{"id":1050830,"date":"2025-01-17T17:15:00","date_gmt":"2025-01-17T22:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1050830"},"modified":"2025-01-18T19:23:36","modified_gmt":"2025-01-19T00:23:36","slug":"this-week-donald-trumps-cabinet-picks-showcased-their-dangerous-and-out-of-touch-extremism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/this-week-donald-trumps-cabinet-picks-showcased-their-dangerous-and-out-of-touch-extremism\/","title":{"rendered":"This Week: Donald Trump\u2019s Cabinet Picks Showcased Their Dangerous and Out-of-Touch Extremism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Donald Trump\u2019s Cabinet nominees kicked off their Senate hearings this week, and their incompetence, corruption, and unfitness to lead were on full display. From dodging straightforward questions about sexual assault allegations to doubling down on Trump\u2019s tax handouts for the ultra-wealthy and playing politics with disaster relief, it is clear these nominees will prioritize Trump and his dangerous agenda over the American people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth couldn\u2019t answer basic questions about his qualifications and positions, including whether or not he would follow orders to shoot peaceful protesters, his longtime opposition to women serving in combat, and why he attacked veterans for receiving earned benefits. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Tim Kaine<\/a>: \u201cYou would agree with me that if someone had committed physical violence against a spouse that would be disqualifying to serve as Secretary of Defense, correct?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hegseth: *doesn\u2019t answer*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Kaine: \u201cYou would agree that that would be a disqualifying offense, would you not?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hegseth: \u201cSenator, you\u2019re talking about a hypothetical.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Kaine: \u201cSo you can\u2019t tell me whether someone who has committed a sexual assault is disqualified from being Secretary of Defense?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Mazie Hirono<\/a>: \u201cIn June of 2020, then-President Trump directed former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper to shoot protesters in the legs in downtown DC, an order Secretary Esper refused to comply with. Would you carry out such an order from President Trump?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hesgeth: *Refuses to answer question*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Hirono: \u201cWould you carry out an order to shoot protestors in the legs?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hegseth: *Avoids question again*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand<\/a>: \u201cGive me one example, please give me an example [of changing standards for women in combat]. I get you\u2019re making these generalized statements.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hegseth: \u201cCommanders meet quotas to have a certain number of female infantry officers or infantry enlisted, and that disparages those women\u2013\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Gillibrand: \u201cCommanders do not have to meet quotas for the infantry. Commanders do not have to have a quota for women in the infantry. That does not exist. It does not exist.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Jacky Rosen<\/a>: \u201cDo you believe veterans should be ashamed for having sought and obtained the benefits that they have earned? Do you think veterans should be ashamed to seek out benefits?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hegseth: *Dodges*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Rosen: \u201cYou said veterans are dependent on the government.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump\u2019s pick for energy secretary, Chris Wright, doubled down on his baseless comments about climate change, calling wildfires \u201chype.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Alex Padilla:<\/a> \u201cYou\u2019ve written that the \u2018the hype over wildfires is just hype.\u2019 \u2026 Given the devastation we\u2019re currently experiencing in Los Angeles, do you still believe that wildfires are just \u2018hype?\u2019 \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chris Wright: \u201cI stand by my past comments.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cTrump\u2019s pick for energy secretary rejects linking climate change and wildfires\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWright, who has declared there is no \u2018climate crisis,\u2019 has also argued that climate change has not fueled more frequent and severe wildfires \u2014 a claim at odds with the scientific consensus. \u2026 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn a 2021 appearance on the PetroNerds podcast, Wright criticized mainstream media outlets for drawing a connection between wildfires and warming<\/strong>. Wildfires are \u2018a major thing in the news now,\u2019 he said. \u2018It\u2019s climate change. It\u2019s climate change.\u2019 \u2026 The short answer: It is not.\u2019 <\/strong>\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn the summer of 2023, as smoke from Canadian wildfires engulfed the East Coast, Wright wrote on LinkedIn that \u2018the hype over wildfires is just hype to justify\u2019 harmful climate policies. <\/strong>He linked to a Wall Street Journal opinion piece by Bjorn Lomborg, a Danish political scientist and author who contends that experts have overstated the negative impacts of climate change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Project 2025 chief architect Russ Vought wouldn\u2019t answer for his plans to use government shutdowns as a bargaining chip, or his support for playing politics with disaster relief.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Maggie Hassan<\/a>: \u201cGovernment shutdowns put public safety and our national security at risk. But you have repeatedly, Mr. Vought, called for brinksmanship around government shutdowns and opposed bipartisan deals to keep the government open. Why have you repeatedly advocated the use of the threat of a government shutdown is a political bargaining chip? If confirmed, would you continue to favor a partisan agenda over keeping the government open?