The second Trump term undoubtedly will be similar to his first but there also may be a new operating style which is the result of the President-elect’s experience from 2017-2021. It will reflect much of what he succeeded in doing during his first term as well as those areas where he was stymied and constrained by rules which he resented but was required to follow. This time he is likely to respond to this experience by following what he liked and circumventing rules however and whenever he can.
The debate that officially began this morning in the U.S. Senate as it considered many of the President-elects cabinet nominees, suggests that Donald Trump’s gamebook for his second term is merely a doubling down on how he conducted his first Administration. He is clearly committed to winning outright in every battle and has no interest in compromise. The President-elect cannot accept the fact that in politics as in life sometimes you lose a fight or a game or a battle. Members of his previous Administration clearly recognized that being wrong was never a consideration for Donald Trump; only the other side loses. His strategy was to emasculate and/or wear down your opponents until they accepted the fact that they lost.
Less than one week before his inauguration the President-elect has the luxury of standing back and critiquing whatever he wishes that the outgoing Biden Administration is doing or not doing. He can blame the outgoing team for all the problems that he suggests they “created.” After January 20th Donald Trump will readily take credit for whatever successes he achieves. At the same time Trump will attribute any failures on the ineptitude of the former Administration. He will never accept personal responsibility for the missteps of his Administration. Sometimes he will place blame on his staff; some of his appointees may have their tenure on the Trump team likely cut dramatically short.
Unlike the first Trump Administration there is likely to be an obvious operating style which will differentiate it from Trump I. It has been noted that there are many more nominees for Cabinet positions, ambassadorships, and, especially, White House staff, that already have announced and are ready to go on Day 1. Unlike 2017 when the appointment process dragged on through the summer, it appears that Trump’s transition team has worked through their private vetting process months ago. While there remains the possibility that some of Trump’s nominees—Hegseth, Gabbard, Kennedy, Patel-- requiring Senate confirmation may fail to be approved, most his appointees are likely to receive at least total GOP confirmation.
What is much more important than the nominees for the Cabinet positions is the growing assumption that Donald Trump will largely view these appointees as figure heads and water carriers. This time Trump is not only more prepared and comprehends better how the system in Washington operates, but he is also ready to “kill it.” With the help of his circle of friends, cronies, and selected outsiders, this time President Trump will keep all the decision-making in the oval office. There will be very few decisions which Cabinet Secretaries and their staff will initiate or innovate. He intends to place in their hands only the job of carrying out his instructions. No doubt Trump will give the public appearance of consultation and discussion with his Cabinet, these appointees, however, are likely to be little more than figureheads.
If indeed this becomes the modus operandi in the Second Trump White House, it will mean that the President will be able to keep extensive knowledge about decision-making out of the public domain as well as away from congressional oversight. Budget appropriations will still be under the jurisdiction of the Cabinet Departments, but most of the accountability will be after the fact with little oversight available. Presidential appointees to the White House staff and to the Executive Office serve at the behest of the President and are not accountable to the Congress for their actions or their jobs
This decision-making model is consistent with Donald Trump’s personality. It allows him to maintain complete control and to be the ultimate master. As he indicated repeatedly during his first term, and as he frequently alluded to during his foreign trips, it is authoritarian rulers that he admires. It is also the traditional ceremonial pomp associated with royalty that he believes is absent in the Office of the President. This may well be the style of governing which Donald Trump will bring to the Oval Office beginning next Monday.
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