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Hiring and personnel of Donald Trump

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Donald Trump has had his hiring decisions criticized due to relatively high level of scandals and legal trouble.[1][2] Turnover in the Trump administration was the highest of all presidents since Brookings Institution started measuring in 1980, and cause for concern according to some experts.[3][4] According to some historians, Trump has received criticism from former officials at levels not seen over the last hundred years.[5] Nepotism has also risen as a point of comparison across administrations, with Trump having more family members in prominent roles than recent presidents.[6]

Turnover

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Turnover by presidency according to the Brookings Institution[7][3]

Donald Trump had more turnover in his administration than any president since the Brookings Institution started measuring in 1980, with 92% of his A-team followed by another 45% of his second hires for his A-team.[7][3][8] The turnover rate in his first year was double the next highest president since Reagan.[9] Kathryn Dunn Tenpas suggested that the high turnover stemmed from Trump's insistence on loyalty over competence.[10] Infighting was also reportedly particularly intense and vicious.[11]

A 2018 Harvard Business Review article argued that White House turnover was especially concerning in the Trump administration due to the lack of experience and expertise among the staffers Trump hired.[12] The article also argued that high turnover slows down productive work during the transition and as the new hire progresses up the learning curve, and that teams with high turnover at the top tend to perform worse.[12] Replacement times can be higher in the White House due to security clearances, which makes high turnover environments more disruptive.[12] Gautam Mukunda argues that the manner in which many high-profile personnel were fired, such as over Twitter, shrinks the pool of qualified candidates who would want to work in a Trump administration.[12] There also have not seemed to have been lucrative jobs waiting for former White House officials as was true of previous administrations. He also speculated that the threat of legal bills for working in a Trump administration would be a significant deterrent.[12][13]

In June 2020, Mick Mulvaney said that if he had one criticism of Trump, it was that he did not hire very well.[14]

Acting secretaries

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Trump opted for filling some positions temporarily with acting appointees who did not have to get Senate confirmation.[15] Stanford Law Professor Anne Joseph O'Connell found that they had a harder time accomplishing their work and had less influence.[15] An April 2019 Time article described Trump as having a historically high level of acting cabinet members,[15] which Jon Michaels of the UCLA School of Law called "very troubling."[15]

Presidential transition

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2016

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Main article: First presidential transition of Donald Trump § Assessment of the transition

Trump's 2016 presidential transition set a 'low bar' for modern transitions according to Max Stier, followed by George H. W. Bush.[16][17]

2024

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See also: Project 2025

Trump's 2024 transition team officially started in August, which is considered unusually late as most transition efforts start in the late spring.[16] Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump were reported by Axios to be screening members of the transition team and future administration for loyalty.[18] Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s inclusion as an honorary co-chair has generated concern among health experts worried about the influence he could get over hiring people related to vaccines and other important health-related positions.[19][20] RFK Jr. said his role in the administration would relate to healthcare and food and drug policy,[21] and later stating that Trump would give him control over HHS and the USDA.[22] Another conspiracy theorist named an honorary co-chair is Tulsi Gabbard.[23][24][25] Gabbard has defended autocratic regimes against criticism including Russia and Syria.[26]

Felony convictions, indictments, charges and other ethics scandals

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First term

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See also: Political appointments of the first Trump administration § Appointment controversies, and List of federal political scandals in the United States § Executive branch 25

In July 2024, Axios described the number of Trump associates sentenced to prison as "striking".[27] PolitiFact noted in 2020 that there have historically been many more indictments under Republican presidents than Democratic ones with 28 indictments under Nixon and 33 under Reagan.[28]

Robert Schlesinger criticized Trump's hiring decisions for the relatively high level of scandals and legal trouble, arguing that Trump's focus on loyalty over competence drives many of the issues.[2] Chris Christie called hiring "a blind spot" for Trump.[1][29]

By March 2018, 7 out of 24 members of Trump's cabinet faced accusations of abusing their perks in office.[30]

