President-elect Donald Trump has named one of his former policy advisers, Brooke Rollins, as his pick for secretary of the Department of Agriculture.
“As our next Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke will spearhead the effort to protect American Farmers, who are truly the backbone of our Country,” Trump said in a statement announcing the pick Saturday.
CNN reported Friday that Trump was poised to offer the post to businesswoman and former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago Friday afternoon. There had been several discussions between Loeffler and the transition team regarding the position. But Trump held off from announcing it as he issued a slew of others Friday night, raising questions about whether she was ultimately offered it.
About Rollins: She is the CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group with close ties to Trump’s transition team, and has been a vocal supporter of the president-elect.
She congratulated Trump following his election win earlier this month, saying in an X post, “We love you, Mr. President, and we are so proud to continue the battle for an America built around your America First vision.”
Rollins’ name had previously been floated as a potential White House chief of staff, but she stood down from vying for the role after it became clear seeking it would amount to a serious power struggle with Susie Wiles, who was ultimately named for the position.
Rollins told the transition team that she would also be interested in the secretary of agriculture role, one source familiar said. Trump and Rollins spoke this week about the position.
In Trump’s first term, she served as White House Domestic Policy Council director. Prior to that role, she was president of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, for 15 years.
This post has been updated to reflect that Trump formally announced Rollins as his pick for agriculture secretary.
timeline of what happens between now and Inauguration Day
Analysis from CNN’s Annette Choi and Zachary B. Wolf
American voters have decided to rehire Donald Trump as president of the United States.
But he won’t take office until January 20, 2025, and there are multiple things that will happen between now and then. Throughout November, December and January, there will be a transition between the outgoing administration of President Joe Biden and the incoming Trump administration.
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Read about the upcoming dates.
Trump made a flurry of picks for key roles in his administration Friday night. Catch up here
From CNN staff
Donald Trump in Reading, Pennsylvania, on November 4. Evan Vucci/AP
President-elect Donald Trump named a flurry of new Cabinet picks and other top administration roles Friday night, as he was eager to announce his latest decisions before the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, two sources told CNN.
Trump’s pick to head the Treasury Department came first, followed by a slew of announcements on other key positions, including the leaders of the Labor Department, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and White House budget office.
One of the key roles still outstanding is agriculture secretary. Trump is expected to offer that post to one of his former policy advisers, Brooke Rollins, according to three sources familiar with the discussions. CNN originally reported Friday that Trump was eying former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler for the agriculture job, but that decision was not announced among the others last night, raising questions about whether she was ultimately the choice.
If you’re just catching up on Friday’s announcements, here’s what else to know:
- Trump named Scott Bessent, a hedge fund manager, as his pick to lead the Treasury Department.
- Trump chose Oregon Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer to be the secretary of labor.
- Trump selected Russell Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget. Vought was one of the key authors of Project 2025, the controversial conservative policy blueprint, and was Trump’s budget director during his first administration.
- Trump named Dr. Dave Weldon, a former congressman, to lead the CDC.
- Trump announced Dr. Janette Nesheiwat as his surgeon general.
- Trump chose Alex Wong as his principal deputy national security adviser and Sebastian Gorka as his senior director for counterterrorism.
- Trump chose Dr. Marty Makary to be the commissioner for the Food and Drug Administration.
- Trump named Scott Turner, a former NFL player, to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development, known colloquially as HUD.
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11:02 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
RFK Jr. congratulates Trump’s FDA and CDC picks
From CNN’s Aaron Pellish
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. attends a campaign rally for Donald Trump on August 23 in Glendale, Arizona. Rebecca Noble/Getty Images/File
President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to run the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., congratulated Trump’s choices for Food and Drug Administration commissioner and US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director in social media posts Saturday.
Kennedy said he’s excited to work with Marty Makary, the surgeon and researcher at Johns Hopkins University who Trump tapped for the FDA post Friday night.
“Congratulations @MartyMakary on your nomination as Commissioner of the FDA. I am excited to work with you to restore the FDA’s proud tradition of gold-standard, evidence-based science, end corporate capture, and Make America Healthy Again,” Kennedy said in a post on X.
Kennedy also lauded Dave Weldon, who Trump tapped to head the CDC, as someone who can bring “truth and transparency” and “restore the public’s confidence” in the agency.
“Congratulations Dr. Dave Weldon on your nomination as Director of CDC. Dr. Weldon is a 40-year medical doctor, Congressman, and Army veteran. Dave’s leadership at CDC will bring the truth and transparency needed to restore the public’s confidence in this institution. Welcome aboard,” Kennedy wrote in a separate post.
Some background: Kennedy played a key role in filling out Trump’s remaining selections for public health roles, CNN previously reported.
The picks come as some prominent voices in the public health world express concern over the president-elect’s intention to elevate RFK Jr., a prominent anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist, to the nation’s top health post.
