President-elect Donald Trump has started to choose the people he wants to carry out his “America First” policies on the border, trade, the economy and more.
Several of them are likely to be very tough on China, namely Beijing-sanctioned Senator Marco Rubio who’s expected to be secretary of state, and Congressman Mike Waltz as national security advisor.
Many of them are now serving in the House of Representatives, which threatens to cut into what’s likely a razor-thin majority in the early days of Trump’s new administration.
Here’s a look at some of the people Trump is picking:
Marco Rubio, secretary of state
Rubio is a one-time rival of the president-elect who later became one of his biggest supporters in the Senate. He’s also a longtime critic of China, who’s technically barred from entering the country because of those sanctions. Rubio has defended Trump’s position to bring a swift end to Russia’s war in Ukraine, calling for talks that could result in Kyiv giving up occupied territory.
Mike Waltz, national security advisor
Waltz is a former Army Green Beret and combat veteran of Afghanistan. As chairman of the House Armed Services Committee’s readiness panel, he criticized the Pentagon over everything from teaching Critical Race Theory at military institutions to an overpriced bag of metal bushings for the Air Force. Waltz has written that he views China as a “greater threat” to the US than any other nation.
Kristi Noem, Homeland Security secretary
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, once a potential VP pick for Trump, became the subject of intense criticism after she admitted in her book to shooting her own 14-month-old dog. Front and center for the 52-year-old in her expected new role will be implementing Trump’s policies on immigration, including his pledge to carry out mass deportations of undocumented migrants.
Elise Stefanik, UN ambassador
Trump has described Stefanik as “an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter.” Stefanik was among the House Republicans who voted against certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 victory over Trump and was the first House member to endorse him in this third White House bid.
Tom Homan, border czar
The man Trump put “in charge of all Deportation of Illegal Aliens back to their Country of Origin” was the public face of the “zero tolerance” immigration policies during the Republican’s first term. That episode broke with the practice of keeping families together during detentions and deportations, resulting in thousands of undocumented migrant children getting separated from family members and drawing widespread backlash.
Susie Wiles, White House chief of staff
The Republican political operative brought stability, order and financial discipline to a campaign whose 2016 and 2020 iterations were far more volatile. She’s set to become the first woman tapped to become chief of staff and will likely help set strategy for Trump’s first 100 days in office.
with assistance from Kevin Dharmawan.
