A new year Cabinet shake-up for Trump? [View all]

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Trump could ring in the new year with a Cabinet shake-up
Pete Hegseth, Kristi Noem and Kash Patel are rumored to be on the chopping block

By Heather Digby Parton
Columnist
Published December 11, 2025 9:15AM (EST)


(Salon) When Donald Trump announced his first presidential bid in 2015, he was known to most Americans as the star of NBC’s “The Apprentice” whose catchphrase was “you’re fired!” He loved to say it on the stump with his trademark snarl and jabbing finger. He apparently even tried (unsuccessfully) to trademark the phrase during the reality show’s heyday in the mid-2000s. But as it turned out, even though he was a businessman in real life, Trump was actually unable to fire people in person. He instead delegated the unpleasant task to one of his lackeys, or simply made it known that he wanted the person to quit.

....(snip)....

There is no question in this administration what the requirements are: Tell Trump only what he wants to hear, slather him with praise at every opportunity and never, under any circumstances, disagree with anything he says.

So far this new approach has resulted in very little turnover. There have been a couple of instances where someone hasn’t worked out. But instead of firing them, he has taken to promoting people to different jobs. Michael Waltz, Trump’s first national security adviser, apparently wasn’t meshing well with the extremists in the Pentagon, so he was sent to New York as ambassador to the United Nations. The majority of Trump’s Cabinet officials and White House staff have survived quite well simply by willingly debasing themselves at every opportunity.

But as we approach the first anniversary of Trump’s second inauguration, rumblings of impending personnel changes are growing louder. Most are centered on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has produced the most scandals of any Trump appointee. His confirmation process was a trainwreck, with allegations of sexual assault, alcohol abuse and mismanagement of the only two small organizations he’d ever run. None of those issues were apparently deal breakers for his gig as a Fox News weekend host, but putting such a person in charge of the U.S. military made even some of the most radical GOP senators a bit queasy. They voted for him anyway, at least partially because he is popular with the MAGA base, and some were threatened with violence if they refused. ................(more)

https://www.salon.com/2025/12/11/trump-could-ring-in-the-new-year-with-a-cabinet-shake-up/