Rove: Trump will pay a price for Cabinet pick ‘chaos’
Republican strategist Karl Rove said President-elect Trump will pay a price over the “chaos” he’s caused by picking controversial Cabinet members.
In a Wednesday op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, Rove said Trump’s nominations started “so quickly and so promisingly” with the first female White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles.
As the other choices came rolling in over the next several days, Rove argued that while the choice of former “Fox & Friends Weekend” personality Pete Hegseth “raised questions,” generally the nominations were coming across as “purposeful, focused and energetic.”
That was the case until Trump announced he’d chosen former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to serve as attorney general, a choice Rove called a “catastrophically bad selection.”
Gaetz’s nomination swarmed Capitol Hill in controversy, as he’s been accused of sexual misconduct and members have urged the House Ethics Committee to release its report on the allegations. Gaetz announced Thursday he would be withdrawing from the nomination.
Rove slammed Gaetz for his lack of a legislative record and his revolt against former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) last year, among the sex and drug scandals investigated by the House panel.
Before Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration, Senate Republicans faced a major question: Would they support Trump with his choice or go against him? Rove noted that Gaetz’s confirmation hearings “won’t be the only circus act in town,” pointing to former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Hawaii), Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence, and Hegseth.
Rove argued these nominations took away from the impact Trump could have made with serious candidates and policy ideas.
“Inadequate vetting, impatience, disregard for qualifications and a thirst for revenge have created chaos and controversy for Mr. Trump before he’s even in office,” Rove wrote. “The price for all this will be missed opportunities to shore up popular support for the incoming president. But at least it’ll make great TV.”
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