When he became president, Obama retained Robert Gates as defense secretary. He was originally appointed by George W. Bush.
“Because Gates had already been confirmed,” NBC News say, “he didn’t need to win Senate approval.”
Years later, Gates revealed that “he was reluctant to fire people at the Pentagon” because “it would have been too difficult and time-consuming” to get their replacements confirmed by the Senate. That’s nuts.
Now, Kamala Harris’s transition team is looking at the possibility she might have to keep Biden’s cabinet if Republicans win Senate control, because they may be more interested in weakening her politically than doing what’s good for the country (read story here).
This is going too far. They should put country first, and politics a very distant second.
What if Trump wins, and Democrats retain their Senate majority? Even former cabinet officials from his first term, if he chose to reinstate them, would have to be confirmed because they’re not currently in office.
Would Democrats do to his appointees what Harris’s transition planners fear a Republican Senate would do to hers?