In March 2018, ProPublica revealed that at least 187 of Trump's first 2,475 political appointees have been lobbyists, with many overseeing industries they once lobbied for.[31]

Second term

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See also: Political appointments by Donald Trump in his second term § Reception

Some particulartly controversial nominations made by Donald Trump for positions in the government during his second term as president include Matt Gaetz for Attorney General, Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense and Tulsi Gabbard for Director of National Intelligence.[32][33][34] Politico characterized Trump's nominees as of November 13, 2024 as being primarily motivated by loyalty.[32] The Guardian described the picks as more extreme than those proposed in 2016.[35]

Family members in major roles

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Further information: First presidency of Donald Trump § Ethics, and Nepotism in the United States

Nepotism is more often associated with dictatorships who centralize power in unqualified family members.[6] In 1967, a Federal anti-nepotism statute was passed after John F. Kennedy appointed his brother Robert F. Kennedy as Attorney General.[36]

Nepotism has also risen as a point of comparison across administrations, with Trump having more family members in prominent roles than recent presidents.[6] The Guardian cites foreign policy experts that think that 'dynastic displays' by promoting ones kids who do not have experience, damages America's credibility.[37] Vox criticizes his "several adult children and in-laws who have business careers that are enmeshed with his political fortunes."[38] Matthew Yglesias also described Ivanka as "involved in policymaking in a way that’s simply unheard of for a presidential child, especially one with zero prior experience in politics and government".[38] Yglesias also described Jared Kushner, another senior adviser for Trump, as having "a vast policy portfolio, no obvious qualifications for government, and a large fortune inherited from his criminal father has left Kushner with myriad financial conflicts of interest."[38]

While Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have been campaigning for their dad since 2016 and in 2024 have become, along Eric's wife and RNC co-chair Lara Trump, the most visible family members of the campaign and would be expected to have a significant role in a future administration.[39][40] Donald Trump Jr. hopes to be a gatekeeper who can veto any hire and who, along with Eric, was reportedly influential in JD Vance being selected as the Vice Presidential nominee.[39][40] Jared Kushner's private equity firm Affinity Partners raised a fund from foreign investors, that has made $157 million in management fees (including $87 million from the Saudi government alone) between 2021-2024.[41] The fund is under Senate investigation for possible foreign influence buying ahead of the 2024 election after a New York Times report suggested that Kushner used contacts he made from his role in Trump's White House.[41][42]

Criticism by former personnel

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See also: List of former Trump administration officials who endorsed Joe Biden, List of former Trump administration officials who endorsed Kamala Harris, and List of Republicans who oppose the Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign

