The Morning: Making sense of Trump’s team

Plus, Syrian rebels, Myanmar and psychedelic therapy.

View in browser|nytimes.com December 16, 2024 By David Leonhardt Good morning. We're covering the people who will surround Donald Trump in a second term — as well as Syrian rebels, Myanmar and psychedelic therapy. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Donald Trump. Adriana Zehbrauskas for The New York Times A chaotic start Donald Trump has named most of the advisers and cabinet officials whom he wants to surround him in a second term. To make sense of the team, I asked for help from three of my colleagues who cover Trump: Maggie Haberman, Charlie Savage and Jonathan Swan. Our exchange follows. David: I've talked with you three in the past about the likelihood that Trump's second term would be more consequential than his first because his team would have more experience and more detailed plans. But does his list of cabinet selections make you wonder whether the second term may end up being almost as chaotic as the first? Pete Hegseth (the Fox News host Trump wants to run the Pentagon) and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (the pick for Health and Human Services) don't have much experience operating a bureaucracy. Maggie: There are some people with minimal government experience running large organizations in positions of power, so there will be a basic question about their preparation to oversee complex departments. But cabinet secretaries aren't the only people who matter. The team that Trump is putting in place, as deputies or chiefs of staff or senior advisers at agencies, are people who've proved some form of loyalty to him in other situations. All administrations do that to some degree. This version is much more sweeping. Charlie: For all the chaos of Trump's first term, he was occasionally constrained — by traditional Republicans in Congress and inside his own administration, by a federal judiciary he had not yet transformed and by career officials. All those constraints will be weaker this time. An important thing is that Trump is planning to reinstate a change from the end of the first administration, one that the Biden administration rolled back. This change, known as Schedule F, would make it easier for cabinet officials to fire career civil servants and replace them with loyalists. So there is reason to believe that the second Trump administration will be more chaotic — but also that it will implement more of his agenda. David: Some corporate executives have taken the selection of Scott Bessent, a prominent investor, as Treasury secretary to mean that Trump won't enact policies that Wall Street dislikes, like tariffs and mass deportations. Is it? Jonathan: I think economic policy will be influenced less by Bessent and more by how the markets respond to tariffs and mass deportations. The stock market is one of the few guardrails that might hold back Trump. In his first term, Trump viewed the stock market almost like a poll, and he was anxious to avoid doing anything that would cause the S&P 500 to fall. Trump's corporate-friendly advisers used this knowledge to manipulate him, telling him that if he went with maximalist tariffs, then markets would tank. C.E.O.s would use the same tactics to steer him away from some hard-line immigration policies. Not too much has changed. Bessent is someone who has bought into much of the MAGA nationalist vision but who is also reassuring to Wall Street. Scott Bessent and Donald Trump. Doug Mills/The New York Times David: People often describe Trump as an isolationist, but he has named several hawkish people to his cabinet, like Marco Rubio at State and John Ratcliffe at the C.I.A. Should we expect the administration to engage more with the world than the word "isolationist" would suggest? Jonathan: The Marco Rubio of 2024 is very different from the neoconservative version of Rubio that people remember from the pre-Trump era. He has gone a long way toward adopting Trump's "America First" view. Ratcliffe is more hawkish than some others — in particular Trump's dovish pick to be director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard — but he, too, bought into Trump's worldview. It's also important to remember that Trump did not govern strictly as an isolationist in his first term. Yes, he withdrew the United States from some multilateral agreements and attacked a variety of global institutions. But he also presided over the Abraham Accords, the deal between Israel and Arab countries. He authorized missile strikes in Syria and ordered the assassination of Iran's top general. When he wanted to assert American power, Trump sometimes authorized a level of force that went beyond even what some military advisers thought was wise. David: Cabinet selections often receive more attention, but White House aides can have more influence. What should we know about the White House team Trump has chosen? Maggie: Trump likes having a lot of different competing subcenters of power, and he reminds them that he is the person whose view matters most. But he also likes watching people around him fight among each other, almost as if it's a show. For more Hegseth plans to release the woman who accused him of sexual assault from a confidential agreement, Senator Lindsey Graham said. That would allow the accuser to speak publicly. A flurry of threatened defamation suits by Trump and his picks suggest that the administration may crack down on unfavorable media coverage. With interest rates higher than they were during Trump's first term, tensions between Trump and the Federal Reserve could escalate. THE LATEST NEWS Middle East In Damascus, Syria.  