Today's Appointments News

There was all kinds of news on the appointments front, so we're going to run it all down in capsule form. Away we go:

• Secretary of Education: For his second term in office, Donald Trump is (partly) getting the band back together, leaning on (some) people who served in his last administration. Such is the case with Linda McMahon, who was Small Business Administrator last time around, and will be Secretary of Education this time around. There was zero chance that Trump's previous Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, would be back, because she had the temerity to criticize him (and resign) after the events of 1/6.
  
  McMahon's most important qualification for the job is that she's a big-time Republican and Trump donor. Her second-most-important qualification for the job is that she funds and co-runs the pro-Trump America First Policy Institute. Her third-most-important qualification for the job is that she's been involved with pro wrestling for decades. None of that, except maybe the pro wrestling, has anything to do with America's education system in the 21st century. Her only relevant experience on that front is that she was on the Connecticut State Board of Education for a few months before resigning, primarily due to criticism that... she knew nothing about education. McMahon is nonetheless sure to be confirmed, because she's already made it through the process once before, and because if the senators are going to die on a hill, it isn't going to be this one.
  
  
• Secretary of Commerce: The job McMahon really wanted was Commerce, but that will go to Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick. The Secretary-designate is in lockstep with Trump that tariffs are the solution to all of America's ills. Maybe they did not touch on that subject when he was majoring in Economics at Haverford College in the 1980s. In any event, he's a normal Cabinet-type-appointee, so he should have no trouble getting approved, either, unless something really bad leaks out. And that is certainly possible, given that the Trump team doesn't do much vetting.
  
  
• Hegseth in Trouble?: Speaking of vetting, Team Trump's dubious vetting team completely missed Pete Hegseth's sexual assault settlement. How that could be missed, we just don't know. In any event, the pressure to dump the Secretary of Defense nominee is not as great as the pressure to dump AG nominee Matt Gaetz, but it could get there. So, Trump insiders are already vetting potential replacements for Hegseth, should he be forced to withdraw. We suggest item #1 on their checklist should be "Has the potential nominee ever settled a sexual assault lawsuit?" The next one might be: "Has the potential nominee ever been credibly accused of sexual assault?"
  
  
• The Sun Always Shines on TV: Trump, who is himself a TV personality, of course, loves to appoint other TV personalities to his administration. And yesterday, he added another, picking Mehmet Oz to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. This seems like a reasonable enough pick; Oz is kind of a quack, but it's not like he'll be seeing patients himself. As an added bonus, it doesn't matter that he's from New Jersey. Oh, and he's got plenty of time on his hands these days. So, break out the crudités and celebrate!
  
  
• Secretary of the Treasury: No, Trump hasn't made a pick yet. If he had, then this would be at the top of the list. However, Lutnick was supposedly one of the leading candidates for this post, and now he's headed to Commerce. And the other leading candidate, Scott Bessent, has reportedly been knifed in the back by a bunch of Trump insiders, including Lutnick.
  
  So, Trump is now at least considering other candidates, and the new frontrunner is apparently Kevin Warsh, who worked in the Bush administration, and then as a governor of the Federal Reserve. The fundamental dynamic here is that Warsh is a Reagan-style Republican in his economic outlook; he loves tax cuts, a strong Fed and free trade, in particular. This means that Wall Street would love to see him picked, whereas MAGAworld is up in arms. Donald Trump has always wanted to be loved by Wall Street, since as the owner of a shady, family-owned, boutique real estate firm, he's never felt like one of the club. On the other hand, he also wants to be loved by MAGAworld. Warsh's fate may reveal which matters more to the President-elect.
  
  
• Secretary of Agriculture: No, this one hasn't been filled yet, either. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s long list of bugaboos include things like food dyes, pesticides and GMOs. What Junior apparently does not realize is that these things are not under the purview of the HHS Secretary, they're the job of the Secretary of Agriculture. Right now, the farm interests are "alarmed" at Junior's ascendancy, and are seeking assurance that a normal person will be running Agriculture. Former Trump White House and USDA official Ray Starling is reportedly the frontrunner; also under consideration is Republican former California lieutenant governor Abel Maldonado, who served alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger, is the child of farmworkers, and owns a winery. Starling is the preferred choice of Big Ag, but Team Trump wants at least a little bit of token diversity, and Maldonado could join Tulsi Gabbard in addressing that concern (as a reminder, Trump's original Cabinet, in 2016, had three minority members—Ben Carson, Elaine Chao and Nikki Haley).
  