USA Today interviewed three presidential historians and a political scientist about how usual the amount of criticism Trump has gotten from former officials who served under him who reported that it had no historical precedent in the last century.[5] The Washington Post said that no president had ever drawn more detractors from inside his inner-circle.[43] CNN said that "No person in US politics – certainly no recent president – has such an expansive list of high-profile allies turned enemies."[44] PBS described the level of detractors who witnessed the president work first-hand as, "without precedent in the modern era."[45] Half of Trump's cabinet do not endorse Trump's 2024 campaign,[46] and Trump became the first president to be called a fascist by his former hand-picked top adviser.[47]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Mosk, Matthew; Faulders, Katherine (August 21, 2020). "Trump's checkered hiring record widens as Bannon joins list of indicted insiders". ABC News. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  2. ^ a b Schlesinger, Robert (July 29, 2024). "J.D. Vance Proves It: Trump Hires the Very Worst People". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  3. ^ a b c Tenpas, Kathryn Dunn (March 19, 2024). "Tracking turnover in the Biden administration". Brookings. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  4. ^ Stewart, James B. (January 10, 2019). "Why Trump's Unusual Leadership Style Isn't Working in the White House". New York Times. Mr. Trump was able to assemble a relatively stable and loyal team of people who worked for him for years when he ran his private business. His failure to do so at the White House — save for a couple of survivors including Kellyanne Conway and family members like Jared Kushner — may be his most perplexing and conspicuous management failure.
  5. ^ a b Anderson, Zac (April 12, 2024). "'Unprecedented' and 'stunning' number of Trump administration alums oppose his reelection". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2024-08-27. The sheer number of Trump officials − a minimum of 16 − speaking out against their former boss, and the severity of their criticism, is highly unusual. It has no historical precedent in the last century, according to three presidential historians and a political scientist interviewed by USA TODAY.
  6. ^ a b c Heer, Jeet (April 4, 2017). "The Scary Power of Nepotism in Trump's White House". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  7. ^ a b Tenpas, Kathryn Dunn (January 2021). "Tracking turnover in the Trump administration". Brookings. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  8. ^ "The White House revolving door: Who's gone?". BBC News. 2017-05-10. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  9. ^ Parvaneh, Danush (2018-03-08). "The revolving door at the Trump White House". Vox. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  10. ^ Tenpas, Kathryn Dunn (September 2018). "White House Staff Turnover in Year One of the Trump Administration: Context, Consequences, and Implications for Governing 1". Presidential Studies Quarterly. 48 (3): 502–516. doi:10.1111/psq.12479. ISSN 0360-4918.
  11. ^ Stern, Eric (2018-12-11). "Trump presidency's personnel turmoil stands in stark contrast to the 'nice guy' administration of George H. W. Bush". The Conversation. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  12. ^ a b c d e Mukunda, Gautam (2018-04-06). "Why Staff Turnover in the White House Is Such a Bad Thing — Especially For President Trump". Harvard Business Review. ISSN 0017-8012. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  13. ^ Samuelsohn, Darren; Johnson, Eliana (March 1, 2018). "Trump ignored 'bright line' on discussing Russia with Hicks". Politico.
  14. ^ Forgey, Quint (June 19, 2020). "Mulvaney: Trump 'didn't hire very well,' doesn't mesh with 'military personality'". Politico.
  15. ^ a b c d Gajanan, Mahita (2019-04-09). "Trump Likes Acting Cabinet Members. Research Shows They May Hurt Him". TIME. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  16. ^ a b Miller, Zeke (2024-08-27). "Presidential transition planning has begun in earnest, but Trump and Harris are already behind". AP News. Retrieved 2024-08-29.
  17. ^ Balz, Dan (April 4, 2017). "'It went off the rails almost immediately': How Trump's messy transition led to a chaotic presidency". Washington Post.
  18. ^ Thompson, Alex (April 24, 2024). "Exclusive: Trump brothers Eric and Don Jr. emerge as loyalty czars". Axios.
  19. ^ Trudo, Hanna; Weixel, Nathaniel (September 6, 2024). "Alarm grows over possible RFK Jr. role at HHS if Trump wins". The Hill.
  20. ^ Prater, Nia (2024-08-27). "RFK Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard Are Joining the Trump Transition Team". Intelligencer. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  21. ^ Haberman, Maggie; Swan, Jonathan; O’Brien, Rebecca Davis (August 27, 2024). "Donald Trump plans to name Robert Kennedy and Tulsi Gabbard as honorary co-chairs of his transition team". New York Times.