Trump’s latest health announcements, revealed during a Friday night flurry of Cabinet and staff announcements, paint a fuller picture of what the agency would look like under Kennedy, if confirmed by the US Senate.
This post has been updated with RFK Jr.’s comments on Trump’s CDC pick.
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins contributed reporting to this post.
10:14 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
Trump is casting a made-for-TV Cabinet
From CNN’s Steve Contorno and Kristen Holmes
A common thread weaves through many of Donald Trump’s picks for his incoming administration, a quality the president-elect values as highly as loyalty and perhaps even more than conventional qualifications: a flair for television.
He has plucked two Fox News stars from their airwaves: Sean Duffy for transportation secretary and Pete Hegseth to lead the Pentagon. For the agency overseeing Medicare and Medicaid, Trump has turned to Dr. Mehmet Oz, the celebrity physician known for his health show that aired for 13 seasons. His pick for the Department of Education, meanwhile, is Linda McMahon, who co-founded and built a professional wrestling and entertainment empire alongside her husband.
Trump’s choice for ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, had a six-year run hosting a Fox News show. Tulsi Gabbard, his selection for director of national intelligence, was a contributor on the conservative network after she left Congress, and once subbed for its former primetime host Tucker Carlson.
As a former reality TV star, Trump is deeply attuned to the power of the small screen. His selection process has centered on people who can not only articulate his message but also defend him in the kind of high-stakes, combative settings that define modern media.
His transition team, operating in a war-room style setup at Mar-a-Lago, has embraced this focus. On large screens, his advisers play video clips of potential appointees’ media performances, including footage of them defending Trump but also their past criticism of him, underscoring the centrality of media strategy in his decision-making.
The outcome is a made-for-TV Cabinet who he thinks will sell his agenda to Americans and defend the administration against media scrutiny on their networks. Meanwhile, in some departments, the expectation is that deputies and top staff will oversee the day-to-day operations.
9:32 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
Your questions, answered: Trump’s deportation plan
Analysis from CNN’s Zachary B. Wolf and Leinz Vales
In this September 2023 photo, migrants who crossed the Rio Grande and entered the US from Mexico are lined up for processing by US Customs and Border Protection in Eagle Pass, Texas. Eric Gay/AP
We asked CNN readers for their questions about the incoming second Trump administration.
Here’s what one reader is wondering about the president-elect’s immigration plans:
“Should I be worried about mass deportation plan? I’m a wife to permanent resident and mother to 9 & 12 yo US citizens, I’m here for over 20 years, paying taxes, no criminal record at all. I’m just scared …”
–Gosia
CNN’s Catherine Shoichet has written extensively about immigrants in the US. Here’s what Shoichet wrote in response:
Immigrant advocates and legal experts I’ve spoken with are very concerned about how the second Trump administration will approach deportations, given the intensity of his rhetoric during the presidential campaign and the announcements he’s made so far about who will be shaping immigration policy in his government.
“The truth is, if you don’t have status in this country, as this person doesn’t, then you are at risk. … I don’t think anyone can assume that they are safe from his proposals, unless they have a legal basis to be in this country,” said Lisa Graybill, vice president of law and policy at the National Immigration Law Center.
Former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Tom Homan, who Trump has tapped as his “border czar,” has said the administration will initially focus on public safety and national security threats. He’s also said he wants to increase worksite raids and that deporting families together would be a way to avoid separating them.
Advocates caution that even those who aren’t the intended targets of an enforcement operation can end up in the wrong place at the wrong time. They’re urging those with concerns to consult with immigration attorneys now about their cases, to connect with local immigrant advocacy organizations and to put plans in place for their families.
American Immigration Lawyers Association President Kelli Stump said she’s been urging clients to stay calm and do everything they can now to prepare. “I get that people are scared and they’re nervous,” she said, “but it’s not time now to wait around and find out what will happen. It’s time to act.”
Read more questions and answers.
7:34 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
Incoming health committee chairman expresses caution about Trump’s labor pick
From CNN’s Manu Raju
Bill Cassidy speaks at a press conference in Washington, DC in June 2023. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy, who is poised to chair the Senate’s Health, Education and Labor Committee, expressed caution over President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to the lead the Labor Department.
Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer has had a more moderate record on labor issues as she represented a Democratic-leaning district in Oregon.
“I look forward to speaking with Chavez-DeRemer about her vision for DOL. I will need to get a better understanding of her support for Democrat legislation in Congress that would strip Louisiana’s ability to be a right to work state, and if that will be her position going forward,” he wrote on X.
More about Trump’s pick: A favorite of Teamsters President Sean O’Brien, Chavez-DeRemer is considered one of the most labor-friendly Republicans in Washington — and one of the few GOP members of Congress to co-sponsor the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, legislation stuck in committee that would gut right-to-work laws in nearly 30 states and make it easier for workers to unionize. Its companion bill in the Senate was introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders, the progressive firebrand from Vermont.