  
• None of the Way with RFK: As long as we are on the subject of RFK Jr., the medical profession has quickly organized to try to prevent his confirmation. They have formed the "Stop RFK War Room" and are putting on the full-court press with every moderate Senator who might vote against confirmation.
  
  
• Secretary of Labor: This is another position that is not yet filled. However, Teamsters president Sean O'Brien, who is apparently still pretending that he is politically neutral, is lobbying hard for Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR), who will be out of work in about 6 weeks, having lost her reelection bid. She would also make the Trump Cabinet more diverse, and is reasonably qualified, having served on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
  
  
• Dead Man Walking: We've already noted that the Trump-appointed, but not sufficiently Trumpy, FBI Director Christopher Wray should probably be getting his résumé in order. Just in case there was any doubt, VP-elect J.D. Vance announced yesterday that Trump is interviewing potential replacements.

That's the latest; undoubtedly there will be much more news tomorrow, as the incoming administration tries to squeeze things in before the Thanksgiving Holiday. (Z)

Hard To Believe It Took Two Whole Weeks

Here are a couple of news items that will gladden many Democrats' hearts: There is already serious infighting breaking out between the incoming Trump White House and the incoming Senate Republican majority.

To start with, Donald Trump and his team are convinced that the National Republican Senatorial Committee and its main super PAC (the Senate Leadership Fund) are being controlled by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and other NeverTrump Republicans. They are probably right about that. So, Trump and his people are preparing to launch their own, competing PACs that will take orders from Trump.

Maybe this is a big game of chicken. Or maybe there will be a round of "kumbayah" at some point in the future, and everyone on the red team will get on the same page. But don't bet too much on that. And if the House Divided (well, really, the Senate Divided) setup goes forward, it sets the stage for another round of Senate primaries where a nutty Trumper and a normal Republican beat the tar out of each other, while the Democrats enjoy their popcorn.

Meanwhile (and this is VERY tentative), a loose NeverTrump coalition is emerging in the Senate. It potentially includes Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), John Cornyn (R-TX), and possibly others. At the moment, their focus is on getting the nominations of Matt Gaetz (and possibly Pete Hegseth) withdrawn. However, if that does not happen, they could band together and vote to torpedo the nominations. As we have pointed out several times, this is very rare, but it does happen. And when it's one or two apostates, then they're easier to ostracize. If it's four or five or six, that's much harder. On top of that, the more frequently that senators get away with defying Trump, the easier it is to do it again in the future.

We say again, the "rebellion" in the Senate is very tentative, and may very well not come to pass. However, it bears watching. At very least, it's a reminder that governing is way, way harder than just running for office. (Z)

Here Come De Judges

While there is dissension in the ranks of the Senate Republican Conference, the Senate Democratic Caucus is exceedingly unified. That will happen when you're in your last 6 weeks of having power, before having to give up the reins for 2, or 4, or more years.

The main focus, of course, is judges. The Senate just confirmed Embry Kidd to Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, making him just the second Black man appointed to a federal appeals court in the past decade. Senate Majority Leader (for now!) Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is literally burning the midnight oil in order to work through as many appointments as is possible.

The Republicans, not surprisingly, are up in arms. In part, they are complaining that Schumer is holding so many sessions, since so many Republican members are currently missing (e.g., Sens. Marco Rubio, R-FL, and J.D. Vance, R-OH). In part, they think that the Senate should be working on other business, like the budget. Oh, and Donald Trump doesn't want ANY more judges confirmed until he's sworn in.

Schumer's response to all of this, in so many words: Shove it. He and everyone in Washington, everyone who reads this blog, everyone who did not fall off the turnip truck yesterday, etc., know full well that if the shoe was on the other foot, the GOP would be doing the same thing. In fact, they did do the same thing, back in 2020. That's how the game is played these days. Actually, come to think of it, that's how the game has always been played. Remember, the critically important case Marbury v. Madison (1803) was triggered by John Adams' attempts to ram through a bunch of "midnight judges."

Exactly how the numbers will shake out is... unknowable at this point. Thus far, the Democrats have confirmed 217 judges during Biden's term; they need 17 more to equal the number from Trump's first term. At the appeals courts level, there are four nominees awaiting confirmation, two vacancies without a nominee, and three more potential vacancies depending on when announced retirements kick in. At the district court level, there are 21 nominees awaiting confirmation, 40 vacancies without a nominee, and 12 more potential vacancies depending on when announced retirements kick in.

