With Gaetz, RFK Jr. is Trump finally unraveling the D.C. deep state?

Is President-elect Donald Trump unraveling the so-called deep state, or is he nominating unqualified loyalists to serve in his Cabinet?
It’s a question Republicans and Democrats alike are asking.
Sometimes Trump, as expected, will make decisions that prompt Republicans to cheer and Democrats to complain. Other times, he does things that makes both sides shake their heads.
If I can predict one thing for the next four years, it’s that Trump will be unpredictable. His Cabinet picks exemplify that fact.
In about the time it takes to receive an Amazon package, Trump has made a bevy of Cabinet choices that have rattled the right and the left.
From Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of Health and Human Services, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., for attorney general to former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, as director of national intelligence, not even Republicans predicted these choices.
Some of Trump’s picks make sense. Tom Homan as “border czar” and Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., as national security adviser are both extraordinary choices. Both men are qualified to handle these positions.
Trump also handpicked SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy as co-leaders of the new “Department of Government Efficiency,” or DOGE. It’s one of the best ideas I’ve seen an elected leader come up with in years. If DOGE does half of what Musk has promised, the initiative will achieve actual change and serve the American people well.
But other Trump choices are surprising, disappointing and downright awful.
On Thursday, Trump announced that he has chosen Kennedy to run HHS. Kennedy is skeptical of public health initiatives and is notoriously anti-vaccine. Like other nominees, Kennedy is a close ally of Trump, but he lacks the experience to run a huge organization like the Department of Health and Human Services.
The decision to choose an anti-vaxxer to run the nation’s largest health care agency is reckless, irresponsible and an insult to America’s health care professionals. My only comfort is knowing that the Senate will likely reject Kennedy’s nomination.
Opinion:I voted for Trump. Your insults won’t change my mind.
In a more conventional decision, at least by Trump standards, the president-elect chose South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem for secretary of Homeland Security, the third largest Cabinet department. I have no doubt that Noem is intelligent, but I can’t see how governing the sleepy state of South Dakota qualifies her to lead such a large and influential organization.
Trump could have chosen from dozens of more qualified men and women for such a pivotal role. Noem and Trump are friends and allies. This reeks of ring-kissing loyalty.
For Defense secretary, Trump chose Pete Hegseth, a 20-year Army National Guard veteran who is best known as a host of “Fox & Friends Weekend.” I like Hegseth, who went to Harvard and Princeton and was awarded two Bronze Stars for his military service. He also has a massive “We the People” tattoo on his forearm. What’s not to love?
It’s clear from podcasts and his book “The War on Warriors” that Hegseth intends to strip the military of “wokeness” − valuing social status over qualifications and results. I share his controversial view that women should be limited in front-line combat roles.
As an enlisted soldier, Hegseth might know better than most just what stuff our military is made of and what it needs to remain a global super power. Even so, the Department of Defense, the largest employer in the United States, is massive. The Pentagon’s 2023 budget was $776 billion. Hegseth lacks the managerial and executive experience for such a robust role.
If his nomination goes through, Hegseth will soon learn he is not on television anymore. If confirmed, I hope he leans on the expertise of those around him while implementing real change in the Pentagon.
Trump’s pick of Gaetz, who resigned from Congress on Wednesday right after his nomination was announced, for attorney general is easily his worst yet. He has little experience in practicing law and is known as a jerk in Congress.
Worse, the House Ethics Committee has been investigating Gaetz for sexual misconduct, drug use and accepting improper gifts.
Trump passed over thousands of more qualified attorneys, law professors and legal experts to pick Gaetz. The Federalist Society alone is crawling with conservative attorneys who would have been more than qualified for such a role.
Gaetz’s nomination also reeks of “Hey, we’re friends!” It’s like Trump is the team captain on the fifth grade dodgeball team and is choosing all of his friends to be his first-string players.
I have never been much of a believer in the existence of the “deep state,” the theory that the will of an elected president can be thwarted by bureaucrats. But Trump believes in it, and so do millions of other Republicans.
And Trump has made unraveling the deep state his mission. A Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics report found that in a span of about 15 months, Trump posted 56 times on Truth Social about his plan to crush it.
Last year, Trump posted on Truth Social that he would commit to “dismantling the entire globalist neo-con establishment that is perpetually dragging us into endless wars.”
Trump and many conservatives also believe that national security and intelligence agencies have been weaponized against him and others. In an August interview, Trump called government employees “crooked” and “dishonest” and pledged to hold them “accountable.”
Opinion:Trump can fix what Biden broke. But he needs to seize the moment and stay on task.
So is Trump nominating men and women who have never held such high-level spots because they will drain the swamp and force government entities to be more efficient and better serve the people? Or is Trump simply choosing people who are more loyal to him than to the rule of law?
As a Republican, I’d like to believe it’s the former. Washington is bloated and inefficient and needs to serve the people again. But it sure looks like Trump is having a good time choosing which of his friends will serve in positions of power, credentials notwithstanding.
Either way: Welcome to the new Trump administration. He will do nothing the way it’s been done before.
Trump’s Cabinet picks will either be the start of a needed shakeup of how government operates or the beginning of a disastrous four years.
Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.