US President-elect Donald Trump announced his first cabinet appointment on Thursday following his election victory. He named his campaign manager Susan Wiles the White House as Chief of Staff, making her the first woman to hold the office.
Wiles enjoys substantial backing from his team and was notably invited to join him on stage during his victory speech early Wednesday.
“Susie is resilient, intelligent, innovative, and is held in high regard by everyone. Susie will persist in her hard work to Make America Great Again,” Trump remarked about the determined 67-year-old from Florida.
The potential candidates for positions within the Trump 2.0 administration illustrate the unconventional direction it is likely to take.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent advocate in the anti-vaccine movement for whom Trump has committed to providing a “significant role” in healthcare, stated to NBC News on Wednesday, “I’m not going to take away anybody’s vaccines.”
However, the former independent candidate reiterated that the Trump administration would advocate for eliminating fluoride—a mineral that US health authorities claim supports dental and bone health—from public water systems.
The wealthiest individual in the world, Elon Musk, might also be considered for a position focused on auditing government expenditures after the right-leaning SpaceX, Tesla, and X leader vocally supported Trump.
Trump is likely to oppose many of President Biden’s hallmark policies. He returns to the White House as a sceptic of climate change, ready to dismantle Biden’s environmental initiatives with his declaration to “drill, baby, drill” for oil.
He may encounter challenges in undoing some of Biden’s investment measures, which inject funding into numerous Congressional districts where representatives would be reluctant to see these resources disappear.