With 69 days left until President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, Trump has begun selecting his team to run the White House, providing insight into which campaign promises will become his priorities. .

Immigration and mass deportation appear to be at the top of the list. This would be followed by dismantling the Department of Education and weakening the Environmental Protection Agency. All of this comes from a series of videos and statements published on his own Truth Social and other social media platforms.

Oh, and unity. He wants to unify the country. So let’s dig into what exactly Unity is.

A bright place?

If the past few days have brought any glimmer of hope to our democracy, which I argue remains in jeopardy, it’s the appointment of Susie Wiles as President Trump’s chief of staff. Probably.

Politico writer Michael Kruse wrote: April’s detailed profile of Wiles is worth a read. Wiles, a longtime Republican whose career predates President Reagan (she served as his scheduler in the White House), has a good reputation on both sides of the aisle. She is not politically committed to any of the issues that energize the MAGA base and are promoted by other Trump followers, such as immigration, LGBTQ+ rights, or deregulation.

Many have a hard time understanding why non-MAGA Republicans like her would align with Trump, but as they say, the proof is in the water. Because here she is — President Trump named her chief of staff.

That makes her one of the most powerful people in the country, taking on roles never before held by a woman. Perhaps her reasoning is simply that when power is given, it is taken away. Only Wiles knows.

But despite her contribution to Trump’s victory, she has historically lacked the far-right ideology that animates other members of Trump’s inner circle, raising the possibility that her influence could moderate Trump’s policies. be.

Either way, that will remain my hope until proven otherwise.

Great banishment

One place where it is clear that President Trump’s campaign promises will not be eased is on immigration. President Trump has made two important appointments on this issue. stephen millerThe former Santa Monica man reportedly chose Deputy Chief of Staffand Thomas Homan, former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was chosen as President Trump’s “border czar.”

Mr. Miller has been a supporter of Mr. Trump since before his first term, making clear his views on immigrants and what makes Americans truly worthy Americans. Not only does he support mass deportation of illegal aliens; deprive of citizenship From naturalized citizens. Unlike Wiles, Miller’s extreme position appears to be a badge of honor, a challenge he has long been waiting to fulfill.

Homan is the tool to achieve that, a sledgehammer aimed at reducing vulnerable communities and economies, including California’s, where undocumented immigrants live to rubble. Homan presided over family separation during President Trump’s final term.

President Trump and President Homan said people with criminal records would be targeted first, but also said:No one is off the table. ” He said he would carry out “the largest deportation operation this country has ever seen.” This includes workplace attacks.

It could also include efforts to withhold federal funds from cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco that provide sanctuary to illegal aliens, and to spread pain to all Americans as a way to break the will of political resistance. There is.

power of shadow

President Trump also promised to quickly issue an executive order banning transgender women from participating in sports. It’s unclear exactly how that will work, but it shouldn’t come as a surprise, especially since Elon Musk appears to have moved from mega-donor to confidant.

As you may know, Mr. Musk has a transgender child with whom he is estranged. He publicly stated that he believed the child was dead because he died from a “wake mind virus.” For the record, Vivian Jenna Wilson is alive and well and passed away her father a few days ago. “Paranoid, dirty little control freak.” For his views on trying to undermine her presence.

But along with dismantling federal government departments and slashing trillions of dollars in budgets (never mind services like Medicaid and Social Security that these employees administer), Musk has waged a war on transgender rights. He has not publicly announced that he is setting this up. So expect his new best friend Trump to help with that.

That’s education, idiot.

President Trump has also promised immediate action on education in recent days, dismantling the Department of Education (and “reinstating” prayer in schools, which hasn’t really happened since the separation of church and state, but which is a sign of Christian nationalism). (occupies a large part) . Of course, the DOE oversees civil rights in schools. This is not just a race or gender issue. Special education services may also be affected.

And (surprisingly) the DOE also oversees Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in school sports. How would that be interpreted?

At the same time, President Trump has pushed educational issues to each state and hollowed out the public education system by allowing “school choice,” an abbreviation of allowing public funds to be invested in private schools, including religious schools, and depleting those funds. I’m thinking of letting you do that.

Remember Betsy DeVos, the first Secretary of Education? DeVos said recently that she would be willing to return to help dismantle the department. Vivek Ramaswamy’s name has also been floated for the role, making DeVos seem like a moderate on the issue.

climate change issues

Last but not least, President Trump announced the appointment of former New York Congressman Lee Zeldin to head the Environmental Protection Agency, which will soon be renamed the Department of DBD. It’s drill, baby, drill. In Zeldin’s announcement, Trump promised rapid deregulation across the board, including opening up federally protected lands to private business for everything from drilling to construction.

What else to read:

Must read: President Trump’s border czar promises ‘far more’ deportations than in first term
What’s next: California systematically counts as house control jeopardizes
LA Times Feature: Newsom heads to Washington, D.C., to lobby for California’s preference list before Trump takes office

Remain golden,
Anita Chhabria

PS What do you want from me? No, really, what do you need from this newsletter? Now that the election is over, we’re thinking about the future of this political newsletter. Please let us know your opinions. Will we continue to focus on the White House? Should we be thinking more about how President Trump’s inauguration will affect California and how California will respond? Will we get out of the domestic turmoil and focus on politics in California and here in the Golden State?

Drop us a line at anita.chabria@latimes.com and let us know what you think.

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