STAT has a scoop that the Trump transition team has tapped lobbyist Jack Kalavritinos for a major role on the "beachhead" team to run the Food and Drug Administration after President-elect Trump's inauguration on Friday.
Who? Kalavritinos was the head of global lobbying for hospital supplier Covidien, which moved its global HQ to Ireland after being acquired by Medtronic in 2014 to take advantage of lower tax rates.
Does Trump know? "Here's what he said about drug company lobbyists at last week's press conference: "Pharma has a lot of lobbies and a lot of lobbyists and a lot of power and there's very little bidding on drugs."
Trump's energy secretary pick, Rick Perry, has changed his mind about whether the department he's been picked to run should continue to exist.
Recall: Perry famously fumbled over his words during a 2011 presidential debate when he forgot that energy was one of the cabinet departments he wanted to elimimate.
Why the change of heart?
After being briefed on so many of the vital functions of the Department of Energy, I regret recommending its elimination.
About climate change Perry today said "some of it is naturally occurring, but some of it is also caused by man-made activity"
During the presidential campaign, a common refrain from Trump supporters was that America needed a businessman in the White House. Someone who had met a payroll, operated in the "real world," etc. Even more optimal was someone who had zero experience in public service (sorry, Mitt Romney), since it's hard to shake the reflexive stain of "business as usual."
My gut reaction was always twofold:
Running a government shares little in common with running a for-profit enterprise, save for organizational skills.
The businessman would likely surround himself with a lot of people who do have public-sector experience, so even a Trump victory wouldn't really test the hypothesis.
Trump's Cabinet picks are now complete. There are 15 traditional cabinet positions, and an additional five based on the cabinet-rank status outlined in Obama's administration. Here's a breakdown of the crew by the numbers:
16 of the 20 cabinet picks are men
17 are white
9 have never been elected officials or have run for office
The Senate Majority leader says the GOP will get 3 nominees confirmed on Day 1: John Kelly (Homeland), Mike Pompeo (CIA) and James Mattis (Defense). He wants more, and isn't happy:
There are a bunch of other nominees that aren't controversial. Two of them happen to be women, three of them happen to be minorities that are not controversial. And the Democrats say they are going to sit on them now. Why?
President Obama was masterful in building his power and brand, not only winning back-to-back elections but doing so with the two highest vote totals in US history. But his eight years were a disaster for the Democratic Party.
The president-elect, who flew down to Washington last evening for a fancy dinner honoring his prospective Cabinet, showed up unannounced at the Vice President's Dinner, a fundraiser starring Mike Pence (entree was duck) at the National Portrait Gallery.
He gave lengthy, no-teleprompter remarks that were closed to the press. But an Axios AM reader sent us a partial tape. (Don't forget to do that.) Trump was feisty, funny and all over the place. A sampler of what was on his mind, 36 hours before show time:
Want to understand how Donald Trump will govern? Watch what he does, not what he says — and keep a very close eye on the business-style board of powerbrokers he's creating inside the White House.
