Desk report
Before the election, Donald Trump promised to clean up Washington’s mess. From reducing commodity prices to ending the Russia-Ukraine war, he would achieve everything on his first day in office. He is also expected to start deporting millions of undocumented immigrants from the country on his first day. It is difficult to say how many of these he will be able to do. However, he himself has admitted that it will not be possible to reduce the price of consumer goods. Once the price of goods rises, it is difficult to reduce it, he said this in an interview with Time magazine.
It does not seem possible for him to keep his promise to clean up Washington’s mess. Most of those who have already been named as members of his cabinet are not primarily known as skilled administrators, but as billionaires. Some, like him, are involved in women’s scandals. Several commentators have said that Trump is gathering circus clowns in the name of the cabinet. It is estimated that if confirmed by the Senate, Trump’s next cabinet will include at least fifteen billionaires or multi-billionaires. One of them, Elon Musk, has a personal fortune of about $500 billion.
War on Poverty
Donald Trump promised before the election that meeting the daily needs of ordinary Americans would be his main responsibility. Naturally, the question arises, how can these billionaires who are not related to the lives of ordinary Americans be able to fulfill Trump’s promise. Elon Musk—whom Trump has said he will give responsibility for the so-called ‘Office of Government Efficiency’—has promised in advance to cut two trillion dollars from the US budget in the name of cost reduction. The task is easier said than done. Three-quarters of the US budget is allocated to sectors that are impossible to touch. Such as defense, Medicare and Social Security. Trump himself is against touching any of these. So the remaining sectors to cut are food stamps and unemployment benefits for the very poor, child care, education and environmental regulation. The New Republic newspaper said that implementing Elon Musk’s proposal would mean ‘declaring war on the country’s poor’
It doesn’t seem possible for him to keep his promise to clean up Washington’s garbage. Most of those he has already announced as members of his cabinet are not primarily known as skilled administrators, but as billionaires. Some are involved in women’s scandals like him. Several commentators have said that Trump is gathering circus clowns in the name of the cabinet. It is being said that if approved by the Senate, at least fifteen billionaires or multi-billionaires will be included in Trump’s next cabinet. One of them, Elon Musk, has a personal wealth of about $500 billion.
War on Poverty
Donald Trump promised before the election that his main responsibility would be to meet the daily needs of ordinary Americans. Naturally, the question arises, how will these billionaires who have no connection to the lives of ordinary Americans be able to fulfill Trump’s promises. Elon Musk, whom Trump has said he will appoint to the so-called “Office of Government Efficiency,” has promised to cut $2 trillion from the U.S. budget in the name of cost-cutting. That’s easier said than done. Three-quarters of the U.S. budget is allocated to sectors that are impossible to touch, such as defense, Medicare, and Social Security. Trump himself is against touching any of these. So the only areas left to cut are food stamps and unemployment benefits for the very poor, child care, education, and environmental regulation. The New Republic newspaper said that implementing Elon Musk’s proposal would amount to “declaring war on the nation’s poor.”
Another problem with leaving the responsibility for policymaking and implementation in the hands of these highly successful businessmen is that it creates opportunities for corruption rather than policy. Let’s take an example. Elon Musk is best known for his driverless Tesla cars. Recently, his car has been involved in a large number of accidents and has come under government investigation. Elon Musk wants to change the rules for recording each such accident. The argument is that the government is now collecting so much information and data that it has become a problem rather than a benefit. Removing this rule will benefit Musk, but consumers will be in danger.
Trump has said that he will cut many of the current restrictions to increase government efficiency. These rules are in place to prevent the super-rich from doing whatever they want, in areas such as financial management, environmental protection, and single control over the market. Trump wants to eliminate the Consumer Protection Bureau, which was established during the Obama era to prevent irregularities in the banking sector. In his first administration, Trump repealed about 100 environmental regulations. Many fear that he will also change various regulations that currently prevent drinking water or air pollution. The biggest fear is about oil and gas extraction. Reckless oil and gas extraction is a major cause of the climate crisis. Trump has promised to remove all current barriers to oil and gas extraction from the first day he takes office.
Nepotism
The people Trump is inviting to his proposed cabinet are selected for qualities other than their vast wealth, such as their frequent appearances on Fox News or their kinship with Trump. For example, Pete Hegseth, nominated for the Department of Defense. Although a former member of the military, Hegseth has no experience or qualifications to manage a huge department like defense, and Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth said that leaving the responsibility of defense in the hands of this man is a disaster. The fact that Trump wants to give Hegseth the responsibility of this department despite multiple women’s scandals is, according to many, due to his frequent defense of Trump on Fox News. Another reason is that the man is handsome.
Trump is inviting many people who are close to him into his administration. His eldest son, Trump Jr.’s former fiancée, Kimberly Guilfoyle, has been selected as ambassador to Greece. His youngest son, Eric’s wife, Lara, is seeking a Florida Senate seat for Trump. His youngest daughter, Tiffany’s father-in-law, has been selected as special envoy to the Middle East, whose only relevant experience is that he is from Lebanon. The gentleman claimed to be a billionaire, but later it was found out that he was not, but a salaried employee of a Nigerian trucking company.
However, Charles Kushner, the father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Ivanka, has beaten everyone. Trump wants him to be ambassador to France. In 2005, Kar Fa