  22. ^ Leonard, Ben; Cirruzzo, Chelsea; Gardner, Sophie (October 30, 2024). "RFK Jr. claims Trump pledged to give him 'control' of HHS, USDA". Politico.
  23. ^ Oamek, Paige (August 27, 2024). "RFK Jr. Reveals Terrifying Role He'll Play in Helping Trump". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  24. ^ "Tulsi Gabbard's ties to secretive cult may explain her perplexing political journey". The Independent. 2024-06-04. Retrieved 2024-11-15.
  25. ^ Friedman, Dan (November 13, 2024). "Tulsi Gabbard is a uniquely bad choice for director of national intelligence". Mother Jones. Retrieved 2024-11-15.
  26. ^ "Who is Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's new national intelligence director?". www.bbc.com. November 14, 2024. Retrieved 2024-11-15.
  27. ^ Saric, Ivana (July 2, 2024). "Charted: Trump world allies sentenced to prison". Axios.
  28. ^ Kertscher, Tom. "Many more indictments under 3 GOP vs 3 Dem presidents". @politifact. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  29. ^ Cathey, Libby (February 6, 2024). "Chris Christie predicts 'huge personnel problem' if Trump is reelected to 'vendetta presidency'". ABC News. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  30. ^ Overby, Peter (March 8, 2018). "Trump's Cabinet Scandals: Is Abuse Of Office Contagious?". NPR. Liautaud said poor ethical conduct is highly contagious within an organization, and added, 'The more dangerous part is that not only does unethical behavior spread, but it mutates into other forms of unethical behavior.'
    She said what starts out as a simple transgression can lead to doctoring emails, or lying to investigators, or threatening whistleblowers — all hallmarks of the travel and spending cases now under scrutiny.
  31. ^ Kravitz, Derek; Shaw, Al; Arnsdorf, Isaac (2018-03-07). "What We Found in Trump's Drained Swamp: Hundreds of Ex-Lobbyists and D.C. Insiders". ProPublica. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  32. ^ a b "Even Republicans are stunned by Trump's Gaetz Cabinet pick: 'Absolute gut punch'". Politico. November 13, 2024.
  33. ^ Editorial Board (November 13, 2024). "Opinion: For Trump, dubious nominees come in threes". Washington Post.
  34. ^ "Trump taps loyalists with few qualifications for top jobs". Reuters. November 14, 2024.
  35. ^ Yerushalmy, Jonathan (2024-11-15). "Trump 2.0: are his cabinet picks more extreme than in 2016?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-11-15.
  36. ^ "Post-Trump Reforms - Executive Power". The New York Times. 2019-09-10. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-08-24.
  37. ^ Smith, David (2019-07-01). "Trump nepotism attacked after 'out-of-her-depth' Ivanka given key summit role". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  38. ^ a b c Yglesias, Matthew (2020-10-26). "Nepotism and the 2020 election, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  39. ^ a b Anderson, Zac. "Which Trump family members could have influence in a second administration?". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  40. ^ a b Allen, Jonathan (2024-07-17). "The MAGA wing of the Trump family takes center stage". NBC News. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  41. ^ a b Tait, Robert (2024-09-25). "Jared Kushner's private equity firm faces inquiry as it fails to return profits". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
  42. ^ Lipton, Eric; Swan, Jonathan; Haberman, Maggie (March 15, 2024). "Kushner Developing Deals Overseas Even as His Father-in-Law Runs for President". New York Times.
  43. ^ Dawsey, Josh (2023-11-20). "Many former Trump aides say he shouldn't be president. Will it matter?". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-08-27. No president has ever attracted more public detractors who were formerly in his inner circle... Among them are his former vice president, top military advisers, lawyers, some members of his Cabinet, economic advisers, press officials and campaign aides, some of whom are working for other candidates.
  44. ^ Wolf, Zachary B. (2023-10-03). "Analysis: 24 former Trump allies and aides who turned against him | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2024-08-27. No person in US politics – certainly no recent president – has such an expansive list of high-profile allies turned enemies.
  45. ^ "Former Trump officials are among the most vocal opponents of returning him to the White House". PBS News. 2024-04-05. Retrieved 2024-08-27. It's a striking chorus of detractors, one without precedent in the modern era, coming from those who witnessed first-hand his conduct in office and the turmoil that followed.
  46. ^ "These are the Republicans endorsing Harris over Trump". Washington Post. 2024-10-12. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
  47. ^ Baker, Peter (October 27, 2024). "Amid Talk of Fascism, Trump's Threats and Language Evoke a Grim Past". New York Times.

Further reading

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