Trump Cabinet Picks Portend Unprecedented Threats to Rule of Law

WASHINGTON, D.C., November 14, 2024 – As the Trump transition team announces additional new intended nominees this week, it is becoming increasingly clear that there may be no bottom to the administration’s efforts to undermine the rule of law. The first Trump presidency ended with the violent January 6 insurrection, and it looks like the second term will pick up with as much disdain for the rule of law as the first one ended. The Senate must do everything it can during the lame duck to minimize this harm, first and foremost by confirming every pending judicial nominee that could help check these power abuses from the federal bench.

For the secretary of defense, the person in charge of the protection of all Americans, Trump has chosen Fox News host Pete Hegseth, who has white nationalist tattoos and opposes allowing women and LGBTQ+ people to serve equally in the military.

For attorney general, the nation’s top legal enforcer, Trump has chosen Matt Gaetz, who conveniently resigned from Congress just days before the House Ethics Committee was preparing to release details from a reportedly damning investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct, sex trafficking, and drug use.

Meanwhile, Trump plans to create a new department where Elon Musk will have the opportunity to dismantle essential government programs that protect millions of people. The levels of their destruction, including plans to eliminate entire departments, such as the Department of Education, could take generations to repair.

We should expect Trump’s judicial nominees to be no different. His extremists on our courts from his first administration have done untold damage to civil rights and safety. This time around, his picks will likely be even more extreme — committed solely to a dangerous agenda at the expense of the rule of law.

Alliance for Justice Interim Co-President Keith Thirion issued the following statement:

“We applaud the confirmation of two outstanding federal judges this week. As the Senate prepares to leave for the weekend, there is less time than ever left to spend confirming each and every one of President Biden’s judicial nominees. Two a week is progress but would leave us with two dozen nominees left behind at the end of the year. Trump’s cabinet appointments and the elevation of people like Elon Musk to immense power in his administration demonstrate the dangerous people he is committed to embedding into our federal institutions. We can only imagine how dreadfully dangerous Trump’s judicial nominees will similarly be. The only thing scarier than someone like Matt Gaetz serving as attorney general for four years is someone like Matt Gaetz serving as a federal judge for the rest of their life.

“We must take every chance to strengthen our defenses in the face of Trump’s promised abuses of power, starting with our judiciary. Every court vacancy that Senate Democrats leave open because they won’t stay in D.C. to take votes is another vacancy left for Trump to fill. We know what’s coming, and we deserve better from our Democratic senators than to just let it happen.”