Meet the new Trump administration staffers who will shape key US policies

• President-elect Donald Trump has started to fill key White House positions.

• He started by naming Susie Wiles his chief of staff, making her the first woman to hold the role.

• Here’s a running list of those Trump has tapped.

Now that President-elect Donald Trump has secured another four years in the White House, he’s beginning to staff his administration. The former and future president refused to talk in detail about potential appointees during the campaign, leaving plenty of room for speculation about his eventual choices.

Here’s a running list of Trump’s staff picks, who will determine everything from his daily schedule to the ins and outs of finance, defense, and education.

Susie Wiles

Susie Wiles is set to make history as the country’s first female chief of staff to a president. A veteran Florida strategist who led Trump’s political operation for nearly four years, Wiles is seen as loyal and supremely capable.

A grandmother who keeps a relatively low public profile, Wiles is Trump’s only campaign manager to have lasted an entire election cycle, The New York Times reported. Not only did she help the president-elect expand his base and run a more professional campaign, but she also assisted lawyers on his various criminal and civil cases. She has a proven ability to manage Trump’s unpredictable personality, which will be crucial as she takes on what some consider the second-most-powerful job in Washington, behind the presidency itself.

“Susie is tough, smart, innovative and is universally admired and respected,” Trump said when announcing her role. Chris LaCivita, Trump’s co-campaign manager, described her as “loyal and honest as the day is long.”

Come January, Wiles will likely have to balance the demands of various big personalities, from Elon Musk to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Trump tore through four chiefs of staff during his first term, with one of them, Gen. John Kelly, describing it as the worst job he’s ever had.

More traditional Republicans and MAGA diehards alike seem to think that Wiles, with her political sharpness and close ties to the Trump family, will be a more durable choice.

Elise Stefanik

Trump nominated Rep. Elise Stefanik of upstate New York to fill the role of UN ambassador, his first Cabinet pick. She is currently the fourth-ranking Republican in the House and was a loyal Trump surrogate during the campaign.

Stefanik, the 40-year-old chair of the House Republican Conference, cemented her status as a Trump ally during his 2019 impeachment hearings. She’s a vocal supporter of Israel and took a leading role in the congressional hearings that led multiple top university presidents to resign over their handling of protests against the war in Gaza. However, she lacks significant foreign policy and national security experience, Maggie Haberman wrote in The New York Times.

“Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter,” Trump said in a statement confirming the pick. In a statement to the New York Post, Stefanik said she was “deeply humbled” to accept the nomination.

Should the Senate confirm Stefanik, as it is likely to do, there will be a special election to fill her congressional seat.

Tom Homan

Trump has tapped Thomas Homan to serve as his administration’s “border czar.” Homan, 62, was a senior immigration official during Trump’s first term and served as the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Homan will oversee the nation’s borders, as well as maritime and aviation security. A former police officer and border patrol agent, he has extensive experience in immigration enforcement.

Trump made immigration enforcement a centerpiece of his campaign and has promised to pursue the country’s largest mass deportation to date. Last month, Homan told “60 Minutes” that worksite raids to target unauthorized employees would pick back up under a Trump presidency.

The president-elect announced Homan’s role on Truth Social: “I’ve known Tom for a long time, and there is nobody better at policing and controlling our Borders.”

Homan’s role does not need Senate confirmation.

Lee Zeldin

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, 44, has been chosen to lead the Environmental Protection Agency. A four-term Republican congressman from Long Island, Zeldin has accepted the job.

“We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI. We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” Zeldin wrote in a post on X accepting the job as head of the agency.

In a separate statement, Trump said he’s known Zeldin for years and trusts he will “ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American business, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards.”

In 2022, Zeldin ran for the governor of New York and put up an impressive fight. He has remained close with President-elect Trump and appeared at Mar-a-Lago multiple times during the 2024 campaign. During his time in the House, Zeldin repeatedly voted against clean water legislation and clean air legislation, the Times reported. Nonetheless, he had a more bipartisan record when it comes to climate than other Republicans. Some individuals close to Trump’s transition team were taken aback by the selection, as Zeldin hasn’t demonstrated a lot of interest in the E.P.A.

Trump has promised to “drill, baby, drill” for fossil fuels, cancel some E.P.A. rules, and roll back some of President Biden’s climate agenda.

Michael Waltz

Trump has turned to Florida Rep. Michael Waltz to become his next national security advisor, bringing onboard an Army Green Beret veteran and staunch critic of the Biden administration’s 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Waltz himself served in Afghanistan, as well as the Middle East and Africa.

“Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda, and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Trump said in a statement.

Waltz was first elected to the House in 2018, where he succeeded now-Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the conservative-leaning 6th Congressional District. He currently chairs the Armed Services subcommittee on readiness and also sits on the Foreign Affairs and Intelligence committees.

Mike Huckabee

Trump tapped former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as his selection to become the next ambassador to Israel.

“He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”

Since the war in Gaza began more than a year ago, Huckabee has been a critic of the Biden administration’s response. In an interview on Fox News at the end of 2023, Huckabee said Biden was participating in “nothing less than diplomatic schizophrenia.”

