The leaders of the specific transition teams, generally become administration officials within those agencies. Therefore, it is worth paying close attention to who is assigned to lead the silo changeover in the transition process.
Remember Howard Lutnick is in charge of personnel, while Linda McMahon is overseeing policy.
♦ The State Department
Brian Hook, former State Department policy planner and special envoy for Iran, has been tapped to lead the State Department transition team.
♦ The Pentagon
Robert Wilkie, former Veterans Affairs secretary in the first Trump administration, is leading the Defense Department’s transition team.
♦ The White House National Security Council
Joel Rayburn is expected to play a role in Trump’s NSC transition team, several people familiar with internal campaign and transition deliberations said. Rayburn was a Trump appointee for Middle East policy in the State Department and an adviser to Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) — who is himself a leading contender to be Trump’s secretary of state.
Michael Anton is also expected to play a role, several people said. Anton was a former National Security Council spokesperson under Trump. (The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment on this or other positions.)
♦ The intelligence community
Trump’s former director for national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, is involved in transition planning for national security policy. (POLITICO first reported his name and others on this list last week.) Cliff Sims, who served as a deputy director of national intelligence in the first Trump administration, is also playing a leading role in national security and intelligence transition matters, according to the people familiar with internal campaign and transition matters.
♦ Global trade issues
Trump’s former trade representative, Robert Lighthizer, and Lighthizer’s former chief of staff, Jamieson Greer, are playing a leading role in economic and international trade transition policy.
♦ Cybersecurity
Joshua Steinman, a former Trump NSC official, is a leading contender for the NSC’s top cyber policy post. Others who could be involved in the transition’s cybersecurity team and take up top administration posts include Sean Plankey, a former NSC and Energy Department official, and Karen Evans, a former Trump Homeland Security Department official. (Source)
If Ratcliffe is in charge of transition planning for national security planning, then the odds are that John Ratcliffe is going to be President Trump’s National Security Advisor. He was my second choice, behind Nunes.
Ratcliffe is essentially DC safe. No substantive concern for the Intelligence Community apparatus. However, he could be a stealth choice, a wolverine in comfortable clothing, depending on his intent and disposition to confront and dismantle the adversarial IC system who will try to block his boss. Having served as ODNI, Ratcliffe should know the labyrinth pretty well.
More importantly, Ratcliffe doesn’t appear to have problematic attack vectors.
With Ratcliffe in mind (if accurate), the Director of the Office of National Intelligence (ODNI) would be the next position to watch closely in the overall intelligence system dynamic. Ratcliffe would be influencing that transition discussion.
Many people still don’t understand the DC silo system. Here’s a little elevator encapsulation clarity:
The leaders of the House and Senate intel committees, together with the leaders of the House and Senate are given the same level of intelligence briefing information as the President in the White House.
Read that again slowly.
The White House, the Senate and the House, are all kept on the same page, the same level of knowledge, by the Intelligence Community.
The WH, Senate and House are all kept in alignment (think control) by the Intelligence Community.
All the DC silos operate from the same information inputs.
See the problem?
95% of the opinion you are reading about presidential positions, qualifications and expectations are based on people who hold pretenses, intentionally or, in many cases, accidentally, because they just don’t know better. Some people think DC corruption is really, really bad. Trust me, it’s worse than that.
My thoughts on staffing, roles and responsibilities are from a pragmatic place of what can reasonably be expected to be achieved. CTH has never joined this nonsensical “trusty-planner” mindset. There is no plan. There never was a plan. There is one guy, Donald Trump, trying to enact policies to the benefit of the American people. Every democrat and every republican want him to fail.
The NSA position is critical. The Intelligence Community will lie to President Trump.
The Nat Sec Advisor intercepts the lies, evaluates the issue to find the small granules of truth; then presents truthful options to President Trump. The Nat Sec advisor must know the silo system like the back of his hand. He must know every detail about how it operates, and he must be willing to fight against the AG, DoS, FBI and CIA.
The NatSec Advisor must be strategic, smart and have EXCEPTIONAL judgement. The NatSec Advisor needs as few attack vectors as possible. If the NSA is vulnerable, he’s useless.
One of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn’t belong.
I’d love to see Rich Grennell in there someplace. He was fearless about declassifying info that was “inconvenient” for the elites
Snowden for NSA IG!
He’ll be in there
yeah hard to believe his name is NOWHERE
The only place I’ve heard pompeo is out of his own mouth via media news. I don’t think anyone in the President Trump Team has said the name.