Right-to-work laws prohibit workers from being forced to contribute mandatory dues to labor unions in order to gain employment, regardless of whether or not they are members of a union.
6:32 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
NATO chief holds meeting with Trump in Florida
From CNN’s Sophie Tanno
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte met President-elect Donald Trump in Florida on Friday, the military alliance said.
Rutte and Trump met in Palm Beach to discuss “the range of global security issues” facing the alliance, a statement said. The NATO website posted a picture of the two shaking hands.
It added that Rutte and his team also met with Rep. Mike Waltz, Trump’s pick for national security adviser.
Some context: The meeting comes as NATO faces one of its toughest challenges of supporting Ukraine amid Russia’s grinding war, with Trump having cast doubt on continuing US commitment to Kyiv.
Trump recently chose Matthew Whitaker, who served as acting attorney general during Trump’s first term, as his pick to be US ambassador to NATO.
If confirmed, Whitaker will also likely be tasked with ratcheting up pressure on countries in the NATO alliance to increase their defense spending — renewing efforts Trump took in his first term.
During his presidential campaign, Trump indicated he would only adhere to NATO’s mutual defense commitment for countries who are contributing enough of their annual budgets to defense.
CNN’s Jennifer Hansler, Hannah Rabinowitz and Kate Sullivan contributed reporting to this post.
10:50 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
How Trump filled out critical remaining public health roles
From CNN’s Kaanita Iyer, Katherine Dillinger and Jamie Gumbrecht
President-elect Donald Trump on Friday announced his picks for critical remaining public health roles in his incoming administration.
The announced selections come as some in the public health world have already expressed concern over the president-elect’s intention to elevate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a prominent anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist, to the nation’s top health post as secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services. Trump’s picks, revealed during a Friday night flurry of Cabinet and staff announcements, paint a fuller picture of what the health agency would look like under Kennedy, if confirmed by the US Senate.
US surgeon general: Also known as “the nation’s doctor,” the surgeon general is a medical doctor who focuses on educating and advising Americans on how to improve their health.
Trump picked Dr. Janette Nesheiwat for the post. Nesheiwat is a family practice doctor and Fox News medical contributor who is certified by the American Board of Family Medicine. She attended medical school at the American University of the Caribbean in St. Maarten, according to her New York state physician profile, and did postgraduate work at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
FDA commissioner: The US Food and Drug Administration commissioner oversees the FDA, which is responsible for the safety, efficacy and security of medications, biological products, medical devices, food and cosmetics. Vaccine authorization or approval falls under the FDA’s purview. The commissioner is traditionally a medical doctor.
Trump tapped Dr. Marty Makary for the position. Makary is a surgeon and researcher at Johns Hopkins University. Makary, like Nesheiwat, has Fox News ties. In an opinion piece published on Fox News at the height of the pandemic in 2021, Makary argued that Covid-19 had revealed the FDA to be a “broken” administration “mired in politics and red tape.”
CDC director: The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leads the nation’s foremost public health agency, which deals with disease prevention and control and environmental health. Among his or her most prominent duties is making final recommendations on vaccinations and immunization schedules.
Trump chose Dr. Dave Weldon, a former congressman from Florida, for this post. Weldon got a medical degree from SUNY-Buffalo on an Army scholarship and did postgraduate training in internal medicine at the Letterman Army Medical Center. He served six years in active duty and eight in the Army Reserve, according to a biography on his US Senate campaign website.
“As a physician, Dr. Weldon became involved with many health care policy issues, including efforts to ban human cloning and vaccine safety,” the campaign website notes. “He helped lead the effort to remove toxic mercury containing preservatives from childhood vaccines.”
Read more about how Trump rounded out key health positions here.
6:29 p.m. GMT+5, November 23, 2024
Trump’s pick for spy chief was on government watch list for overseas travel and foreign connections
From CNN’s Katie Bo Lillis, Zachary Cohen and Holmes Lybrand
Tulsi Gabbard speaks before Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in in New York, on October 27. Alex Brandon/AP
Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the intelligence community, was briefly placed on a Transportation Security Administration list that prompts additional security screening before flights after her overseas travel patterns and foreign connections triggered a government algorithm earlier this year, three sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
Gabbard was quickly removed from the list, a little-known program called “Quiet Skies,” after going public with claims she had been added to a “secret terror watchlist.”
Gabbard has claimed she was put on the list because she criticized then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris in an interview with Fox News — something two of the sources flatly denied had anything to do with it.
“The TSA placed me on the Quiet Skies domestic terror watchlist in what I can only describe as the ultimate betrayal,” she said in a post on X in September. “The Harris-Biden regime has now labeled me a domestic terror threat. Why? They see me as a threat to their power.”
The episode has raised eyebrows among security officials, who point to Gabbard’s history of unusual relationships overseas. As a member of Congress in 2017, she worked outside of official channels to travel to Syria to meet with President Bashar al-Assad.
CNN has reached out to Gabbard for comment.