Huckabee served as governor from 1996 to 2007. He’s since pivoted more toward commentary, hosting his own talk show.

He ran for president in both 2008 and 2016.

In 2008, Huckabee won the Iowa GOP caucuses, but he was unable to sustain that momentum against the eventual nominee (then-Arizona Sen. John McCain) in later contests and eventually bowed out of the race. When he ran again in 2016, he came in ninth place in Iowa and suspended his campaign after the performance.

Steve Witkoff

Trump has appointed real-estate developer Steven Witkoff as a special Middle East envoy.

Witkoff, who has known Trump for decades, has no formal diplomatic experience, though that did not stop Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner from leading the first Trump administration’s efforts in the region. Kushner helped broker the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates.

Trump already appointed Witkoff to cochair his inaugural committee alongside former US Sen. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia.

President Joe Biden has appointed multiple special envoys to the Middle East as the White House seeks an end to Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip after the terrorist group killed roughly 1,200 people in attacks on October 7, 2023. In April, Biden appointed Lise Grande, the former head of the US Insitute for Peace, as Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues. Trump has repeatedly vowed to bring peace, though he hasn’t been clear on how he will reach a long-term cease-fire that has thus far eluded Biden.

Trump and Witkoff were playing golf at Trump’s West Palm Beach, Florida, golf club in September when a Secret Service officer fired at a would-be assassin, the second attempt on Trump’s life.

William Joseph McGinley

Trump tapped William Joseph McGinley to serve as his White House Counsel, a role which involves advising the president on judicial appointments, ethics and oversight considerations, and other legal matters concerning the administration.

McGinley previously served as White House Cabinet Secretary during Trump’s first term and as General Counsel at the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

“Bill is a smart and tenacious lawyer who will help me advance our America First agenda while fighting for election integrity and against the weaponization of law enforcement,” Trump said in a statement announcing the appointment.

John Ratcliffe

John Ratcliffe, the former director of national intelligence, has been appointed to head the Central Intelligence Agency under the second Trump administration.

As director of national intelligence, Ratcliffe declassified unverified Russian intelligence concerning Hillary Clinton and her presidential campaign, alleging the campaign approved a plan to “stir up a scandal” against Trump, drawing criticism that Ratcliffe used the intelligence community to help Trump politically, CNN reported at the time.

Trump praised Ratcliffe’s loyalty in his announcement of the appointment, describing Ratcliffe as “a warrior for Truth and Honesty with the American Public.”

Prior to his stint as the Director of National Intelligence in Trump’s first term, Ratcliffe served in Congress for over five years as the US Rep. for the 4th congressional district of Texas. During that time, he was a member of the House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees and the Cybersecurity Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.

Pete Hegseth

Pete Hegseth, who has been an anchor at Fox News for eight years, was nominated by Trump to serve as Secretary of Defense.

The role will require a confirmation vote through the Republican-controlled Senate to be approved.

An Army veteran with two Bronze Stars, as well as a Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Hegseth served tours in Guantánamo Bay, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He has been a vocal supporter of Trump.

“Pete is tough, smart and a true believer in America First. With Pete at the helm, America’s enemies are on notice – Our Military will be Great Again, and America will Never Back Down,” Trump said in a statement announcing his appointment.

Elon Musk

Trump announced that Tesla CEO Elon Musk will lead the Department of Government Efficiency alongside entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.

“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies – Essential to the “Save America” Movement,” Trump said in a statement.

Musk has teased his role in a second Trump administration for months, previously describing his priorities as leading a “once-in-a-lifetime deregulation and reduction in the size of government.”

Vivek Ramaswamy

Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate, will cohead the Department of Government Efficiency with Musk.

“I look forward to Elon and Vivek making changes to the Federal Bureaucracy with an eye on efficiency and, at the same time, making life better for all Americans,” Trump said in a statement. “Importantly, we will drive out the massive waste and fraud which exists throughout our annual $6.5 Trillion Dollars of Government Spending.”

As a new department, the role of the Department of Government Efficiency is so far unclear. However, in his statement, Trump said the department “will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.”

Kristi Noem

Trump has picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as the next secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

In her role, Noem will lead US Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the US Secret Service — in sum, she will be in charge of a $60 billion budget, The Washington Post reported. She will play a crucial role in implementing Trump’s hard-line immigration plans.

Noem, a former representative, has maintained a good relationship with Trump. During his first term, she once greeted him in her home state with a four-foot replica of Mount Rushmore — with his face added.

In a statement, Noem said she is “honored and humbled” to be selected as the Secretary of Homeland Security.

“I look forward to working with Border Czar Tom Homan to make America SAFE again,” Noem said. “With Donald Trump, we will secure the Border, and restore safety to American communities so that families will again have the opportunity to pursue The American Dream.”

The governor was floated as a potential running mate for Trump, but she invited controversy for including an anecdote in her book about shooting and killing her dog, Cricket.

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