Trump’s “Cabinet of Villains” Expands: Gabbard for DNI, Gaetz for AG

President-elect Donald Trump has once again ignited global concerns about the future by naming additional top officials for his upcoming administration on Wednesday. Former U.S. Representative Tulsi Gabbard has been chosen as the director of national intelligence, while Republican Congressman from Florida, Matt Gaetz, has been tapped for attorney general.

Trump also confirmed his plans, which had been widely reported, to appoint Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as secretary of state. The Associated Press remarked that Trump’s selections demonstrate his preference for appointing staunch loyalists who are committed to implementing his policies, rather than seasoned experts in their respective fields.

The recent announcements have drawn dramatic comparisons. A user on social media joked that “Trump’s cabinet is starting to resemble Dr. Evil’s group of minions,” and Justin Jones—a Democrat from Tennessee who was expelled and subsequently reinstated to the state legislature following a protest against gun violence—compared it to Voldemort, the infamous villain from the Harry Potter series.

Tulsi Gabbard, who served in both Kuwait and Iraq with the Hawaii Army National Guard, represented Hawaii as a Democrat in the U.S. House from 2013 to 2021. She ran for president in 2020 but eventually supported Joe Biden. Departing from the Democratic Party in 2022, as described by Politico, she became a prominent figure in conservative media circles. After endorsing Trump in August, she actively campaigned for him.

The former congresswoman, who recently joined the Republican Party, has been a vocal critic of U.S. foreign policy. Critics of her appointment emphasized her past overly sympathetic stances toward leaders such as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Political analyst Brian Tyler Cohen described her expected nomination as “a win for the Kremlin.”

Retired U.S. Army Major General Paul Eaton, now a senior advisor to VoteVets, stated, “Appointing Tulsi Gabbard to oversee our intelligence operations, which protect Americans at home and abroad, is both dangerous and irresponsible. With Gabbard, Trump has an absolute loyalist who will manipulate intelligence to benefit Trump, not to safeguard America and our Constitution.”

He continued, “Together with many of Trump’s other appointments and nominations, it’s becoming clear that his administration will consist of unqualified, fringe zealots who are more focused on pleasing their leader than upholding their duty to the Constitution and the safety of the American public. Many have predicted that Trump would remove all safeguards in a second term, allowing his every impulse to be executed without dissent. This is now becoming a reality.”

Journalists and political commentators quickly noted that both Gabbard and Gaetz would face significant challenges in securing confirmation from even a Republican-majority Senate.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” Mitch Jones, managing director of policy and litigation at Food & Water Watch, exclaimed about Gaetz’s nomination. “The Senate should decisively reject this nomination.”

However, there is growing concern that Trump might attempt to bypass Senate approval for his most contentious nominees, including Pete Hegseth—a lobbyist for war criminals and host on “Fox & Friends”—who is set to lead the Pentagon, by making recess appointments.

Joseph Zeballos-Roig, an economics reporter, posted on social media that “Trump nominating Gaetz, Gabbard, and Hegseth within a 24-hour period for key government positions suggests he doesn’t perceive any limits to what a GOP Senate will tolerate.”

Reflecting on a historical falsehood from one of Trump’s former press secretaries, New York Times opinion columnist Ezra Klein remarked, “Demanding Senate Republicans support Gaetz as attorney general and Hegseth as defense secretary is the 2024 equivalent of making Sean Spicer claim it was the largest inauguration crowd ever. These aren’t merely appointments; they’re tests of loyalty. The absurdity is the point.”

“It also highlights a shift from Trump in 2020 to Trump in 2024: In 2020, Trump lacked the influence with Senate Republicans necessary to impose such loyalty tests,” Klein added. “He didn’t even have it with many of his own appointees. Now, however, we’ll see.”

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) stated, “Matt Gaetz is unconfirmable; he’s the canary in the coal mine for recess appointments.”

Gaetz, a staunch Trump supporter known for his role in ousting former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) last year, faced scrutiny on Wednesday due to an ongoing House Ethics Committee investigation into allegations of sex trafficking. Although a U.S. Department of Justice probe concluded without charges, and Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing, his critics remain vocal.

The president-elect holds particular animosity towards the Department of Justice, stemming from two federal cases against him—one for attempting to overturn his 2020 electoral defeat to Biden, and another for taking classified materials to Mar-a-Lago, his Florida residence.

“Trump’s desire to nominate Gaetz for attorney general represents an effort to simultaneously undermine and exploit the DOJ, subverting its mission of unbiased, nonpartisan law enforcement while seeking revenge on those who pursued charges against Trump (and possibly against Gaetz himself),” wrote Slate‘s Mark Joseph Stern.

“This is a startling choice, clearly intentional, that shows a blatant desire to corrupt the agency from the top down,” he continued. “If Gaetz is confirmed, there’s no exaggeration in saying that the Justice Department will suffer irreversible damage, as civil servants either leave or are forced out, partisan loyalists fill their roles, and the entire agency shifts focus to settling old scores against Trump’s perceived adversaries.”

Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen, also expressed concern on Wednesday, stating that the William & Mary Law School graduate “would head a vindictive, authoritarian, and lawless Department of Justice.”

“As a congressman, Gaetz has shown disdain for the rule of law, truth, and decency,” Weissman claimed. “He is uniquely unqualified to lead an agency responsible for enforcing civil rights and environmental protection laws. With Gaetz at the helm, we can expect an America where corporate criminals go unpunished while immigrants and people of color are targeted with minimal justification.”

Drop Site News‘ Ryan Grim acknowledged that Gaetz has positive stances on certain issues like press freedom and surveillance. However, critics like Virginia Kase Solomón, CEO of Common Cause, emphasized that he “has consistently acted against democracy and accountability.”

During the events of January 6, 2021, Gaetz “supported attempts to overturn the 2020 election and has since protected those who tried to undermine our democratic processes,” stated Kase Solomón. “His anti-voter agenda includes pushing laws that would disenfranchise eligible voters and even threatening government shutdowns to enforce voter suppression measures. Beyond that, his rhetoric and actions reveal a troubling history of inciting violence against racial justice protesters and promoting dangerous white supremacist ideologies. This is not a candidate who upholds the values of equality, justice, or the rights of all Americans.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) announced that Gaetz resigned from Congress on Wednesday evening, reportedly due to concerns over accumulating too many absences. AP ‘s Farnoush Amiri reported that “the House Ethics Committee’s ongoing investigation into allegations of child sex trafficking concludes with his departure, and no report will be issued.”

In addition to Gaetz, Gabbard, Hegseth, and Rubio, Trump has chosen former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as secretary of homeland security, ex-Congressman John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) for Central Intelligence Agency director, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) for United Nations ambassador, and former Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) for Environmental Protection Agency administrator.

Trump has also named several individuals to positions that do not require Senate confirmation: former U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Homan as “border czar,” first-term adviser Stephen Miller as deputy chief of staff for policy, Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) as national security adviser, and longtime GOP strategist Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff.

The president-elect further announced on Tuesday that billionaire campaign backers Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, aimed at dismantling regulations and federal agencies.

To monitor and counteract the incoming administration’s actions, the watchdog group Accountable.US launched the Trump Accountability War Room on Wednesday, and two Democrats initiated Governors Safeguarding Democracy.

This post has been updated to include Rep. Matt Gaetz’s resignation from Congress.