Daniel Berehulak/The New York Times How will the rebels govern Syria? In Idlib, the territory they've controlled since 2017, they have run a pragmatic and disciplined administration. For more than a decade, the Kurds helped the U.S. combat the Islamic State in Syria. They could lose territory after the fall of the government there. Israel said it would close its embassy in Dublin days after Ireland promised to support South Africa's case against Israel in the International Court of Justice. More International News The economic toll of Myanmar's civil war has pushed educated professionals into sex work. A tropical cyclone has killed at least 11 people in the French archipelago of Mayotte, in the Indian Ocean. The death toll could climb. After a coup in Burkina Faso, the military government armed poorly trained civilian militias. That has brought the nation to the brink of civil war. Protests in Bolivia — prompted by a feud between the president and a rival — have paralyzed the country for more than two months. New York Antonio Delgado Janice Chung for The New York Times Antonio Delgado, New York's lieutenant governor, has begun to carve his own political path, putting him on a possible collision course with his boss. Prosecutors investigating corruption allegations against Mayor Eric Adams's chief adviser have presented evidence to a grand jury. Most drivers in New York will begin paying congestion tolls in January. Here's how it'll work. Business Automakers thrived during the pandemic. Some are now cutting jobs and closing factories. A report by the Bernie Sanders-led Senate labor committee revealed that Amazon disregarded warnings about warehouse injury rates. To revive growth, Apple plans to make thinner and foldable phones, The Wall Street Journal reports. Other Big Stories Jaime Cachua and his son Julian. Erin Schaff/The New York Times One man's friends and family members in Rome, Ga., voted to support mass deportation. Now he's scrambling to stay in the country. Hurricane Helene devastated the Christmas tree industry in North Carolina. Farmers and residents are working to save the holiday tradition there. Opinions At Kumla, Sweden's largest high-security prison. Joseph Rodriguez A wave of gang violence has wrecked Sweden's peaceful image. Officials should address the crisis without abandoning the country's restorative justice, Carmilla Floyd writes. Some young people view Ted Kaczynski, known as the Unabomber, as a righteous figure. They miss that his desire to kill came before his ideological justifications, Maxim Loskutoff argues. Gail Collins and Bret Stephens discuss New Year predictions and Luigi Mangione. Here is a column by David French on the end of #MeToo. Ends soon: Our best rate on unlimited access for Morning readers. Save now with our best offer on unlimited news and analysis as part of the complete Times experience: $1/week for your first year. MORNING READS At a retreat near Tijuana, Mexico. Mark Abramson for The New York Times Therapy trips: Seeking relief from brain injury, some veterans are turning to psychedelics. Dream vacation: This Swiss ski chalet looks as if it's from a spy movie. 2024's finest: See the best dance performances of the year. Family talk: How to speak with your teen about pornography. Metropolitan Diary: But how did it taste? Lives Lived: Zakir Hussain was a peerless tabla player who transcended genres and brought classical Indian music to a global audience. He died at 73. SPORTS N.F.L.: Patrick Mahomes injured his ankle during Kansas City's win over Cleveland. It was part of a punishing Week 15 across the league. College football: Notre Dame and coach Marcus Freeman agreed on a multiyear contract extension. Women's volleyball: All four N.C.A.A. No. 1 seeds — Louisville, Nebraska, Penn State and Pittsburgh — advanced to the Final Four. ARTS AND IDEAS The New York Times The Times's chief wine critic has had the privilege of drinking some wonderful wines this year. Some of the fancy ones were memorable, but many cheaper ones were, too. He has decided to highlight more accessible bottles on his best-of list. See them here. More on culture Bottega Veneta announced that Louise Trotter would replace Matthieu Blazy as creative director. "Malcolm in the Middle" will return for four episodes on Disney+. THE MORNING RECOMMENDS … Kate Sears for The New York Times Make an unforgettable family-size crème brûlée with this holiday menu from Clare de Boer. Keep warm with this space heater. Give teens a gift they'll actually like. Discover the best men's jeans. Take our news quiz. GAMES Here is today's Spelling Bee. Yesterday's pangram was fruition. And here are today's Mini Crossword, Wordle, Sudoku, Connections and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at themorning@nytimes.com. Editor: David Leonhardt Deputy Editor: Adam B. Kushner News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti Associate Editor: Lauren Jackson News Staff: Desiree Ibekwe, Sean Kawasaki-Culligan, Brent Lewis, German Lopez, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Ashley Wu News Assistant: Lyna Bentahar Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for the Morning newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account. To stop receiving The Morning, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. 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