Trump Pushes Past Sting Of Gaetz’s Exit With Flurry Of New Picks

By Isaac Arnsdorf, Marianne LeVine and Ashley Parker

President-elect Donald Trump quickly put behind him the loss of his first choice for attorney general, his top-priority position, while Senate Republicans expressed relief that they had avoided an ugly, drawn-out standoff with the incoming president.

The day after former congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration to lead the Justice Department, Trump pushed ahead with a burst of fresh announcements for planned appointments and nominations, including some controversial picks. The president-elect also showed no sign of shrinking from his choice of former Fox News host Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense or any of his other picks facing tough confirmation fights. Still, his team is taking a more cooperative approach to the upper chamber after initially demanding to bypass confirmation hearings and votes.

“President Trump appreciates the advice and consent of Senators on Capitol Hill, but ultimately this is his administration,” said Steven Cheung, Trump’s choice for White House communications director. “Voters gave President Trump a mandate to choose Cabinet nominees that reflect the will of the American people and he will continue to do so.”

Senate Republicans welcomed the rapid substitution of former Florida attorney general Pam Bondi as Trump’s pick for attorney generalafter Gaetz announced his withdrawal. One aide, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations, said the Gaetz withdrawal was more of a learning experience for the Senate and Trump than a setback.

Trump followed that move on Friday by naming hedge fund executive Scott Bessent as his choice for treasury secretary following days of hand-wringing over the position that is fifth in the line of succession and of keen interest to global investors. He also said he’d bring back his first-term budget director, Russell Vought, a key author of the Project 2025 policy blueprint who has advocated for unilaterally rejecting spending that Congress authorized, firing federal workers and taking control of independent regulator

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