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Political appointments of the first Trump administration
This article is about executive branch appointments. For judicial appointments, see List of federal judges appointed by Donald Trump.
This is a list of political appointments of current officeholders made by the 45thpresident of the United States, Donald Trump.
Links to lists of announced positions from which candidates have withdrawn or appointees who have resigned or have been terminated, as well as lists of appointments to other independent agencies and of holdovers from previous administrations are below.
Following President Trump's election, there were around 4,000 political appointment positions which the incoming Trump administration needed to review, and fill or confirm, of which 1,212 required Senate confirmation.[1][2]The Washington Post has identified 757 key positions requiring U.S. Senate confirmation. As of September 8, 2020[update], 531 of Trump's nominees for key positions had been confirmed, 97 were awaiting confirmation, and 13 had been announced but not yet formally nominated,[3] a total of 639 positions. Trump has said he intends not to fill many of the positions.[4] The rules of the Senate require that when the term of the Senate expires (in the case of the 115th Congress, at noon on January 3, 2019), nominations then pending lapse and are returned to the president, who can resubmit them to the new Congress.[5]
All members of the Cabinet require confirmation by the United States Senate following nomination by the president prior to taking office. The vice presidency is exceptional in that the position requires election to office pursuant to the United States Constitution. Although some positions are of Cabinet-level rank, non-cabinet members within the Executive Office of the President, such as White House chief of staff, national security advisor, and White House press secretary, do not hold constitutionally created positions and most do not require Senate confirmation for appointment. Persons appointed on an acting basis do not require Senate confirmation before they begin to act in their position, even if a permanent appointment to that position would require confirmation. Appointments to judgeships on federal courts and of ambassadors require nomination by the president and confirmation by the Senate. Acting appointments to these positions are not permissible.
Analysis
Certain news organizations, such as Politico and Newsweek, called Trump's incomplete cabinet a "conservative dream team"[6] or "the most conservative cabinet [in United States history]".[7] On the other hand, The Wall Street Journal stated that "it's nearly impossible to identify a clear ideological bent in the incoming president's" cabinet nominations.[8]The Wall Street Journal also stated that Trump's nominations signaled a pro-deregulation administration policy.[9]
Among Donald Trump's appointments there have been several former Goldman Sachs employees, such as Steven Mnuchin, Steven Bannon, and Gary Cohn, as well as several generals, such as Michael T. Flynn, James Mattis, and John F. Kelly. These appointments have generated some criticism, including allegations of violations of the principle of civilian control of the military and allegations of regulatory capture.[10][11] The Democratic senator from Missouri, Claire McCaskill, has criticized Donald Trump's cabinet stating; "I call it the three 'G' Cabinet: Goldman, generals and gazillionaires."[12]
On January 18, 2017, two days before Trump's inauguration, it was reported that Trump had by then nominated only 28 people to fill 690 positions requiring Senate confirmation.[13] In particular, there had been no nominations below the Cabinet level for the departments of State or Defense, and the staff for the National Security Council was incomplete, while none of the NSC leadership had any NSC experience.[14]
On February 28, 2017, Trump announced he did not intend on filling many of the numerous governmental positions that were still vacant, as he considered them unnecessary.[15] According to CNN on February 25, there were nearly 2,000 vacant government positions.[16]
Color key
Denotes appointees serving in offices that did not require Senate confirmation.
Denotes appointees confirmed by the Senate.
Denotes appointees awaiting Senate confirmation.
Denotes appointees serving in an acting capacity.
Denotes appointees who have left office or offices which have been disbanded.
Denotes nominees who were withdrawn prior to being confirmed or assuming office.
