Since Nov. 9, President-elect Donald Trump has started to announce the various people who will take positions in his Cabinet. The Cabinet’s role is to advise the president on any subject he or she may find necessary relating to the duties of each member’s respective office.
The Cabinet includes the vice president and the heads of 15 executive departments — the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, Veterans Affairs and the Attorney General.
Some positions, such as White House chief of staff and the ambassador to the United Nations, also have a cabinet seat. So far, 17 of these positions have been announced by the Trump campaign.
Reince Priebus- White House chief of staff
Priebus is the current chairman of the Republican National Committee. Through his position as an insider in Washington politics, Priebus is geared to help Trump understand the inner workings and personnel of the West Wing.
Stephen K. Bannon- chief strategist
Bannon is a media executive of Breitbart News. This pick was controversial due to his history of anti-semitic comments through his publication and in relation to the divorce of his former wife, Mary Louise Piccard, a former investment banker.
Michael T. Flynn- national security adviser
Flynn is a retired Army lieutenant general and former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency. He has been a huge supporter of Trump throughout his campaign. His position will entail being the liaison between the Department of State, the Pentagon and other agencies.
Steven Mnuchin- Treasury secretary
Mnuchin is a former Goldman Sachs executive who has no former government experience. He will be in charge of the government’s involvement in financial markets, assistance in tax-code writing and the overseeing of the Internal Revenue Service.
James N. Mattis- Defense secretary
Mattis is a retired Marine who served in Iraq in 2003. He is still awaiting Senate confirmation for his position and will need a waiver from Congress to serve in the position because he has not been out of the military for more than seven years. Mattis is known to be a staunch opponent of the Obama administration.
Wilbur Ross- Commerce secretary
Ross is an investor and former banker. He previously served under President Bill Clinton on the board of the U.S.-Russia Investment Fund. Through his position, he will be in charge of multiple departments, including the U.S. Census Bureau.
Andrew Puzder- Labor secretary
Puzder is the chief executive of CKE Restaurants and was a donor during the Trump campaign. Puzder has been an opponent of Obama’s labor policies. He will be in charge of unemployment distribution and dismantling of the past administration’s labor policies if wanted.
Tom Price- Health and Human services secretary
Price is a former congressman from Georgia and orthopedic surgeon. Price has verbally voiced his opposition of the President Obama’s health care law. He will be in charge of Medicaid and Medicare in addition to the approval of new drugs and regulation of the country’s food supply.
Ben Carson- secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Carson is a former neurosurgeon and presidential nominee. He has no government experience. This position focuses on affordable housing options for citizens. Carson has no former experience in the housing market whatsoever.
Elaine L. Chao- Transportation secretary
Chao was the labor secretary in the George W. Bush administration. This position is in charge of infrastructure within the country. Chao is also married to current Senate majority leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky.
Betsy DeVos- Education secretary
DeVos is the former chairperson for the Michigan Republican Party. DeVos grew up going to private school and has ties to the Reform Christian community. The Trump administration has said it wants to stray away from the department and focus on curriculum-based research.
John F. Kelly- Homeland Security secretary
Kelly is a retired Marine general known for his efforts in American military operations in Central America, South America and the Caribbean. He will be in charge of the proposed wall to be built on the southern boarder of the country.
Scott Pruitt- EPA administrator
Pruitt is the Oklahoma attorney general. He is known to be a supporter of fossil fuels. Trump has said in the past he hopes to dismantle the entire agency as a whole.
Nikki R. Haley- United States Mission to the United Nations
Haley is the governor of South Carolina. She, particularly as the daughter of two Indian immigrants, was a high-profile opponent of the Trump campaign early on in the election. She will be the face of the United States at the United Nations and represent the country in all councils within the organization.
Linda McMahon- small business administration
McMahon is the former chief executive of World Wrestling Entertainment. She previously ran for the Senate in Connecticut and lost. She will be in charge of giving loans out to small businesses.
Mike Pompeo- CIA director
Pompeo is a representative of Kansas and a former military officer. He currently serves on the House Intelligence Committee and was verbally against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the internal investigation of the 2012 Benghazi attack.
Jeff Sessions- attorney general
Sessions is a senator from Alabama and is known for his strict immigration policies. His position controls the law and order of the country. All civil rights cases can now be tried differently.
