days after the announcement: “We still got the global war on terror. She runs the whole thing? She runs the fucking Secret Service? It’s all of it. It’s the global war on terror. It’s all that. What are you talking about? She’s never been in law enforcement!”
Bannon did not blame Trump; he blamed Lewandowski. “This motherfucker asked for somebody who’s obviously unqualified – and it’s dangerous. This is dangerous. What are you doing?”
Noem was confirmed in January and has since faced backlash over immigration overreach, disaster response delays and what critics call “authoritarian cosplay” photo shoots shot at the border and even inside El Salvador’s mega-prison.
But Noem was not alone. Karl says another tug-of-war broke out over former congressman and Fox Business host Sean Duffy, who wanted to be U.N. ambassador. He had no experience in foreign policy. Trump instead wanted Elise Stefanik, so Duffy was considered for transportation secretary, again, without relevant experience.
Karl recounts Trump joking with a friend about Duffy’s qualifications: “When Trump asked a friend of Duffy’s if he knew anything about transportation, the friend answered, ‘Of course he does, he has nine kids!’”
Power plays, sabotage and obsessive loyalty tests followed Duffy all the way to his final appointment.
Featured image via YouTube screengrab
