MARTIN, Tenn. (AP) — Losing a Cabinet nominee through the confirmation process is not uncommon for future presidents — including Donald Trump when he was first elected.
Matt Gaetz’s decision to withdraw his name from the attorney general’s office on Thursday – amid ongoing arguments over a federal sex trafficking investigation – represents the first hint of opposition the president-elect may face from within his own party, including the Selecting people accused of sexual misconduct other questions.
Here’s a look at some of the current difficulties in choosing the presidential cabinet and some of the criticisms of Trump’s current lineup:
Republicans express their doubts
After Gaetz was elected last week, Sen. Lindsey Graham, a member of the Judiciary Committee and one of Trump’s key allies in the Senate, predicted that Gaetz would have to “answer some tough questions” in a confirmation hearing.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a Trump critic, said of Gaetz: “I don’t see him as a serious candidate.”
Other Trump picks also face questions.
Pete Hegseth, Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, was accused by a woman of sexually assaulting her in 2017. Hegseth has rejected her allegations.
Tulsi Gabbard, the former Democratic congresswoman elected director of national intelligence, has expressed sympathy for Russia and repeated false Russian theories about Ukrainian bioweapons. Gabbard, a military veteran who became one of Trump’s top lieutenants in 2024, faced criticism over his meeting with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and expressed skepticism that Assad was behind chemical attacks on his own people.
Nikki Haley, the last major GOP opponent of Trump in this year’s presidential race, spoke out against Gabbard’s confirmation, saying the post was “no place for a Russian, Iranian, Syrian or Chinese sympathizer.”
Haley also said Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services – would face “tough questions” from senators because he opposes vaccinations and has other views rejected by health officials.
“He is a liberal Democrat, environmental litigator who will now oversee 25% of our federal budget and has no health care background,” Haley said. “Some of you may think RFK is cool, others may like that he asks what’s in our food and what’s in our vaccines, but we don’t know what decisions he’ll make if he’s given the reins of an agency be handed over.” do behind the scenes.”
Republicans will have 53 votes in the Senate in January and can prevail with a 50-50 split over Vice President-elect JD Vance. That means four Republicans would have to abandon ranks to defeat a candidate if all Democrats oppose a Trump election.
This has happened before – including with Trump
Every recent president has had some doomed Cabinet nominations — including Trump himself.
In early 2017, Trump’s nominee for labor secretary became the first Trump nominee to withdraw his name from consideration. Fast food boss Andrew Puzder’s exit came after Republicans expressed concern that he had failed to pay taxes on time to a former housekeeper who was barred from working in the U.S., and Democrats expressed concern over Puzder’s business record and comments had complained about women and workers at his company, which owns Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr.
Puzder’s name was recently brought up again as a possible candidate for Trump’s second administration.
Trump also fired his first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, after just a few weeks in office because Flynn was dishonest about his contacts with Russian officials during the transition.
In the first year of Trump’s first term, Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price resigned after his costly trip sparked investigations that overshadowed the administration’s agenda and angered his boss, who had been in office for less than eight months. According to the Brookings Institution, which tracks turnover in presidential administrations, Trump’s first term resulted in a total turnover of 14 people, nearly double the turnover (8 people) of President George HW Bush’s term, a distant second.
Tips from other presidents
Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and both Bush and his son George W. Bush all had to come up with new names after their cabinet nominees ran into trouble.
It took Obama three attempts to find a commerce secretary. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson withdrew his name following news that a grand jury was investigating allegations of misconduct in contract awarding in his state. Republican Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire withdrew, citing “irresolvable differences” with the Democratic president’s policies.
In 2001, Linda Chavez – George W. Bush’s choice for labor secretary – quickly resigned after it was revealed that she had harbored an immigrant living in the country illegally.
Bill Clinton made several attempts to select an attorney general, nominating Janet Reno after both of his first two candidates withdrew amid revelations that they had hired people in the U.S. illegally to do housework and babysitting.
The Senate rejected George HW Bush’s choice for defense secretary, former Texas Sen. John Tower, in 1989 after several waves of reports about allegations of alcohol abuse and womanizing.
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Associated Press writer Nancy Benac in Washington contributed to this report.
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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP