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vought: *Dodges*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Hassan: \u201cThere seems to be kind of a confirmation conversion because your words in articles and in talks reflect a different view about the use of government shutdowns. \u2026 The impact of government shutdowns \u2026 impacts the American people in significant ways.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Maggie Hassan<\/a>: \u201cIf confirmed, do you commit to ensuring that agencies do not review a grant application submitted by a state based on that state\u2019s political makeup? Whether it is red, blue, or purple?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vought: \u201cAgain, senator, the extent to which we make decisions will be based on the policy grounds, the agenda of the president of the United States, we will continue to do that.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Hassan: \u201cIf the president says to you, I don\u2019t care what the law says, I don\u2019t like California and I\u2019m not going to give them the disaster aid they need, you are going to stand up to the president and say sir, that is not appropriate?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vought: \u201cSenator, I don\u2019t engage in hypotheticals.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Treasury secretary nominee Scott Bessent won\u2019t commit to advising Trump against raising prices, admitting he won\u2019t fight to lower prices for the American people \u2013 and wouldn\u2019t stand in the way of cutting Medicaid. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Maggie Hassan<\/a>: \u201cIf the president-elect were to propose a policy that you believe will increase prices, would you advise against it?\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bessent: \u201cI would \u2026 speak to President Trump about it. It is his decision.<\/strong> \u2026\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Hassan: \u201cIf you believe that a policy that is proposed by President Trump would increase prices, would you advise him against doing it? Yes or no?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bessent: \u201cI can\u2019t answer that question because it\u2019s a hypothetical.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n<\/a>: \u201cYes or no, will you recommend cutting Medicaid?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bessent: \u201cUh\u2026 I\u2026 It\u2019s the business of Congress to do the budget and I am in favor of empowering states and I believe that for some states that will be an increase, for some states that will be a decrease.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Luj\u00e1n: \u201cWill you recommend cutting Medicaid to President Trump?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bessent: \u201cUh, I will get back to you on this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DHS pick Kristi Noem repeatedly refused to rule out playing politics with disaster relief \u2013 just like Trump. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Richard Blumenthal<\/a>: \u201cI assume you will agree with me that withholding disaster relief by President Trump \u2026 is a violation of his duty and of law?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kristi Noem: *Dodges*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Blumenthal: \u201cI want to ask you yes or no, with all due respect.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Noem: *Continues to avoid question*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sen. Blumenthal: \u201cSo, if President Trump were to say to you, we\u2019re going to withhold money from Connecticut, or Michigan \u2026 because we don\u2019t like the governor or we don\u2019t like the politics of the state, you would stand up to him and say, Mr. President, we need to allocate that money?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Noem: \u201c… I don\u2019t speak to hypotheticals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blumenthal: \u201cIt\u2019s more than a hypothetical, with all due respect. \u2026 It\u2019s based on experience with President Trump withholding money from Washington State and elsewhere. \u2026 Will you say no to the president if he withholds that money?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Noem: \u201cI don\u2019t know about the scenarios that you\u2019re referencing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Donald Trump\u2019s Cabinet nominees kicked off their Senate hearings this week, and their incompetence, corruption, and unfitness to lead were on full display. From dodging straightforward questions about sexual assault allegations to doubling down on Trump\u2019s tax handouts for the ultra-wealthy and playing politics with disaster relief, it is clear these nominees will prioritize Trump […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":292,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1050830","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThis Week: Donald Trump\u2019s Cabinet Picks Showcased Their Dangerous and Out-of-Touch Extremism - Democrats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/this-week-donald-trumps-cabinet-picks-showcased-their-dangerous-and-out-of-touch-extremism\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democrats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-01-17T22:15:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-19T00:23:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png?w=1024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Adrianna Tomasello\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Adrianna Tomasello\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/this-week-donald-trumps-cabinet-picks-showcased-their-dangerous-and-out-of-touch-extremism\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/this-week-donald-trumps-cabinet-picks-showcased-their-dangerous-and-out-of-touch-extremism\/\",\"name\":\"This Week: Donald Trump\u2019s Cabinet Picks Showcased Their Dangerous and Out-of-Touch Extremism - 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