Activism / Crony Capitalism
Credo Action to block Trump's crony cabinet

Tell Democratic leaders: Block Trump’s crony cabinet

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Tell Democratic leaders: Block Trump’s crony cabinet

51% We've reached 517 of our goal of 1,000.
Sign the petition
Petition to House and Senate Democratic leaders: 'Block and resist any Trump nominee who embraces racism, xenophobia, misogyny, bigotry, corporate cronyism, or Wall Street greed.'

Tell Democratic leaders: Block Trump’s crony cabinet ... Racists. Islamophobes. Corporate cronies. Wall Street insiders. Trump’s administration is already resembling the man himself: vehemently bigoted and devoted to enriching the powerful and privileged.

The least-qualified and most-unpopular president-elect in modern history is stocking his cabinet full of hardliners and shady loyalists. His pick for attorney general was deemed too racist for a federal judgeship by members of his own party. His future national security adviser traffics in anti-Muslim bigotry. His rumored treasury secretary is a Goldman Sachs executive, and his transition team is loaded down with corporate lobbyists.1,2,3

Allowing Trump to appoint hatemongers and corporate insiders to leading positions would corrupt our democratic institutions and put millions at risk. Leading Democrats need to find their spines and immediately commit to resisting and blocking Trump’s crony cabinet.

Tell Democratic leaders: Block Trump’s crony cabinet.

Sen. Warren is already showing Democrats how to lead. She demanded Trump drop those with corporate conflicts of interest from his transition team and told him:

“Should you refuse, I will oppose you, every step of the way, for the next four years. I will champion the millions of Americans you will fail to protect. I will track your every move, and I will remind Americans, every day, of the actions you take that fail them.”4

Consider a short list of potential Trump cabinet appointees:5

Steve Bannon, Trump’s chief strategist, is an avowed white supremacist.

Jeff Sessions, nominee for attorney general, was rejected for a federal judgeship by fellow Republicans for a long history of racist behavior and beliefs, including saying the only problem with the Ku Klux Klan was marijuana use among members.

Michael Flynn, nominee for national security adviser, who has personal and financial ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish authoritarian President Erdogan and has repeatedly peddled anti-Muslim bigotry.

Steve Mnuchin, rumored to be the nominee for treasury secretary, is a former Goldman Sachs banker with zero government experience but a history of aggressively foreclosing on struggling Americans.

Among other rumored appointments are

Rudy Giuliani, the pioneer of racist police tactics like stop and frisk;

David Clarke, the sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin who called Black Lives Matter protesters “subhuman creeps;”

Joe Arpaio, the viciously anti-immigrant former Arizona sheriff;

Myron Ebell, a climate-change denier with no scientific experience; and

John Bolton, neo-con foreign policy voice who wants the United States to bomb Iran.

On top of it all, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has pointed out that Trump’s transition team includes “over twenty Wall Street elites, industry insiders, and lobbyists making decisions that could have huge implications for their clients or employers.”6 In short: If Democrats don’t stand strong, our government will be under the control of hatemongers and corporate cronies whose only qualification is their loyalty to an authoritarian president-elect.

Tell Democratic leaders: Block Trump’s crony cabinet.

While we continue to resist Trump by challenging the electors to exercise their moral conscience, we also have to pressure Democrats to put up a firewall against Trump. There is no reason to give a hate-group candidate who did not win the popular vote a free pass to appoint bigots, hatemongers and corporate puppets to leading positions in government. If Democrats stand their ground, they may even win allies from those Republicans who were lukewarm on Trump and foresee the damage from an administration full of unqualified cronies.

The Trump administration is elevating fringe elements of society while giving more influence to Wall Street and corporate elites. Only by standing united in fierce resistance can Democrats expose Trump’s true agenda and build a diverse coalition demanding bold progressive change.

Tell Democratic leaders: Block Trump’s crony cabinet.

Thank you for speaking out.

Esmee Cribb, “Trump Team Dodges On Anti-Muslim, Racist Comments From Flynn, Sessions,” TalkingPointsMemo, Nov. 18, 2016.
Harry Cheadle, “The Worst Wing: Meet Trump's Potential Cabinet,” VICE, Nov. 14, 2016.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, “Warren to President-Elect Trump: You Are Already Breaking Promises by Appointing Slew of Special Interests, Wall Street Elites, and Insiders to Transition Team,” Nov. 15, 2016.
Ibid.
Cheadle, “The Worst Wing: Meet Trump's Potential Cabinet.”
Warren, “Warren to President-Elect Trump: You Are Already Breaking Promises....”