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Factbox-Trump 2.0: Who is in the running for top jobs in Trump’s second administration?
By Gram Slattery
(Reuters) -Donald Trump has begun the process of choosing a cabinet and selecting other high-ranking administration officials following his presidential election victory.
Here are the early picks and top contenders for some of the key posts overseeing defense, intelligence, diplomacy, trade, immigration and economic policymaking. Some are in contention for a range of posts.
SUSIE WILES, chief of staff
Trump on Thursday announced that Wiles, one of his two campaign managers, will be his White House chief of staff.
While the specifics of her political views are somewhat unclear, Wiles is credited with running a successful and efficient campaign. Supporters hope she would instill a sense of order and discipline that was often lacking during Trump’s first term, when he cycled through a number of chiefs of staff.
SCOTT BESSENT, potential treasury secretary
Bessent, a key economic adviser to Trump, is widely seen as a top candidate for treasury secretary. A longtime hedge fund investor who taught at Yale University for several years, Bessent has a warm relationship with the president-elect.
While Bessent has long favored the laissez-faire policies that were popular in the pre-Trump Republican Party, he has also spoken highly of Trump’s use of tariffs as a negotiating tool. He has praised the president-elect’s economic philosophy, which rests on a skepticism of both regulations and international trade.
JOHN PAULSON, potential treasury secretary
Paulson, a billionaire hedge fund manager and major Trump donor, is another top contender for treasury secretary. The longtime financier has told associates he would be interested in the job.
A longtime proponent of tax cuts and deregulation, Paulson’s profile is broadly similar to that of other potential members of Trump’s economic team. He has publicly supported targeted tariffs as a tool to ensure U.S. national security and combat unfair trade practices abroad.
One high-profile fundraiser hosted by Paulson in April raked in over $50 million for the former president.
LARRY KUDLOW, potential treasury secretary
FOX Business Network personality Larry Kudlow, who served as director of the National Economic Council for much of Trump’s first term, has an outside shot at becoming his treasury secretary and would likely have an opportunity to take a separate economics-focused position if he is interested.
While he is privately skeptical of broad tariffs, there is publicly little daylight between the policies Kudlow advocates and those of the president-elect.
ROBERT LIGHTHIZER, potential treasury secretary
A loyalist who served as Trump’s U.S. trade representative for essentially the then-president’s entire term, Lighthizer will almost certainly be invited back. Though Bessent and Paulson likely have a better shot at becoming treasury secretary, Lighthizer has an outside chance, and he might be able to reprise his old role if he’s interested.
Like Trump, Lighthizer is a trade skeptic and a firm believer in tariffs. He was one of the leading figures in Trump’s trade war with China and the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, with Mexico and Canada during Trump’s first term.
HOWARD LUTNICK, potential treasury secretary
The co-chair of Trump’s transition effort and the longtime chief executive of financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, Lutnick is in the running for treasury secretary.
A bombastic New Yorker like Trump, Lutnick has uniformly praised the president-elect’s economic policies, including his use of tariffs.
He has at times given elaborate, unvarnished opinions about what policies will be enacted in Trump’s second term. Some Trump allies had privately complained that he too often presented himself as speaking on behalf of the campaign.
LINDA McMAHON, potential commerce secretary
Professional wrestling magnate and former Small Business Administration director Linda McMahon is seen as the frontrunner to lead Trump’s Department of Commerce, three sources briefed on the plans said.
McMahon is a major donor and was an early supporter of the Republican president-elect when he first ran for the White House almost a decade ago. This time, Trump tapped her to co-lead a transition team formed to help vet personnel and draft policy ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
McMahon is the co-founder and former CEO of the professional wrestling franchise WWE. She later served as director of the Small Business Administration, resigning in 2019, and went on to lead a pro-Trump political action committee that supported his 2020 reelection bid.
RICHARD GRENELL, potential secretary of state
Grenell is among Trump’s closest foreign policy advisers. During the president-elect’s first four-year term, he served as acting director of national intelligence and U.S. ambassador to Germany. When Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in September, Grenell sat in on the private meeting.
Grenell’s private dealings with foreign leaders and often-caustic personality have made him the center of multiple controversies, though significant Republican gains in the Senate mean he could likely be confirmed. He is also considered a top contender for national security adviser, which does not require Senate confirmation.
Among the policies he has advocated for is setting up an autonomous zone in eastern Ukraine to end the war there, a position Kyiv considers unacceptable.
ROBERT O’BRIEN, potential secretary of state
O’Brien, Trump’s fourth and final national security adviser during his first term, maintains a close relationship with Trump, and the two often speak on national security matters.
He is likely in the running for secretary of state or other top foreign policy and national security posts. He has maintained close contacts with foreign leaders since Trump left office, having met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel in May.