This means that, if absolutely everything were to break Biden's way, he could seat nine more appellate judges and 73 more district judges. He'll never come close to that, of course. First, the Senate only has so much time left before January 3. Second, the blue-slip tradition is still in place. Although appellate judges like Kidd are not subject to blue slips (since they represent multiple states), district court judges are. Soon-to-be Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-IA) says he will continue to observe the tradition when he retakes the reins. If Democrats believe him (and he's built up a LOT of institutional goodwill), then they'll probably keep the blue slips in place, significantly reducing the number of seats they can fill. That said, the blue team probably can get to the 17 judges needed to tie Trump v1.0, and the one additional judge needed to exceed Trump v1.0. Beyond that, it's anyone's guess. (Z)

Trump Legal News: Slow Ride

Lawyer-reader A.R. in Los Angeles, CA has consented to do an update on the various legal situations involving Donald Trump and his acolytes:

• Mark Meadows is officially out of runway, as the Supreme Court has denied his petition for cert to have his case moved to federal court. Thus, he'll have to stand trial in state court in the Georgia and Arizona cases where he's been indicted.
  
  
• Speaking of Arizona, the judge in that case, Judge Bruce Cohen, has recused himself after an e-mail surfaced where he asked his fellow judges to defend Kamala Harris against attacks that she's a "DEI hire." He made the comments in an e-mail forum for judges. Unfortunately for the prosecutor, Cohen stepped down before ruling on defendants' pending motion to dismiss the case. Whoever is assigned to the case will decide that issue. No new judge has been named yet.
  
  
• In the New York fraud case, Manhattan AG Alvin Bragg filed an opposition to defendants' motion to dismiss and argued that the jury's verdict should be respected but sentencing delayed until after Donald Trump leaves office. It's not all that unusual for sentencing to be delayed by years if, for example, the defendant is cooperating, or appeals are being resolved. Judge Juan Merchan could still hand down a sentence on November 26, which would most likely be a fine given the realities of a new Trump term. But if the Judge agrees with the prosecutor and delays sentencing, then Trump could still face jail time once he leaves office for the final time. Either way, he will remain a convicted felon.
  
  
• In Special Counsel Jack Smith's 1/6 case in Washington, DC, prosecutors have asked Judge Tanya Chutkan to give them until December 2 to decide how to proceed; by all accounts the plan is for Smith and his team to resign before Trump takes office, wind down the case and issue a final report. The Special Counsel's office is required to provide a confidential report to the AG, who can choose to make it public. A filing to the Court could include a request for dismissal, either with or without prejudice. Smith could very well ask the Court to dismiss the case without prejudice so it could be revived once Trump leaves office. If the Judge agrees, that order would not be appealable, as it does not constitute a final judgment on the merits. I could see Smith doing that, especially since there really isn't much risk of evidence getting stale or witnesses' memories fading because all the evidence is pretty well known and locked in and well documented. It could also force Trump to make a choice about whether to try pardoning himself, which could make him look guilty. The difficulty is how to ensure that all the special counsel files are protected and preserved with this new administration. Perhaps they could turn everything over to the U.S. Senate for safekeeping (or maybe the courts). Alternatively, there are plenty of spare bathrooms at Mar-a-Lago.
  
  
• In Florida, the classified documents case looks pretty dead in the water. Smith has asked the Eleventh Circuit to put the appeal on hold until December 2 while they decide how to proceed. Now that Trump is president-elect, the case is essentially moot and there is really no reason to proceed with the appeal. The district court's decision has no precedential effect and can, and will, be ignored by other courts. Yes, Smith COULD continue with the appeal and, if he prevails, could also ask for a request to dismiss without prejudice. But that seems unlikely, as an incoming AG in 2029 probably won't want to be saddled with this landmine. And with Trump out of the case, I don't see Smith's office proceeding only against co-defendants Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira. Besides the fact that Trump will just pardon them once he takes office, they played a minor role compared to Trump's deliberate and willful withholding of classified and sensitive material.
  
