You’re fired! That seems to be Trump’s favorite phrase this week, as it’s heard echoing through the corridors of the White House. It’s only Wednesday, and Trump has already fired Secretary of State, Tillerson, his personal assistant John McEntee, and rumor has it that the Secretary of Veteran Affairs is next on the chopping block.
One of Trump’s campaign promises was that he was going to “drain the swamp”. But he seems to be the king of swamp monsters. He’s had a history this far in his Presidency of putting unqualified people in his cabinet positions, and now he’s replacing them with even more unqualified people than what he had to begin with. There is no swamp draining taking place at the White House. Instead he seems to be stocking the swamp, lest we run out of alligators.
Rex Tillerson is being replaced as Secretary of State by Mike Pompeo. Now Pompeo is known to stand very close to Trump on issues related to world affairs. He is also a staunch supporter of Trump. He is also very supportive of brutal means of interrogation. Gina Haspel will replace him as CIA Director. Haspel has a very dark past, and she’s not someone I’d want in charge of the CIA. She was the central figure in one of the most illegal and shameful chapters in modern American history. She was up to her eyeballs in torture, both in running a secret torture prison in Thailand and carrying out an order to cover up torture crimes by destroying videotapes.
Trump’s personal assistant was fired due to problems related to online gambling and mishandling taxes. These issues prevented him from gaining the necessary security clearance. But then, he was promptly rehired as the Senior Advisor for Trump’s re-election campaign. It has not yet been announced who will replace him, but I don’t foresee a positive pick in the future.
Rumor has it that Secretary of Veteran Affairs David Shulkin, will be the next to go. Trump and his senior aides are frustrated with Shulkin because they believe he has undermined the White House on several occasions and is unwilling to work with other members of his agency who were appointed by the Trump administration. Shulkin is the only remaining Cabinet member from the Obama administration. It’s likely that he will be replaced by Rick Perry, who is the current Secretary of Energy.
One thing is very clear. It’s not a great career choice to choose to take a job within the Trump administration. Your stay will likely be very short. Trump is incredibly ill tempered, and will fire anyone who crosses him, or for no reason at all. Keep the popcorn handy, I fear it’s going to be a long week.
