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So you think Presidents draft their EOs? You think Biden had any general idea of what was put in front of him to sign? Trump talks about each EO as he signs them so he knows.
Trump47 Cabinet Picks & First 100 Days Agenda | Hegseth confirmed 51-50
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Trump largely says what his advisors tell him to say about X or Y, so he's not distinct from Biden in that regard - except when he goes off-script and does his "weave" or whatever that is.
But Trump is well-known for not ever reading anything or even wanting to read anything, especially things like the PDB, which his own people in his first term said had to be significantly dumbed down with pictures and graphs for him to even want to look at it, much less be able to understand it.
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“… Cameron Hamilton was named the “senior official performing the duties of the administrator,” according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly. He was named associate administrator for the Office of Response and Recovery on Monday and has since been appointed temporary administrator.
Mr. Hamilton is an unusual choice to lead the agency, even in a temporary capacity. Since Hurricane Katrina, when the federal response was severely criticized, FEMA has been led by disaster management professionals who have run state or local emergency management agencies, or were regional administrators at FEMA.
Mr. Hamilton does not appear to have experience coordinating responses to large scale disasters like the wildfires that are raging in Los Angeles or the hurricanes, floods and earthquakes that FEMA typically manages. FEMA did not respond to requests for comment.
Before joining the Trump administration on Monday, Mr. Hamilton worked as the director of business strategy for a defense contractor in Virginia, a job he took after an unsuccessful run for Congress last June.
… A Navy veteran, Mr. Hamilton worked as an emergency management specialist in the State Department and as a division director in the Department of Homeland Security, where he has said he managed about 4,000 emergency medical technicians along the southern border.…
During his run for Congress last year, Mr. Hamilton, a Republican, said immigration and the border with Mexico were his top priorities.
… As FEMA’s acting leader, Mr. Hamilton could have the chance to work on border issues. It’s not year clear how or whether President Trump will use FEMA to help secure the border or deport migrants. But Mr. Trump transferred money from FEMA to pay for detaining migrants during his first administration, and could do so again.
Mr. Hamilton has written posts on social media that were critical of FEMA, including the agency’s decision to begin moving Hurricane survivors in North Carolina out of temporary housing. Last October, he reposted a message from Anna Paulina Luna, a Republican congresswoman from Florida, criticizing FEMA for providing support for undocumented migrants. …”
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Assuming the Dems and independents vote no on Hegseth, they would still need one more to block his nomination. There had been some rumblings about Mitch McConnell being non-committal at some point but (a) I doubt Collins’ pearl-clutching will end with a no-vote anyway and (b) Mitch McConnell???
CFordUNC
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superrific
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Well, unlike Mike Johnson, Biden knew what he signed in the LNG Executive Order.
One significant difference between Biden and Trump is that Biden a) knows about law; b) cares about law; c) understands how the world works; and d) pays attention to details.
Trump doesn't even understand basic things, like how gravity affects water systems, the difference between northern and southern california, and the 14th Amendment, just to take some of his ignorance from the last week or so. This is a guy who doesn't even know how to pronounce Yosemite.
superrific
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If you don't let my guy destroy public health, I'll do it myself.
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Seriously, the Biden of the last 3-4 years? You sound like KJP touting Biden's tremendous physical stamina ("none of us can keep up with him") and mental sharpness "behind the scenes."
bassydude77
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CFordUNC
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Buddy, Donald Trump's White House physician wrote in a report during the first administration that he was the healthiest and most fit person he's ever seen, when everyone's own eyes can see that he is an enormous tub of lard who is about three double quarter pounder combo meals away from getting buried next to Ivana at Bedminster.
superrific
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So when Mike Johnson said that Biden didn't know what he had signed, and it turned out that Biden did know, was Mike Johnson lying, or uninformed, or simply not as bright as Joe? Because it is inarguable that Biden never signed an EO that resembled what Mike Johnson attributed to him.
And yes, even in a diminished state, Biden understands law way better than Trump ever did. You might want to sit this one out, since you also don't understand law and probably aren't fit to judge that particular contest.
