US President-elect Donald Trump announced new members of his incoming administration on Monday and was expected to pick Senator Marco Rubio as secretary of state.
Both Rubio and Rep. Michael Waltz, who is in line for the powerful National Security Adviser, have particularly aggressive views on China, which they see as a threat and challenge to US economic and military power.
The two appointees, both from Florida, will be key architects of Trump’s “America First” foreign policy, with the incoming president having promised to end the wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East and avoid further military US involvement.
The 78-year-old Republican tycoon has promised that his second term in office will lead to a radical overhaul of the federal government.
Trump announced immigration official Tom Homan as the nation’s “border czar” on Monday, tasking him with fulfilling his key domestic promise of mass deportations of undocumented immigrants.
US media also reported that Stephen Miller, the author of Trump’s so-called “Muslim ban” immigration policy during his first term, was to be his deputy chief of staff with a broad portfolio.
New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, a staunch defender of Israel, got the nod for UN ambassador, Trump’s transition team said in a statement.
In a further announcement, Trump’s team said Lee Zeldin, an early political ally, would be nominated to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with a mandate to cut climate and pollution regulations seen as red tape by business.
‘Inversion’
The top nominees, including Stefanik, Zeldin and the secretary of state, would need Senate approval, but Trump hopes to bypass oversight by the upper house by making appointments while on recess.
He turned the issue into a test of faith, insisting Saturday that any Republican seeking to be Senate leader “must agree” to an appointment break.
The three senators who joined the office immediately issued statements saying they supported the move or were at least open to the idea.
Trump is known to demand absolute personal loyalty from his aides and cabinet picks, with those chosen to defend him and support his baseless claims of voter fraud following his 2020 defeat by incumbent President Joe Biden. .
The possible candidacy of Rubio, which was reported by American media The New York Times, The Washington Post and Politicoit would mark a remarkable upheaval in relations between the two men.
In 2016, when they were competing for the Republican presidential nomination, Rubio called Trump a “fraud” and “the grossest person to ever aspire to the presidency.”
Rubio, who is of Cuban heritage, first made his name in foreign policy as a vocal opponent of Cuba and its leftist allies in Latin America, particularly Venezuela.
He has since become one of the most outspoken anti-Beijing senators, seeking to make it harder for Chinese companies to operate in the United States and leading congressional efforts to punish China on human rights grounds.
Asked Tuesday about the reported choices of Waltz and Rubio, Beijing said it would not comment on “personal appointments.”
“China’s stance towards the US is consistent and clear,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a regular briefing.
Rubio has also supported increasing US sanctions on Iran over its nuclear infrastructure.
“Border czar” Homan, who served as deputy director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under Trump during his first term, is a longtime advocate of the so-called “Make America Great Again” agenda.
“I’ve known Tom (Homan) for a long time and there is no one better at policing and controlling our borders,” Trump told Truth Social, adding that Homan will be responsible for “all deportations of illegal aliens back to the Country of origin.”
Trump has vowed to launch the largest operation to deport undocumented immigrants in US history.
“Unset”
Trump will be inaugurated in January and has previously made cabinet-level appointments, naming his campaign manager Susie Wiles as his White House chief of staff, a position that does not require Senate confirmation.
Republicans are set to hold a solid majority in the upper house and are inching toward a majority in the House of Representatives, which would give Trump a free hand to implement his agenda.
His choice to head the environment department gives a clear indication of his intentions.
Trump said Zeldin would be tasked with making “fair and swift deregulatory decisions,” with the tycoon promising to roll back safety and pollution rules he believes hinder business.
“We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US a world leader in artificial intelligence. We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” Zeldin wrote in X.
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