  
• In Georgia, the appeals court has decided to cancel the oral argument that had been scheduled for December 5 on the issue of whether Fulton County DA Fani Willis has a disqualifying conflict of interest. That's not especially unusual—it generally signals that the Court can rule on the motion papers and doesn't need additional argument. Assuming Willis remains on the case, she could dismiss Trump and proceed with the rest of the defendants. Depending on the outcome of those cases, once Trump leaves office, she could bring new charges against him. That could actually work in her favor—it might be easier to get guilty verdicts without Trump, secure cooperation before sentencing and use that cooperation in her later case against Trump. Willis seems pretty tenacious, so I suspect she'll find a way to keep the case against Trump alive, even if it's just on life support. Heck, maybe by the time she gets to him, HE will be on life support.
  
  
• Speaking of illegal conduct, various media outlets are reporting that Trump plans to "declare a national emergency" and use the military to conduct mass deportations. The media has neglected to report that this would be a blatant violation of several laws and the Constitution. Let's not forget that Trump's favorite henchman, Tom Homan, the once and future ICE director, raided factories and other workplaces in his first stint in the administration. Besides the fact that he swept up American citizens and others lawfully in the country, a little thing called the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits searches and seizures without probable cause. And having brown skin is not probable cause of a crime. At least it wasn't before 2025.
  
  Also, the National Emergencies Act does not authorize the U.S. to carry out deportations. Immigration law affords people who have entered the country without authorization the right to apply for asylum and those cases can take years to resolve due to the massive shortage of Immigration Law Judges; they are lawfully in the country while those cases are pending. At the border, CBP already uses an expedited removal process to prevent those without a clear basis for asylum from entering the country at all. That is why there has been a dramatic decline of those eligible to remain in the country while their cases play out. There are very few people who cross into the U.S. without encountering some part of the system. As has been pointed out many times before, more people overstay a legal visa than enter the country illegally.
  
  On top of that, the Posse Comitatus Act prohibits the U.S. military from engaging in domestic law enforcement. There is some debate whether the National Guard falls under this law, but if it is being used to enforce federal law, as opposed to state law, it undoubtedly does. The only exception is the Insurrection Act, which allows the president to suppress a rebellion against the government. The Brennan Center has a good explanation of the Posse Comitatus Act and its weaknesses here.
  
  Of course, the major weakness is the appointment of a DOD director who relishes the thought of using the military to attack people inside the country and a spineless Republican Senate who will confirm him.
  
  
• With a president and his department heads and advisers all champing at the bit to use the military domestically, a weak Republican Congress that may be unwilling to stop it, and a media that doesn't know or doesn't care about Americans' basic rights, we are entering a break-glass moment. No one should think they are safe once these guardrails are breached.

Thanks for the update, A.R.! (Z)

Harris Campaign's Spending Comes Under Scrutiny

That headline is copied, word for word, from the item published by The Hill that serves as the basis for this item.

Now, consider if the headline had been this:

Trump Campaign's Spending Comes Under Scrutiny

Would you expect to read the exact same kind of story, except with Donald Trump instead of Kamala Harris?

Truth be told, when we clicked on it, we assumed—for lack of a better explanation—that it would be the same kind of story. That is to say, a story about some sort of misappropriation or mishandling of campaign funds. And we were very surprised, because Democrats tend to be very fastidious about these things, given that if they so much as sneeze without filling out the four FEC-required forms, it becomes the basis for three days' programming at Fox.

As it turns out, it is not the kind of story we expected. It's focused on Democrats who are carping about the fact that Harris raised $1 billion, and where did it all go, and what do the Democrats have to show for it? These seem like dumb questions to us. As to the first, we saw hundreds and hundreds of Harris commercials, and we read about thousands and thousands of paid workers. As to the second, perhaps these folks don't know that either one candidate or the other is going to get zilch for the nine—or ten—figure outlay they put out.

In any event, we were struck by the fact that "Harris' Campaign's Spending Comes Under Scrutiny" and "Trump Campaign's Spending Comes Under Scrutiny" are nearly identical headlines, but announce very different kinds of stories. And there is relatively little chance of the polarity flipping. That is to say, we have already noted that we would be shocked by a story about a Democratic presidential candidate using funds in an unethical or illegal way. And we do not recall seeing any stories this cycle about whether or not Trump was getting enough bang for his buck out of his donations (nor in 2020, when it was HIS outlay that went for naught).