This supports my post that the news media plants such stories to sow the seeds of doubt and create pressure exactly where *they* want to apply it. For President Trump’s sake, we can -and SHOULD- ignore them!
Let fake news bask in it’s own irrelevance. MAGA has already moved on.
he was at 3 closing rallies ….. President Trumps Team HAD him around
Yes, was shocked to see Pompeo at Pittsburgh rally to introduce McCormick if memory serves. By response of those around me, they are snowed.
Like the J6 infiltrators, possibly??
The people that were there before certainly know what to expect.Many of these “agencies” are unconstitutional, so moving them is still a problem. However, drastic pruning, reorganizing and relocation is still productive, since all the states have duplicate services; education, health, regulation, etc…
Argentina is a prime example that something can be done since we cannot sustain this level of debt anymore….Milei will be here next week to offer lessons learned….oil up the chainsaws and let’s get to work.
Reading Milei on X has been a joy this week following the election. Argentina is a great country with great people who have been screwed over by their leaders over the past century. Finally, finally, there is a little light.
John Thune voted for the “bi-partisan” border bill…It failed. Thune was a mentor to the new v.p. ….Thune is not 100% MAGA.
MY CHOICE FOR SENATE LEADER WOULD NOT BE THUNE.
It’s a battle between Rick Scott and John Thune….McConnell wants his protege Thune and will do everything possible to block Scott. The only way to override it would be to get a majority of senators to put McConnell out to pasture once and for all.
According to what Rubio said, the Senate is ready and obligated to fortify Pres. Trump’s mandate and must carry out the will of the people. We shall see which senators carry that out and who are the traitors.
Bronco…you may get your wish about Thune not winning..
Scott sounds pretty confident here and just won a huge victory in FL.
However, Tweet from DC Draino says Hawley backs Cornyn…friction is coming.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/11/im-going-win-rick-scott-vows-lead-senate/
Wasn’t Cornyn the idiot who allowed Obama (in his obsessive pro-iranian quest to support iran’s nuclear program) to circumvent 200 years of Senate privilege of requiring 2/3rd to sign foreign treaties by changing the rules and allowing only 1/3 to vote as it was not a “treaty-treaty”….( like rape-rape?)???
Robert Wilkie is a neighbor, super smart guy. He did a great job running the VA last time Trump was in office.
Prayers to the Lord that we not come to despise any of the names mentioned.
Boy I really wish we could get a clearer picture of the House of Reps right now. Can’t imagine the Dems could prevail at this point.
My husband is a firm believer that no woman should be Secretary of State, in dealing with foreign nations that have their women subservient, he doesn’t think they’d be taken seriously. He was always against Madeleine Albright and Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State in dealing with Muslim nations. He’d vote for a woman President but a man be appointed for Secretary of State. Just food for thought. I think it is a good point.
Unless it’s Ayan Hirsi Ali…… she will relish going after her tormentors (and she is Catholic now after being atheist for a while).
On a side note, Taylor Swift had a golden once-in-a-lifetme opportunity after the 2 ISIS goons in Vienna almost truck-bombed her concert to say to the entire muslim world that their incelesque primitive vile hatred of /lust for women needs to stop and emancipate 600,000,000 muslim girls and ladies from basic bondage and abuse. But noooo …. she wanted to keep her head down to “keep her fans safe” (by never critiquing those who want them splattered across fields and parking lots)… and make more money.
Always liked John Ratcliffe. I think he will make an excellent choice for any part he plays, especially in the IC. I think he is a honorable man and has a great understanding of every agency in it. If you want to see him in action, go back and watch Maria Bartirimo Sunday Morning Futures when he was in office. She had him on all the time. Good guy.
nope…he is all hat no cattle. No spine
Trump Asks Lighthizer to Be US Trade Chief: FT Report
https://www.newsmax.com/finance/streettalk/trump-robert-lighthizer-trade/2024/11/08/id/1187288
It’s official when the announcement comes from President Trump.
Please go to the 51 minutes mark of this video. This is the smartest man in the world giving his views on globalist and money and Trump! This guy is great!
I listened to this a few days ago. The entire interview is fascinating! Well worth the time.
I agree.
It makes me want to hear more.
Excellent stuff!
Thanks, Phil!
Very stimulating and uplifting.
The narrator is absolutely fantastic; his questions and narrative – and jokes- are spot on; using the Bible and common sense together is a surefire good conversation starter on ALL topics. Of course Langan has a well rounded intelligence on many, many subjects; he sees both sides, but has footing on the ‘right’ side IMHO.
Good and Evil explained in every aspect of human life…….. very good interview, everyone should take the time to enjoy it, you’ll be ready for conversation; something very needed in all societies.