His views are somewhat more hawkish than some of Trump’s advisers. He has, for instance, been more supportive of military aid for Ukraine than many of his Republican contemporaries, and he is a proponent of banning TikTok in the United States.
BILL HAGERTY, potential secretary of state
A U.S. senator from Tennessee who worked on Trump’s 2016 transition effort, Hagerty is considered a top contender for secretary of state. He has maintained solid relations with essentially all factions of the Republican Party, and could likely be confirmed with ease in the Senate.
He served as U.S. ambassador to Japan in the first Trump administration at a time when the president touted his warm relationship with then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Hagerty’s policies are broadly in line with those of Trump. Earlier in the year, he voted against a major military aid package for Ukraine.
MARCO RUBIO, potential secretary of state
Rubio, a U.S. senator from Florida and 2016 Republican presidential candidate, is also a top secretary of state contender whose policies hew closely to those of Trump. Like Hagerty, he was a contender to be Trump’s 2024 running mate.
Rubio has long been involved in foreign affairs in the Senate, particularly as it relates to Latin America, and he has solid relationships throughout the party.
MIKE WALTZ, potential defense secretary
A former Army Green Beret who is currently a U.S. congressman from Florida, Waltz has established himself as one of the foremost China hawks in the House of Representatives.
Among the various China-related bills he has co-sponsored are measures designed to lessen U.S. reliance on critical minerals mined in China.
Waltz is on speaking terms with Trump and is widely considered to be a serious contender for secretary of defense.
KEITH KELLOGG, potential candidate for national security adviser
A retired lieutenant general who served as chief of staff to the National Security Council under Trump, Kellogg (NYSE:) has Trump’s ear and is a contender for national security adviser, among other national security posts.
During the campaign, he presented Trump with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, which involved forcing both parties to the negotiating table and ruling out NATO membership for Ukraine for the foreseeable future, among other measures.
TOM HOMAN, potential homeland security secretary
Homan, who served as the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement for a year and a half during Trump’s first term, is a contender for secretary of homeland security. Trump made cracking down on illegal immigration the central element of his campaign, promising mass deportations.
Trump frequently praised Homan during the campaign, and Homan often hit the trail to rally supporters. During Trump’s first term, Homan was a leading advocate of the administration’s controversial child separation policy, during which children of immigrants who had entered the country illegally were detained separately from their parents.
CHAD WOLF, potential homeland security secretary
Wolf, who served as Trump’s acting secretary of homeland security for roughly 14 months during his first presidency, may have a shot at heading back to DHS.
Wolf loyally carried out Trump’s hardline immigration policies, and he deployed federal agents to Portland, Oregon, to control protests during the riots that followed the murder of George Floyd, a Black man, by a white police officer.
He may have some strikes against him. He resigned on Jan. 11, 2021, just days after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Trump has expressed misgivings about bringing back those who resigned in the final days of his term. Wolf, however, cited the legal controversy around his appointment as DHS secretary – rather than the Capitol attack – when he stepped down. Multiple judges ruled that his appointment by Trump, which effectively circumvented the Senate, was illegal.
MARK GREEN, potential homeland security secretary
A former Army flight surgeon and the current chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, Green is considered by some Trump allies in Washington as a contender for the top job at DHS. His supporters describe him as a Trump loyalist and immigration hardliner who also has significant legislative experience.
Green was nominated by Trump during his first term to serve as secretary of the Army, but he withdrew his name as past statements, which were widely seen as transphobic and Islamophobic, drew more scrutiny.
JOHN RATCLIFFE, potential attorney general
A former congressman and prosecutor who served as director of national intelligence during Trump’s last year in office, Ratcliffe is seen as a potential attorney general, though he could also take a separate national security or intelligence position, such as CIA director.
The president-elect’s allies view Ratcliffe as a hardcore Trump loyalist who could likely win Senate confirmation. Still, during his time as director of national intelligence, Ratcliffe often contradicted the assessments of career civil servants, drawing criticism from Democrats who said he politicized the role.
MIKE LEE, potential attorney general
A U.S. senator from Utah, Lee is widely seen as another top candidate for attorney general. Though the former prosecutor declined to vote for Trump during the 2016 election, he later became an unwavering ally, and he has become something of an intellectual hero among some factions of Trumpworld.
Lee was a key figure in attempts by Trump and his allies to overturn his 2020 election loss to Democrat Joe Biden, and has spread unfounded conspiracy theories about the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
KASH PATEL, potential candidate for national security posts
A former Republican House staffer who served in various high-ranking staff roles in the defense and intelligence communities during Trump’s first term, Patel frequently appeared on the campaign trail to rally support for the candidate.
Some Trump allies would like to see Patel, considered the ultimate Trump loyalist, appointed CIA director. Any position requiring Senate confirmation may be a challenge, however.
Patel has leaned into controversy throughout his career. In an interview with Trump ally Steve Bannon last year, he promised to “come after” politicians and journalists perceived to be enemies of the president-elect.