Perhaps your mileage will vary, but this struck us as a pretty clear example of the different standards the media applies to Democrats and Republicans. Or maybe it's the different expectations that Democratic voters have for their leaders, as opposed to those that Republicans have for THEIR leaders. Or maybe it's that Trump is allowed to play by a set of rules that's only applied to him. Or maybe it's all of the above. (Z)

Abortion Is Legal Again in Wyoming (For Now)

Wyoming might be the reddest state in the nation. And, not coincidentally, it might have been the first state to impose a total ban on all abortion procedures, including abortifacient pills. But, at least for now, abortion is again permissible there, thanks to a ruling this week from Teton County District Judge Melissa Owens.

Owens has been handling a trio of cases involving The Cowboy State's abortion laws, as anti-choice forces argue that the bans are legal, and pro-choice forces argue that the laws violate women's rights under the state constitution. Owens' ruling, in which she sided with the latter faction, will be the last to come from her court, as it is final (as opposed to being an injunction).

Of course, her ruling is appealable to the Wyoming Supreme Court, and Gov. Mark Gordon (R-WY) said his administration plans to do just that. And ultimately, this fight is never going to end, not in Wyoming, not in the United States. This despite the fact that outlawing abortions in one state just compels women to go to another state, and outlawing them nationwide just leads to the rise of a back-alley illegal abortion industry. The U.S. learned a lesson with Prohibition, but not with this issue, it would seem. (Z)

Today Is Transgender Day of Remembrance

In 1999, a group of trans activists established the Transgender Day of Remembrance, which is set aside to memorialize those who have been killed as a result of transphobia. We think this day is particularly germane this year (and for the next four), because—as we have noted on other occasions—we think the rhetoric of people like J.D. Vance and Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) could very well encourage fanatical Trumpers to take matters into their own hands.

Reader S.B. in Winslow, ME wrote in with a few thoughts, and we thought it would be appropriate to share them:

Imagine the one thing that defines you—an immutable aspect of your identity—suddenly made illegal. Now imagine that not only is this essence of who you are illegal, it's more than just a fine. The government is going out of its way to erase you from society. If you are a person of color, an indigenous American, or a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, you've felt that in the past and you likely still feel the ramifications of it now.

As a transgender woman, I feel that more now than ever.

I always knew the conservative factions had a problem with trans people. I was a member of conservative churches for many of my younger years and I work in the nuclear power industry—a field saturated with conservative politics. My decision to "come out" and live my authentic life cost me my only child, a marriage, many friendships, and to some extent "being heard" in the workplace. Women will understand what I mean by the latter.

(V) and (Z) learned that only two people in federal prison had gender-confirmation surgery, and yet literally millions of dollars were spent to create a millstone to hang around Kamala Harris' neck. To my knowledge, there have been zero incidents of a trans person (specifically a trans female) assaulting someone in a women's restroom. If I'm wrong on this, I have to believe the number is able to be counted on one hand.

And yet, transgender people, especially transgender women, have become the new face of moral/liberal evil in America. Every year, 20 to 60 trans women are murdered simply for existing. Think about this: More trans women are murdered every month than received gender confirmation surgery in prison in the entire time since the operation was allowed.

As a friendly acquaintance of Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE), I both root for her and fear for her. Prior to this election, people like she and I were disdained by an angry minority of people. With the upcoming change in government, this angry minority has shown itself to be a pervasive majority and will again have power to implement laws that will harm us. I am grateful that she will be a representative for all transgender people in the House of Representatives. I am fearful that she will also be a target. It is my sincere prayer that we never read her name on a future Transgender Day of Remembrance.

What's different about you? How would you feel if that difference was made in the face of moral evil? How would you feel if others like you were being murdered solely because that's who you are? How would you feel if the new administration has a proven track record and has clearly voiced their intention to eliminate you?

I don't like closing messages of darkness on a note of darkness. I am a child of Light. While my LGBTQIA+ friends and allies are deleting social media accounts, setting up "safe houses," and otherwise preparing for a targeted attack from the government fomented in anger and the people who elected it, I am choosing to be light. I recently published a novel featuring a sparrow named Wren who undergoes an inner transformation toward light in her search for truth. I plan to promote that. I plan to create Instagram videos encouraging hope. I plan to speak where I can to speak hope. Even one candle can overcome perfect darkness. I am one such candle, and I refuse to be extinguished. And should it be so that my voice is silenced because of who I am, know that I am not the one who lit my wick. It was the Divine Light within me, and that Light is never fully overcome.

Thanks so much, S.B., and good for you! (Z)

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