Trump picks Navarro, Spicer for top posts
Donald Trump appointed Peter Navarro, a hard-liner on US-China relations to head the White House's National Trade Council, a move that may irk Beijing. Republican National Committee spokesman Sean Spicer has been appointed as Trump's press-secretary. Meanwhile, Jason Miller has been appointed director of communications and Dan Scavino was named director of social media. Trump's campaign-manager Kellyanne Conway was named as counselor to President.
All eyes are on Donald Trump's cabinet
Donald Trump's campaign was extremely divisive and beset with controversies. His campaign was mocked by senior politicians and campaign officials are anxious about attracting top talent for his cabinet. Trump is keen to recruit from the private sector; conservative activists and industry stalwarts could also be appointed to key positions. Let's take a look at the most likely contenders.
Secretary of State
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Trump's long time supporter, is a serious contender for Secretary of State. Another possible candidate is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Corker; the senator from Tennessee indicated he would "strongly consider" serving in this position. Former US Ambassador to the UN, John Bolton, is also on Trump's radar.
Treasury Secretary
Donald Trump has already voiced his preference in this regard. For the position of Treasury Secretary, Trump would like to appoint his fundraiser, Steven Mnuchin. Mnuchin is a Goldman Sachs veteran and the current chairman and chief executive of Dune Capital Management, a private investment firm. Analysts believe appointing a Wall Street insider could soothe the financial sector's nerves.
America's next Attorney general
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has been Trump's most visible public defender; he is strongly in the running for Attorney General; Giuliani hasn't been in public office for 15 years. Another vocal Donald Trump supporter, New Jersey Governor Christie, currently the head of the president-elect's transition team, is another contender for this position.
Interior Secretary
The US department of interior oversees land management, national parks, wildlife refuges and more. Forrest Lucas, co-founder of an oil products company, is the top contender for Interior secretary. Donald Trump's son, Eric Trump, is keen on this position. Sarah Palin, former Alaskan governor, is a likely contender as well; Trump has indicated his keenness to offer her a cabinet post.
Mike Pence made in-charge of White House transition
Vice presidential candidate Mike Pence has been made in charge of a White House transition team by President-elect Donald Trump. The team also includes Trump's daughter Ivanka and sons Eric and Donald Jr., along with son-in-law Jared Kushner. Trump has to fill 4,000 jobs that need to be filled shortly after he takes the oath of office on 20 January 2017.
Priebus, Bannon appointed to White House roles
Senior Republican Reince Priebus has been appointed as Donald Trump's new chief of staff, while Trump campaign chief Stephen Bannon as the White House's chief strategist. Both positions do not require approval by the Senate and will come into effect on 20 January, when Trump will be sworn in. Trump said he was "thrilled" to have them "continue with me in leading our country."
Nikki Haley chosen as the US ambassador to UN
The transition team announced that President-elect Donald Trump has picked Indian-American Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley to be the US ambassador to the United Nations. Nikki would replace Samantha Power. She would also be the first woman and minority representative to be a part of Trump's administration. In a recent statement, she said the US "faces enormous challenges" both at home and internationally.
Scott Pritt to head EPA, Terry Branstad Ambassador to China
Donald Trump has controversially appointed Oklahoma Attorney General and staunch climate change critic Scott Pritt to head the US Environment Protection Agency. He also picked Terry Branstad, the Republican governor of Iowa who has long-standing ties with China to be the US Ambassador to China. China is also the first country to which Trump appointed an ambassador, indicative of his focus on Sino-US relations.
ExxonMobil CEO may be Trump's Secretary of State
Sources said Rex Tillerson, the CEO of US oil behemoth ExxonMobil is likely to be nominated as Secretary of State under the Trump administration. Tillerson is known to have close links with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Trump vowed to restore US-Russia ties and co-operate with Russia to combat international terror. Analysts speculate that Trump's recent meetings with Tillerson could be to this effect.
Trump picks Homeland Security chief
Retired Gen John Kelly has been nominated as Donald Trump's new Chief of Homeland Security; Trump said Kelly's service made him the "ideal choice" to serve as the new Homeland Security chief. Kelly worked with border security issues, migrant flows and counter-drug operations in the Caribbean and Central and South America. Several top positions in Trump's administration still remain vacant though.
Former Texas Guv is Trump's Energy Secretary
US President-elect Donald Trump picked former Texas Governor Rick Perry to be his new Secretary of Energy; interestingly, during his 2012 Presidential bid, Perry proposed to scrap the the U.S. Department of Energy. Perry is also a climate change skeptic and advocated for less regulation on fossil fuels. Perry's selection was confirmed after he met Donald Trump for discussions in New York.
Indra Nooyi on Donald Trump's advisory council
PepsiCo chairperson Indra Nooyi has just been inducted on President-elect Donald Trump's advisory council; Trump's transition team made this announcement a short while earlier. Numerous top leaders from the corporate world are already on the council including SpaceX and Tesla chief Elon Musk and Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick. The council will be responsible for giving industry input to Mr. Trump on the private sector.
