In order to carry out a set of priorities that are out of step with the American people, President Trump packed his cabinet with a radical group of right-wing ideologues who are either unqualified for their positions or have built careers on opposing the rights and values that they are now supposed to protect.
With a second wave of appointments underway—the folks who will work under President Trump and his cabinet secretaries—it's clear that this trend continues:
- Stephen Miller has already racked up a disturbing record as Trump's senior policy advisor. Miller pushed back on courts rebuking Trump by saying that presidential power will not be questioned and has refused to provide evidence to back up the administration's voter fraud claims. Now he is reportedly taking on women's issues at the White House. That's right—Stephen Miller, who denies the pay gap and believes there's a place for gender roles, is said to be working on women's issues alongside Ivanka Trump.
- Mark Green is up for Army Secretary, an important role in the ongoing implementation of open service for gays and lesbians and people who are transgender. Yet Mark Green is an extreme anti-LGBTQ state senator from Tennessee who wants to license discrimination against LGBTQ Americans, including an attempt to force transgender students to use the restroom that matches their assigned gender at birth.
- Candice Jackson was recently named acting head of the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, a strong sign that she is up for permanent promotion from her current role as deputy. As a long-time affirmative action opponent who once claimed that she was the victim of anti-white discrimination, Jackson is clearly ill-equipped to ensure equal access to education.
- Eric Dreiband is poised to lead the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division. While we are still learning more about him, we do know that his record as an attorney in private practice includes extensive litigation on behalf of large corporations defending against discrimination complaints. Where does he stand on the rights of everyday Americans?
When Trump appoints someone like Stephen Miller to his White House team, they must be resisted. When he nominates people like Mark Green or considers a promotion for someone like Candice Jackson, people who are clearly unfit for their positions, the Senate must refuse to confirm them. And for a position as critical as the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, the American people deserve an open and thorough vetting process.
Americans won’t sit idly by as dangerous extremists take over our government.