Main article: Executive Office appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Agriculture
Main article: List of Department of Agriculture appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Commerce
Main article: List of Department of Commerce appointments by Donald Trump
| Office | Nominee | Assumed office | Left office |
|---|---|---|---|
Secretary of Commerce | Wilbur Ross[19] | February 28, 2017 (Confirmed February 27, 2017, 72–27) | January 20, 2021 |
Deputy Secretary of Commerce | Karen Dunn Kelley[20] | November 29, 2017 | November 29, 2018 |
| November 29, 2018 (Confirmed November 28, 2018, 62–38) | January 20, 2021 |
Department of Defense
Main article: List of Department of Defense appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Education
Main article: List of Department of Education appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Energy
Main article: List of Department of Energy appointments by Donald Trump
| Office | Nominee | Assumed office | Left office |
|---|---|---|---|
Secretary of Energy | Dan Brouillette | December 4, 2019 (Confirmed December 2, 2019, 70–15) | |
Deputy Secretary of Energy | Mark Menezes[24] | December 4, 2019 | August 4, 2020 |
| August 4, 2020 (Confirmed August 4, 2020, 79–16) | |||
Under Secretary of Energy (Management and Performance) | November 6, 2017 (Confirmed November 2, 2017, voice vote) | August 4, 2020 |
Department of Health and Human Services
Main article: List of Department of Health and Human Services appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Homeland Security
Main article: List of Department of Homeland Security appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Main article: List of Department of Housing and Urban Development appointments by Donald Trump
Department of the Interior
Main article: List of Department of the Interior appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Justice
Main article: List of Department of Justice appointments by Donald Trump
See also: List of United States attorneys appointed by Donald Trump
Department of Labor
Main article: List of Department of Labor appointments by Donald Trump
Department of State
Main article: List of Department of State appointments by Donald Trump
See also: List of ambassadors appointed by Donald Trump (2017–2021)
Department of Transportation
Main article: List of Department of Transportation appointments by Donald Trump
Department of the Treasury
Main article: List of Department of the Treasury appointments by Donald Trump
Department of Veterans Affairs
| Office | Nominee | Assumed office | Left office |
|---|---|---|---|
Secretary of Veterans Affairs | Robert Wilkie | March 28, 2018 | May 29, 2018 |
| July 30, 2018 (Confirmed July 23, 2018, 86–9)[39] | |||
Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs | Pamela J. Powers | April 2, 2020 | |
General Counsel of Veterans Affairs | Vacant | ||
Chief Financial Officer of Veterans Affairs | Jon J. Rychalski | February 7, 2018 (Confirmed December 21, 2017, voice vote) | |
Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Benefits) | Paul Lawrence[40] | May 15, 2018 (Confirmed April 26, 2018, voice vote) | |
Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health | Vacant | ||
Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Memorial Affairs) | Randy Reeves[41] | December 12, 2017 (Confirmed November 8, 2017, voice vote) | |
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Legislative Affairs) | Brooks Tucker[42] | August 10, 2017 (Confirmed August 3, 2017, voice vote) | |
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Information and Technology) | James Gfrerer[43] | January 7, 2019 (Confirmed January 2, 2019, voice vote) | |
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Enterprise Integration) | Melissa Sue Glynn | January 2, 2018 (Confirmed November 8, 2017, voice vote) | |
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Accountability and Whistleblower Protection) | Tamara Bonzanto[44] | January 7, 2019 (Confirmed January 2, 2019, voice vote) | |
Chairman of the Board of the Board of Veterans' Appeals | Cheryl L. Mason | December 11, 2017 (Confirmed November 8, 2017, voice vote) | |
| Creating Options for Veterans' Expedited Recovery Commission | |||
Chairman of the Creating Options for Veterans' Expedited Recovery Commission | Jake Leinenkugel | June 2018 | |
Member of the Creating Options for Veterans' Expedited Recovery Commission | Thomas E. Beeman[45] | ||
Independent intelligence agencies
Office of the Director of National Intelligence
| Office | Nominee | Assumed office | Left office |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office of the Director of National Intelligence | |||
Director of National Intelligence | John Ratcliffe | May 26, 2020 (Confirmed May 21, 2020, 49–44)[46] | |
Chief Information Officer | John Sherman | September 5, 2017 (Announced August 18, 2017) | |
| National Counterintelligence Executive | |||
Director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center | William Evanina[47] | June 2, 2014 | |
| May 6, 2020 (Confirmed May 6, 2020, 84–7)[48] | |||
| National Counterterrorism Center | |||
Director of the National Counterterrorism Center | Christopher C. Miller[ | ||