God Help US
Knowing the difference between God made and human made is the real ‘reality’; example, the difference between the human brain and a computer ‘brain’, ……….you’ll find God.
The problem is that all government agencies should be competing against each other to provide the best intelligence and provide contrasting comparisons rather than cooperating. This is why intelligence is so awful and why the agencies rely on artificial rather than human sources so heavily. The complete ineptness of these services make recruiting of human assets a complete disaster. Most other nations depend on human assets.
And they need to stop recruiting Ivy League graduates. especially now since they’re all woke.
The efficiency project should be consolidating the ‘labyrinth’ into core functions that serve the American people.
Maybe Pompeo will get the Mitt Romney treatment?
Smear him with the paint of the Bush Cartel Brush and that’s a distinct possibility; like Liz, too…..tie them to the Bush Cartel and down they should go!
Maybe someone knows but did Trump refuse the so called help of the fed on his transition that SD wrote about earlier. I think it would foolish to believe anything the government tells him at this point…
He did refuse it. Part of that Program is to put Left Wing operatives in place in the sub Secretary positions.
President Trump had seen this movie and knows the ending.
Indeed. As I told my wife this morning, he remembers what he went through last time, and there won’t be any allowing the uniparty any snakes and weasels in his circle of influence this time.
He refused fed transition help.
Trump is wiser this time.
Catherine Engelbrecht as National Election Commissioner against Fraud. She earned it with more than a decade of hard work and fighting against Obama’s IRS Lois Lerner’s henchmen and White House Counsel for sandbagging non-profits groups back in 2012 and the True the Vote work and 2000 Mules. Also get that Judicial Watch guy with the big biceps in position too.
Maybe she can figure out where Biden’s 81,000,000 votes came from. Or where 15,000,000 disappeared to.
Elon Musk is head of the transition team. Elon should get more credit then he does from our side. He fights just like Trump, he barges in and screws the consequences.
Texas and Governor Abbott deserve a lot of credit for Texans stepping up to the plate and spending Billions of dollars to export the Border to Deep Blue States.
We won’t get the Thanks for that — BUT , it made a Huge difference.
What about General Michael Flynn for Homeland Security, DNI or other similar position, or overseeing appointments? What about Ivan Raiklin for DOD or overseeing appointments? What about Michael Lindell for overseeing elections, or appointing those who do? People who have gone to the mat, and paid the price for we the people over these last four years of coup attempt. TRUSTED PEOPLE. NOT snakes.
Oh, and Martin Armstrong of Armstrong Economics, one of the first cancelled for his refusal
to turn over to the CIA his Socrates amazingly accurate financial AI.
Gather that good-guy posse, Mr. President, and let the kicking of guilty butts commence!
John Ratcliffe cannot be trusted in any position until we know for certain he wasn’t involved in the Deep State conspiracy to release COVID in Wuhan and blame China for the subsequent pandemic.
It’s a given that Pompeo and Bolton were in on it, but Bolton was fired and replaced with Ratcliffe before the outbreak began. This begs the question: what did Ratcliffe know?
Anyone involved with the Bush China Foundation should never be near any position of power……..the NWO/communism is a byproduct of their involvement with Wuhan, China as the turning point for the NWO/Communism.
Check out the time line starting Sept. 2019 their beginning of the end of the world as we know it…..the day of reckoning is near.
God Help US
They actually think they are going to ‘get Trump’ for the Chy na’ part of the Wuhan conspiracy, vaccine and all, to take over the globe……they got another think coming. Chy na is in the clutches of NWO/Communism and Trump will get their grubby hands off US when he dismantles the Bush China Foundation.
What SD writes about here has been part of the CinC’s job since the start.
George Washington put a yuuge effort into his own personal band of spies. Check out the book, Turn, and the cable TV series by the same name.
The personnel chief, Howard Lutnick, is a principal in Cantor-Fitzgerald. Financial houses are basically intel-gathering organizations in order to be able to put BIG money in profitable places. Lutnick re-built his company after the 9/11 attack killed most of his employees in their Twin Towers offices. Lutnick has skin in the game. I don’t know his views on re-migrating millions of illegals, hopefully he agrees with PDJT so that we see good people hired into DHS, etc.
Was Lutnick just lucky on 9/11 or did he get a heads up to not be there. Many instances of CEO not being in the towers that morning
Perhaps you should become an advisor to Trump on the Deep State.
What do you know about Boris Epshteyn?
Where is Peter Navarro in this discussion. He’s only one if the most hard-core and loyal MAGA people out there.