By Stephen Macaulay
You may recall the campaign kicked off by Melania Trump in May 2018, “Be Best.”
Well, maybe you don’t. According to the most recent Siena College Expert Survey of American First Ladies, released in December 2020, Melania Trump, when it came to metrics including such things as “value to the country,” “accomplishments,” “leadership,” and “public image” (who can forget the jacket with “I really don’t care, do u?” inscribed on the back when she went to visit a child migrant detention center?), of the 40 first ladies assessed, Mrs. Trump came in last, behind Eliza Johnson (36), Letitia Tyler (37), Margaret Taylor (38), and Jane Pierce (39).
So one could argue that there isn’t a lot of residual impact of her first go round as First Lady.
But the “Be Best” concept came to mind when I was thinking about Donald Trump and his selections for cabinet positions.
In the 2021 C-SPAN Historians Survey of Presidential Leadership, the Top 10 presidents are:
- Abraham Lincoln
- George Washington
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Theodor Roosevelt
- Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Harry S Truman
- Thomas Jefferson
- John F. Kennedy
- Ronald Reagan
- Barack Obama
The Bottom 5:
- James Buchanan
- Andrew Johnson
- Franklin Pierce
- William Henry Harrison
- Donald Trump
Claims about how he’s better than every president in history (and probably better than all of those who will exist in the future) notwithstanding, it seems likely that he isn’t going to do well in history books, and when you are 78, it is probably a good time to consider just how you will be thought of when you have departed this veil of tears.
One of the simple things that Trump could have done in order to rocket up that list is to make “Be Best” cabinet nominees.
Consider that the in-coming president could contact the most talented, respected, capable, educated, experienced, and not under suspicion for various imbroglios, sexual, financial, political.
Amazing diplomats. Renowned medical experts. Nobel-winning economists. Lauded business executives.
Trump could have created a cabinet full of people that would have made Thomas Jefferson seem like a dullard.
The world would have been amazed at the incredible collection of people that Trump brought together.
But what did he do?
Picked a group of people whose qualifications seem to be mainly appearing on Fox News, appealing to his sense of power (Trump undoubtedly feels a bit of jealousy about Kennedy’s Camelot so giving RFK Jr. a job he is imminently unqualified for puts Trump, he thinks, one up on JFK), or who have simply been lickspittles.
As you may recall, during the first meeting of Trump’s first cabinet in June 2017 Trump had each of the people, in effect, praise and offer fealty to him. Presumably it is going to be smarmier this time.
Consider: Rex Tillerson had been the CEO of ExxonMobil before becoming Trump’s first secretary of state. This time it is Marco Rubio, a man who Trump demeaned repeatedly, and who wilted under this — just the sort of behavior you want for someone who will be negotiating with people like Vladimir Putin.
James Mattis commanded U.S. Joint Forces Command, was NATO’s Supreme Allied Command for Transformation, and U.S. Central Command. Pete Hegseth is to be respected for his service, but his resume is a bit light command-wise, which is important for running the Department of Defense.
John F. Kelly, who enlisted in the Marines in 1970, was the commander of the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) which had him working closely with US law enforcement personnel and the secretary of Homeland Security before being named secretary of Homeland Security. Kristi Noem in the governor with a state that has a population approximately that of Austin, Texas.
When history is written, Trump could have been not simply a contender, but a champ.
His cabinet picks show that isn’t something important to him.
Apparently there is more of a “I really don’t care, do u?” approach to his forthcoming presidency.