Trump’s Can-Do Cabinet

By Nancy G. Brinker
December 1, 2016
The Hill

In building an internationally recognized organization from a kitchen table to a boardroom, I had a long experience with, and was privileged to have, great colleagues in building an amazing team around a mission to accomplish great things.

President-elect Donald Trump has set forth a mission: to “Make America Great Again.” He has set forth policies to accomplish just that and now he is building a team to meet the goals and objectives of that mission.

I have to say that I am impressed with the talent the president-elect has attracted thus far to serve our country.

I know many of them personally and can attest firsthand to their passion and ability to get things done.

Some are new to government and some are returning in different roles, but all have the acumen and experience to achieve the mission at hand.

The president-elect’s economic team thus far of Steven Mnuchin as secretary of the Treasury, Wilbur Ross as secretary of Commerce and Todd Ricketts as deputy secretary of Commerce exemplifies the very best business and trade minds in America today.

Trump made clear in the election that his mission is to reduce government regulation, cut taxes and engage in free and fair trade.

These business professionals are bottom line, results-oriented leaders.

Mnuchin brings Wall Street banking and investment experience. Ross is an international business leader fully familiar with how best to advance the goals and objectives of trade and investment to keep jobs in America and expand our exports. Ricketts is a young dynamic businessman and co-owner of the 2017 World Series Champion Chicago Cubs baseball franchise. He will be an excellent partner to Ross to lead the Department of Commerce in its mission to create economic growth and opportunity for American companies at home and abroad.

The selection of Elaine Chao as our next secretary of Transportation is another strong choice to rebuild, repair and maintain our critical national transportation infrastructure in keeping with Trump’s policies and directives.

Chao is not new to government; she served with distinction as our secretary of Labor under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009.

As her bio on the Bush White House website noted:

During her tenure, the Department [of Labor] updated the white collar overtime regulations under the Fair Labor Standards Act. … the new regulations provided millions of low-wage vulnerable workers with strengthened overtime protection. In 2003, the Department achieved the first major update of union financial disclosure regulations in more than 40 years, giving rank and file members enhanced information on how their hard-earned dues are spent. The Department has set new worker protection enforcement records, including recovering record back wages for vulnerable low wage immigrant workers. … On August 17, 2006, President Bush signed the Pension Reform Act, which protects the 44 million workers whose retirement security rests upon private sector defined benefit pension plans.

Trump’s other Cabinet appointments — Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) as attorney general, Betsy DeVos at Education, Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.) at Health and Human Services and Gov. Nikki Haley (R-S.C.) for U.N. ambassador are equally of high caliber and ability.

I am impressed with the diversity of the president-elect’s appointments to date in background, gender, ethnicity and experience. His Cabinet has brought together the very best and brightest America has to offer and I am heartened that with the help of a strong Cabinet led by a strong president, America will be great again.

Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen, the world’s largest breast cancer charity, has served as U.S. ambassador to Hungary, U.S. chief of protocol, and as a Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control to the U.N.’s World Health Organization. She is now continuing her work in media and consulting and has taken a leave of absence from Komen’s board.