Billionaires and loyalists will provide Trump with muscle during his second term
Meta’s announcement that it will abandon fact-checking in the United States — — is just the latest illustration of the importance of billionaires in the president-elect’s second term.
, while his cabinet choices also reflect his penchant for the wealthy.
To an unprecedented degree, Trump has stacked his cabinet with . The fact that most are rich white men isn’t out of step with previous Republican administrations. Titans of finance and captains of industry have always had a during Republican presidencies.
But what’s troublesome is that when this cabinet takes the oath of office, they will have pledged their loyalty to — not the best interests of American citizens.
requires that cabinet members are appointed by the president and approved by the Senate.
Trump has made controversial appointments of people compromised by extremist politics and sexual assault allegations. But it’s expected that the Senate, led by new Majority , will fall into line and push through most of the appointments.
Dismantling guardrails
It is tempting to view Christian nationalist , conspiracy theorist and the richest man in the world, as sycophants and dilettantes, the most recent performers in the Trump circus. But that would be a mistake.
These appointments clearly signal Trump’s plans to complete the dismantling of while also reasserting American supremacy in international affairs, using military force if necessary. Musk, for example, is already active and vocal, .
As a cabinet for a new gilded age, this collection of plutocrats and populists will be essential to carrying out Trump’s agenda. For authoritarians of all stripes, is not in itself extraordinary — particularly for Trump, who governs at the edge of legality and for whom a compliant cabinet is essential.
In his first term, Trump mistakenly believed he could run the American government like his real estate empire, with a few core employees. But this time, Trump apparently realizes the importance , and he has been deeply involved in all appointments across the top levels of his administration.
Eye-popping wealth will gather in the cabinet room of the West Wing. Trump’s cabinet has a combined net worth of about . In comparison,
Martin Wolf, a columnist at the Financial Times, has called this new phenomenon . It is an unholy alliance of the cabinet super-rich who want less regulation and low taxes and the activist blue-collar base who want scapegoats to blame for their growing economic precarity.
19 billionaires
Some of Trump’s picks reflect the tradition of handing big portfolios to business heavyweights, and appointing donors to high-profile diplomatic posts in Europe.
, a record that speaks not only to his own personal ethos that wealth creates legitimacy, but also to an oligarchic disposition to in the diplomatic arena.
We have few details on the inside working of But it’s highly likely all cabinet appointments are personally loyal to .
We know this because even the world’s richest man has been pointedly obsequious. Musk into Trump’s re-election bid. In return, Trump has tasked him with overhauling the federal government. This post was bestowed on his son-in-law, Jared Kushner,
In the most sensitive portfolios, Trump has clearly prioritized loyalty over expertise. His choice of Hegseth for defence secretary stands out in this regard. Hegseth, a former Fox News host, faces allegations about his drinking habits and has been .
Hegseth moved his family to Tennessee in 2023 to join a church and school organized by Douglas Wilson, who preaches about the inevitable end of the separation between church and state.
Hegseth is clearly compromised on many levels. He would be unfit for office in any other administration. Undoubtedly, Trump expects extraordinary gratitude for the undeserved elevation.
Presiding over American decline
The American political elite is now turning to discredited ideas to : tariffs, illegal mass deportations, religious supremacy and .
Trump has brought together a cabinet that believes American supremacy will be manifested through the political vision of the leader. They were chosen because they agree on the new core tenet of the Republican creed, that liberal and Trump will finally dispose of the corpse.
, which essentially calls for America to ditch every liberal commitment to win a rivalry with China, is the new orthodoxy. Adherents include not only , but possibly the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund as well. Scott Bessent, Trump’s Wall Street-approved nominee for treasury secretary, : “We’re in the midst of a great realignment … I’d like to be part of it.”
Trump’s cabinet picks have expertise in geopolitical investment, oil, rockets and financial services technology. But there is no one competent in the management of global governance, including international law and human rights. These formerly essential aspects of American leadership are now barely present.
From isolationism to interventionism
And yet Americans still plan to play an outsized role in the world. The temperamental MAGA movement , including Trump’s threats to
Trump and his cabinet of America Firsters may end up being as consequential as Theodore Roosevelt, who in Latin America and dug the Panama Canal.
When cabinet meets some time in the next few weeks, every seat will likely be occupied by longtime MAGA loyalists and those who have publicly undergone a conversion experience. These are the yes-men and sharp-eyed investors who agree on one thing: a cruel and charismatic leader is what America needs most right now.
It feels like a generation ago, but it was only in 2016 that journalists asked if Trump’s first-term cabinet picks would temper his . Could they be counted on to be the “adults in the room?”
Such questions seem naive today.
By Professor Emeritus , Department of Politics, 91ŃÇÉ«, and political science Professor , founding director, International Studies Program, Burman University
