Trump's Cabinet choices- Millionaires/Billionaires. Why?

Mevater

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 5:15 pm

The family of Trump's pick for education secretary, Betsy DeVos, has a net worth estimated at $5.1 billion. (Photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP)
The family of Trump’s pick for education secretary, Betsy DeVos, has a net worth estimated at $5.1 billion. (Photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP)
President-elect Donald Trump, who rallied populist voters by vowing to “drain the swamp” of the Washington elite, is filling his Cabinet with people who share a familiar trait: They’re very rich.

On Wednesday, Trump announced Steve Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs executive who served as his campaign finance chairman, as his choice for treasury secretary and Wilbur Ross, a private equity investor, as his pick for secretary of commerce.

According to Forbes, Ross has a personal fortune estimated to be worth $2.9 billion, making him the country’s 232nd richest person. Mnuchin, who spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs before founding a Hollywood film investment firm, is said to be worth $40 million, though some consider that estimate too low.

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Todd Ricketts, whose family owns the Chicago Cubs and is the 66th richest person in America, per Forbes, was named deputy commerce secretary on Wednesday.

Tom Price, Trump’s pick for health and human services secretary, is an orthopedic surgeon turned six-term Republican congressman from Georgia. Price’s net worth: $13.6 million.

Elaine Chao, Trump’s choice for transportation secretary, was labor secretary under former President George W. Bush and is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Chao’s net worth: about $22 million.

That’s chump change in comparison to Trump’s choice for education secretary, Betsy DeVos, former chair of the Michigan Republican Party and a major GOP donor whose family’s net worth is estimated by Forbes to be $5.1 billion, making them the 88th richest in America — and richer than her would-be boss. According to Forbes, Trump’s net worth fell $800 million last year to $3.7 billion, making putting him at No. 156 on the magazine’s list of wealthiest people in the U.S. (Trump, who claims to be worth far more than $10 billion, railed against the “bankrupt magazine” last year, when Forbes assigned him a $4.5 million net worth.)

Other candidates Trump is reportedly considering for cabinet posts are even richer.

Harold Hamm, an oil-and-gas magnate and rumored pick for secretary of energy, has a net worth of $14.6 billion.

Goldman Sachs President Gary Cohn, who Trump is reportedly considering for a senior administration job, is one of the highest-paid executives on Wall Street. (Cohn’s salary was $20.5 million in 2015.)

Texas Rep. Michael T. McCaul, a candidate for secretary of homeland security, is one of the wealthiest members of Congress, with a net worth north of $117 million. McCaul’s wife, Linda Mays McCaul, is the daughter of billionaire and Clear Channel Communications founder Lowry Mays. (McCaul’s Texas home is sometimes referred to as the “Taj McCaul.”)

And Mitt Romney, said to be among the finalists for secretary of state, is said to be worth $250 million.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/tru......html

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Is this a coincidence? How is this to anyone's advantage/disadvantage?

treestump

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 5:30 pm

Because he's draining the swamp, don't you know?

Lol.

His cabinet picks represent the shining epitome of anti-establishment.

SixOfWands

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 5:36 pm

If I had stopped to think about it -- and I didn't -- I would have guessed that he would choose well-off people for his advisers.

I'm not sure why it should matter, though.

A good and qualified candidate is good and qualified, whether wealthy or poor. Conversely, an unqualified candidate is just that, regardless of finances.

I'm going to venture a guess that Mitt Romney is worth a lot more than David Petraeus. And that I'd still prefer Romney as Secretary of State.

debsey

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 6:10 pm

He's a businessman. He equates success in business with brilliance. Most people tend to view the world through their own lenses. Doesn't surprise me.

ectomorph

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 6:36 pm

But, would you prefer this or career politicians?

SixOfWands

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 6:48 pm

ectomorph wrote:

But, would you prefer this or career politicians?

He's appointing a lot of career professionals.

Jeffrey Sessions.
Tom Price.
Elaine Chao
Reince Preibus
Nikki Haley

He's talking to Romney. Newt Ginrich. Rudy Guiliani. David Petaeus. Tom Cotton. Rick Perry. Jan Brewer. David Clark. And a host of others.

But not Chris Christie. How did Christie ever think that Trump would nominate him for anything other than Chief Dogcatcher. Christie made his name prosecuting Charles Kushner. Did he really think Trump wouldn't remember that?

In any case, yes, there are "outsiders." But there are also a heck of a lot of insiders.

Laiya

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 6:50 pm

Doesn't address the OP but I find it amusing how, when he picks an establishment politician, the headlines are all, Oh look he misled us with his claims of draining the swamp!, and when he picks Washington outsiders the headlines are all, He's picking people with no experience; how will they be competent??

The msm will continue to find fault with whatever he does.

youngishbear

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 7:25 pm

Laiya wrote:

The fallacies and contradictions are a feature of the Trump campaign/persona. The MSM's treatment of them is not the underlying issue.

PinkFridge

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 7:48 pm

SixOfWands wrote:

He's appointing a lot of career professionals.

Jeffrey Sessions.
Tom Price.
Elaine Chao
Reince Preibus
Nikki Haley

He's talking to Romney. Newt Ginrich. Rudy Guiliani. David Petaeus. Tom Cotton. Rick Perry. Jan Brewer. David Clark. And a host of others.

But not Chris Christie. How did Christie ever think that Trump would nominate him for anything other than Chief Dogcatcher. Christie made his name prosecuting... Did he really think Trump wouldn't remember that?

.

Omgosh! Are you serious???? (I deleted the name because for all I know the father's done teshuva and who knows what. Noone has to disabuse me of the notion Wink

)
Not to mention Bridgegate toxicity.

SixOfWands

Wed, Nov 30 2016, 8:06 pm

PinkFridge wrote:

Omgosh! Are you serious???? (I deleted the name because for all I know the father's done teshuva and who knows what. Noone has to disabuse me of the notion Wink

)
Not to mention Bridgegate toxicity.

Yeah. Christie was the prosecutor. Here's the Wiki http://tinyurl.com/hytztho I made it a tiny URL to eliminate the name.

No idea if he's done tshuva. I'll assume that he has. I know he's not shunned by large swaths of his family (although I've no idea about his sister), so it would be a fair bet that he has. ETA -- at least for that part of it.

PinkFridge

Thu, Dec 01 2016, 9:03 am

SixOfWands wrote:

I did not need to check that... but of course I did. All I can say is shock

(And I definitely will not chase this down with an entry on Clinton's mechutan.)