The hosts of The View mocked President-elect Donald Trump's latest administration picks: Matt Gaetz for Attorney General and Tulsi Gabbard for Director of National Intelligence.
"It just seems to me like he's picking people, like he's on The Apprentice," co-host Sunny Hostin said. "He's just picking people willy-nilly."
Trump announced he had selected the Florida Republican Representative to serve as his attorney general, tasking a fierce loyalist with the dramatic overhaul of the Department of Justice over more experienced candidates. Gaetz will "root out the systemic corruption at DOJ, and return the Department to its true mission of fighting Crime, and upholding our Democracy and Constitution," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The hosts expressed concerns about Gaetz, who has been under investigation for years over allegations he denies and has never been formally charged.
The House Ethics Committee had been investigating allegations that Gaetz was part of a scheme leading to the sex trafficking of a 17-year-old girl. In June, the committee said it was investigating whether Gaetz engaged in sexual misconduct and illicit drug use, accepted improper gifts, and sought to obstruct government investigations of his conduct. Gaetz has denied all wrongdoing.
Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin said she heard Trump made these decisions independently, leaving even Susie Wiles, who was in another room, blindsided.
Wiles, who served as Trump's 2024 campaign senior adviser, is a veteran Republican operative who joined the former president's team after serving as a top adviser to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. She is credited by many as playing a key role in propelling Trump to his second victory, and will be the first woman to ever serve as a White House chief of staff.
"Donald Trump absolutely has a constitutional right to appoint members of his cabinet, and the Senate has the right to advise and consent, and they need to look at qualifications, credentials and the character of these nominees," Farah Griffin said.
Hostin, who is an alum of the DOJ, said people shouldn't underestimate the true power of the Department of Justice and Trump's picks are "unserious."
"You have 40 different components within the Department of Justice everywhere, 115,000 employees. Sometimes we work together with others. I spoke to a lot of my friends that are still at the Department of Justice and they're sick about this," Hostin said. "They understand that he [Gaetz] comes on the heels of people like Janet Reno, who I worked for, who was the first female attorney general, the second longest running Attorney General."
She continued, "I just can't imagine that Matt Gaetz and no shade to Matt Gaetz, I'm sure he's qualified doing certain things but not qualified to run the Department of Justice."
Co-host Sara Haines agreed.
"Matt Gaetz is literally, possibly the most hated man in Congress," Haines said "Max Miller said Gaetz has a better shot at having dinner with Queen Elizabeth the Second than being confirmed by the Senate."
Farah Griffin said although Gaetz is highly disliked, even among Republicans, he isn't the only one people should be concerned about.
"He's not the only scary person who was nominated yesterday. Tulsi Gabbard, who Mitt Romney said is basically siding with the Russians. Hillary Clinton called her a Russian asset," Farah Griffin said. "The intelligence community is terrified of her being the Director of National Intelligence."
Trump announced on Wednesday Gabbard, who served four terms representing Hawaii in Congress before switching parties, would help champion constitutional rights and secure "peace through strength."
Gabbard served in the Army National Guard for over two decades. She was deployed to Iraq and Kuwait. She served in the field medical unit in Iraq and was an Army Military Police platoon leader in Kuwait. She later became a Major with the Hawaii National Guard and in 2021 she was promoted to Lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve.
From 2013 to 2021, Gabbard served as Democratic representative for Hawaii's district 2. She was the first Samoan-American member of Congress, and when she started her political career in 2002 she became the youngest woman to get elected to the Hawaii state legislature.
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