Running the Asylum

Well it is certainly getting interesting watching the patients take over and run the asylum.

Our President-elect is staffing his Cabinet and White House with an assortment of right wing military, corporate honchos, Wall Street bankers, general incompetents and sycophants.

Governor Rick Perry of Texas got picked today to head the Energy Department.  He is of course a drilling advocate and is skeptical, to say the least, about climate change.  Drill baby!  Drill!

Jeff Sessions will head the Department of Justice.  One of Trump’s earliest supporters during the campaign, the anti-immigration senator from Alabama has a much criticized record on race relations and was once denied a judgeship amid concerns over past comments about blacks.

Wilbur Ross will head the Department of Commerce.   A US asset investor and billionaire, Ross is best known for investing in failing steel and coal firms and selling them for profit. He was once known as the “king of bankruptcy” for his history of investing in such businesses.   He loves coal companies.

A retired four star Marine general, James Mattis   has been picked for Secretary of Defense.  Mattis commanded US forces in the Middle East and Southwest Asia from 2010 to 2013, capping a career as a combat commander that earned him the nickname “Mad Dog.”  To become Secretary of Defense, Mattis would have to get a congressional waiver from a law that bars generals from serving as defense secretary for seven years after leaving active duty.  General Mattis was fired by President Obama for his fixation and extremist views on Iran and Muslims in general; apparently common to many Marines who lived through the Beirut bombing of the Marine barracks during the Reagan era.   This week ex-Florida Representative Allan West, himself a Lt. Colonel posted on his Facebook page a picture of “Mad Dog Mattis” with a meme  “Fired by Obama to please the Muslims; Hired by Trump to exterminate them!”  West took it down but was invited to the Tower to meet with the President-elect.

Betsy DeVos was picked for the Secretary of Education spot.  She doesn’t believe in public education    Makes no difference.  A wealthy activist and Republican mega donor from Michigan, DeVos is a champion of alternatives to local government schools, backing a movement that advocates the use of tax credits and vouchers to allow parents to opt out of the public school system. She represents the privatization of education.

Tom Price will be Health and Human Services Secretary.  The Georgia lawmaker and former orthopedic surgeon is a robust critic of President Barack Obama’s signature health care reform law, the Affordable Care Act, which has provided health coverage to 20 million Americans including my youngest daughter and her husband, both of whom have jobs which do not provide health care benefits.

Homeland Security will be led by another retired Marine General, John Kelly.  The retired Marine general most recently led the US Southern Command, which covers US military operations in Central and South America. He was a top aide to General Mattis (see above) in Iraq.  “We must make sure DHS stays ahead of our enemies and that it leverages private sector innovation to deal with emerging threats” He is expected to be very tough on illegal immigration and the illicit drugs trade.

Ben Carson (remember him?) will be Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.  The retired neurosurgeon and onetime rival to Trump for the Republican presidential nomination is so far the only African American named to Trump’s cabinet. The religious conservative with no experience in elective office will be tasked with turning around America’s troubled inner cities.   Right.

Andrew Puzder will be Secretary of Labor.  The chief executive of CKE Restaurants, which owns fast food chains Carl’s Jr and Hardee’s, is opposed to raising the national minimum wage. He also backs the increasing use of automated technology to keep labor costs down.  Flip those burgers folks.

Elaine Chao will be Secretary of Transportation.  She was Deputy Secretary under George Bush.  She is also the wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Seve Mnuchin will be at Treasury.  The Wall Street veteran was a partner at Goldman Sachs before he launched an investment fund and financed Hollywood blockbusters like “Avatar” and “Suicide Squad.”

Scott Pruitt will head the EPA.  The attorney general for the state of Oklahoma is a known climate change skeptic (read: he doesn’t believe in climate change) , and an ally of the fossil fuel industry. Before accepting the nomination, Pruitt spent much time battling the agency he is tapped to lead.  Great.  (choke choke)

Mike Flynn will be Trump’s National Security Advisor.  He too is a retired General and a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He has courted controversy with his extreme statements, particularly on Islam.  He also retweeted an attack on Hillary Clinton and John Podesta (originally his son’s tweet – he was part of the transition team) accusing them of running a child sex ring out of the basement of a pizzeria in Washington.  Who believes this shit?  Some one did.  Another Trump nut job showed up at the pizzeria armed to the teeth ready to rescue the children from the basement.  Only one problem.  There is no basement.  And there were no children.  No one was injured.  Flynn sure sounds qualified to me.

Mike Pompeo will be CIA Director.  A strident critic of the Iran nuclear deal, the hawkish Kansas congressman was elected in 2010 to the House of Representatives, where he was a member of the hardline Tea Party faction and one of the leaders of the controversial and never ending Benghazi Committee that targeted Trump’s Democratic presidential rival Hillary Clinton.

So there you have it folks.  An Alabama Senator with a KKK past who  was turned down for a judgeship for his racist views will be the Attorney General.  An oil guy climate skeptic heads the Energy Department.   A billionaire investor in coal companies is head of Commerce.  A General fired by Obama is head of Defense.  A wealthy donor who doesn’t believe in public education is head of Education.  A fierce critic of Obamacare is head of Health.   The CEO of a chain of burger joints is head of Labor.   A  Goldman guy is at Treasury.  A n Okie who supported fracking in his home state, which has made Oklahoma the earthquake capital of America, is head of the EPA.  And a General who retweeted Pizza gate is the National Security Advisor.

Finally Trump has chosen Rex Tillerson, CEO of ExxonMobil as Secretary of State.  He has no foreign policy experience “but has built close relationships with many world leaders by closing massive deals across Eurasia and the Middle East on behalf of the world’s largest energy company.”  “His tenacity, broad experience and deep understanding of geopolitics make him an excellent choice for Secretary of State,” Trump said in the statement.  Tillerson has close ties to the Kremlin.  Russia was overjoyed at the announcement.  I’d worry if I lived in the Baltic states.

Yikes.

Meanwhile the attack on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid has begun in Congress as well as a move for tax cuts which will save the one percent billions.  The Estate tax is also under attack and it’s demise would directly benefit the President-elect.

On the state level abortion and choice is in the crosshairs.   Texas passed a law which requires that all fetuses be buried, presumably with a ceremony while Indiana has passed a “heartbeat” restriction; no abortion after a heartbeat can be heard.  That usually occurs at around 6 weeks – much too early to determine if anything is wrong with the fetus.  There is now real hope among the “pro-life” crowd that Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court will be the decisive vote in striking down Roe v. Wade.  We can look to all sorts of restrictions being passed.

As Trump said – she’ll just have to go to another state.

Those of you who voted for Trump – I sincerely hope you get what you deserve.