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Trump's top team: firebrands and stalwarts

Unconventional cabinet takes shape with Musk, Kennedy, and wrestling exec

Trump's top team: firebrands and stalwarts
US former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump departs after speaking during a press conference at Trump Tower in New York City on September 6, 2024.

AFP

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US President-elect Donald Trump is handing top roles in his future administration to a mix of loyalists, provocateurs and a few relatively conventional figures.

Most positions will require confirmation by the US Senate.

Leading vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the scion of the famous Democratic political dynasty -- and a conspiracy theorist.

The 70-year-old has promoted the disproven idea that childhood vaccines cause autism. He endorsed Trump after first seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.

TV celebrity Mehmet Oz, a former surgeon, has been picked to lead the country's massive public health insurance programs.

The staunch Trump ally and former Florida attorney general from 2011 to 2019 is the president-elect's second pick to lead the Department of Justice.

Bondi, who defended Trump during his first impeachment trial, was nominated after ex-congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew amid renewed scrutiny of sexual misconduct allegations.

Tech tycoon Musk, the world's richest person, was tapped to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency, along with wealthy Trump ally Vivek Ramaswamy. Both will supposedly remain private citizens.

Musk says he is targeting $2 trillion in cuts from the federal government's $7 trillion budget, pledging to test legal boundaries to achieve it.

Amid the intensifying US power struggle with China, Trump tapped Senator Rubio of Florida, a relatively traditional conservative hawk, as top diplomat.

Born to Cuban immigrants, Rubio is a fervent Israel supporter and longtime critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Fox News host and former soldier Hegseth was nominated to head the Pentagon, which employs some 2.9 million people, despite a slim CV.

He was investigated for an alleged 2017 sexual assault but no charges were filed.

Hedge fund manager Bessent would oversee policymaking for the world's biggest economy. He has called for an extension of tax cuts from Trump's first term and review of the nation's budget deficit.

Former Hawaii congresswoman and onetime presidential candidate Gabbard, like Kennedy a former Democrat, has stood out for endorsing Kremlin justifications about its invasion of Ukraine, and controversially met in 2017 with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad.

South Dakota's governor became famous for admitting she shot an "untrainable" pet dog, saying it showed her ability to make tough choices.

Noem would play a key role in Trump's promise to restrict immigration and deport undocumented migrants, along with hard-liners Tom Homan and Stephen Miller, who will be "border czar" and White House deputy chief of staff, respectively.

The former executive of the staged and scripted WWE wrestling brand will head a department Trump has pledged to abolish, vowing to "send education back to the states."

McMahon is a major Trump donor and led the Small Business Administration during his first term.

Burgum, North Dakota's governor, would lead a sprawling department that oversees federal lands and natural resources, with additional clout as head of a new National Energy Council aimed at expanding oil and gas production.

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