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White House sidelines 160 National Security Council detailees as it reviews staffing to align team with Trump’s agenda
White House sidelines 160 National Security Council detailees as it reviews staffing to align team with Trump's agenda
President Donald Trump’s national security adviser has sidelined about 160 National Security Council staffers, telling them to work from home while the administration reviews staffing and tries to align it with Trump’s agenda.
www.pbs.org
“… The career government employees, commonly referred to as detailees, were summoned on Wednesday to an all-staff call in which they were told that they’ll be expected to be available to the NSC’s senior directors but would not need to report to the White House. The NSC, a White House arm, provides national security and foreign policy advice to the president.
Trump, a Republican, is sidelining these nonpolitical subject matter experts on topics that range from counterterrorism to global climate policy at a time when the U.S. is grappling with a disparate set of complicated foreign policy matters, including conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. Such structuring could also make new policy experts brought in to the NSC less likely to speak up about policy differences and concerns.
… Some directors have already made decisions to inform detailees they will be sent back to the federal agencies they were on loan from. For example, multiple holdover detailees assigned to counterterrorism directorate were told on Tuesday that their assignment was being cut short and that they will be sent back to their home agencies, according to two people familiar with the move who were not not authorized to comment publicly. …
The NSC was launched as an arm of the White House during the Truman administration, tasked with advising and assisting the president on national security and foreign policy and coordinating among various government agencies. It is common for experts detailed to the NSC to carry over from one administration to the next, even when the White House changes parties. …”
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“Pete Hegseth’s ex-wife recently gave a new statement to the FBI about the defense nominee’s alcohol use, according to two sources familiar with the matter, an issue that has become a source of controversy during his confirmation process.
Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker and the ranking Democratic member Jack Reed were briefed on Samantha Hegseth’s statement, which has not been previously reported, on January 16, two days after the committee held Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing, the sources said.
Wicker and Reed were initially briefed about the FBI’s background check before the confirmation hearing, according to another source familiar with the matter. Since then, the FBI has interviewed Samantha Hegseth and has included her statement in its supplemental review.
In the briefing, Wicker and Reed were told the FBI connected with Samantha Hegseth and that she gave a statement in which she discussed concerns about Pete Hegseth’s drinking. One source familiar with the statement said Samantha Hegseth told the FBI, “He drinks more often than he doesn’t.”
The source familiar noted that Samantha and Pete Hegseth have been divorced since 2017.
“There’s nothing new here and we look forward to the confirmation vote,” Tim Parlatore, Pete Hegseth’s lawyer, told CNN. …”
Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker and the ranking Democratic member Jack Reed were briefed on Samantha Hegseth’s statement, which has not been previously reported, on January 16, two days after the committee held Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing, the sources said.
Wicker and Reed were initially briefed about the FBI’s background check before the confirmation hearing, according to another source familiar with the matter. Since then, the FBI has interviewed Samantha Hegseth and has included her statement in its supplemental review.
In the briefing, Wicker and Reed were told the FBI connected with Samantha Hegseth and that she gave a statement in which she discussed concerns about Pete Hegseth’s drinking. One source familiar with the statement said Samantha Hegseth told the FBI, “He drinks more often than he doesn’t.”
The source familiar noted that Samantha and Pete Hegseth have been divorced since 2017.
“There’s nothing new here and we look forward to the confirmation vote,” Tim Parlatore, Pete Hegseth’s lawyer, told CNN. …”
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Trump makes it official, picking the guy who was in charge on site the day Trump was a mm from being assassinated. But Curran pretty easily convinced Trump it was Biden’s fault.
Curran has no apparent management experience for a department of this size but he is an experienced secret service officer.
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“…
Curran joined the Secret Service in 2001 as a special agent in Newark, N.J. But in choosing a longtime agent with close ties to him, Trump eschewed one of the recommendations that emerged from the outside panel that examined the Secret Service: installing new leadership from outside the agency.
In a report issued last year, the independent review panel said, “the events of Butler suggest that there is an urgent need for fresh thinking informed by external experience and perspective.”
That report, along with others, highlighted widespread failures by the Secret Service related to the Butler rally, including poor communication and technical mishaps. A Senate report faulted the Secret Service for an unclear chain of command, technological issues and unheeded concerns about the American Glass Research building where the gunman, Thomas Matthew Crooks, fired on Trump before being fatally shot by a Secret Service sniper.”