During Trump’s first term, Patel drew animosity from some more experienced national security officials, who saw him as volatile and too eager to please the then-president.
By Nora Eckert
DETROIT (Reuters) -General Motors told shareholders on Wednesday that it would record two non-cash charges totaling more than $5 billion on its joint venture in China, one related to the restructuring of the operation and another reflecting its reduced value.
GM’s China division, once a profit engine for the Detroit company, is now losing money. The company has struggled to compete with carmakers in China, the world’s largest auto market, who have charged past U.S. and European rivals, partly buoyed by government subsidies.
The company expects a charge of $2.6 billion to $2.9 billion for restructuring costs, and a charge of $2.7 billion for reduced joint-venture value.
Some of the charges are related to “plant closures and portfolio optimization,” it said. GM’s Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson said the restructuring efforts are in their final stages during an analyst conference on Wednesday.
The finance chief said GM is seeking to be profitable in China next year and believes its joint venture can restructure without additional funds.
The charges were a “tough decision” that will allow it to be “profitable on a smaller scale,” Jacobson said.
The U.S. automaker’s shares fell about 1%.
GM partners with SAIC Motors in China to build Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac vehicles.
The company’s board determined that the non-cash charges were necessary amid “certain restructuring actions” with the joint venture, according to a company filing.
GM has not disclosed details of the restructuring.
Most of the charges will be recorded in the company’s fourth-quarter earnings, reducing net income but not adjusted results, a GM spokesperson said.
‘UNTENABLE’ MARKET
CEO Mary Barra has been transforming GM’s operations in China, and told investors in October that by the end of the year, there would be “a significant reduction in dealer inventory and modest improvements in sales and share.”
The automaker lost about $350 million in the region in the first three quarters of this year.
In March, Reuters reported that SAIC aimed to cut thousands of jobs, including at its joint venture with GM.
Barra warned in July that the China market was becoming untenable for many corporations who were losing money.
Stiff competition from Chinese manufacturers and a price war have already had visible effects.
Sales at SAIC-GM slumped 59% in the first 11 months of this year to 370,989 units, while local new energy vehicle champion BYD (SZ:) sold more than 10 times that number in the same period. The GM venture peaked in 2018, selling an annual 2 million cars.
Some analysts were skeptical that the joint venture can restructure without more cash from GM, and warned that the China market may not be viable for the automaker.
“Headwinds in China remain too great to create meaningful profitability,” Bernstein analysts said in a research note.
Volkswagen (ETR:), overtaken in 2022 by BYD as the best-selling brand in China, is trying to deepen ties with Chinese partners including Xpeng (NYSE:) Motor and SAIC, for EV technology to offset flagging sales in its biggest market. The German automaker and SAIC agreed to extend their joint venture contract by a decade to 2040.
Japanese carmaker Nissan (OTC:) Motor is cutting 9,000 jobs and slashing its manufacturing capacity due to slipping sales in China and the U.S.
GM’s rival Ford Motor (NYSE:) is transforming its presence in China to become a vehicle export hub, though some analysts are urging Detroit’s automakers to cut their losses and exit the world’s largest auto market altogether.
By Ananya Mariam Rajesh and Nicholas P. Brown
(Reuters) – Foot Locker (NYSE:) executives said on Wednesday they are working closely with Nike (NYSE:) to emphasize its newer styles, including Vomero and Air DT Max shoe models, amid “softness” in demand for the sneaker giant’s products as the holiday shopping season begins.
“We’ll work through some of this short-term turbulence and play the long game for sure,” said Foot Locker Chief Commercial Officer Frank Bracken on a call with investors.
In both 2022 and 2023, Foot Locker purchased 65% of its athletic merchandise from one major supplier: Nike. But in recent years, the iconic footwear brand has seen trendy competitors like On and Hoka slowly eat away its market share.
Shares of Foot Locker fell as much as 20% on Wednesday after the sporting goods retailer lowered its annual sales and profit forecasts on softening demand for shoes. It now expects annual sales to drop between 1% and 1.5%, compared with its prior forecast of a 1% rise to a 1% fall.
Nike Vomero shoes sell for $160 to $180, and next year the company is expected to launch a new Vomero 18 running shoe with extra cushioning. Nike has also launched the Air DT Max, priced at $170, which claims to provide more cushioning and impact protection when playing sports.
In September, the world’s largest sportswear maker named company veteran Elliott Hill as its new CEO, embarking on a business revamp that could help it regain holding with retailers and fight competition from brands perceived as more fashionable.
“Elliott and his teammates I think are absolutely taking the right actions for the brand and the overall marketplace,” Foot Locker CEO Mary Dillon said on the earnings call.
The retailer has also recently expanded a Home Court partnership — known to house the latest drops from major brands — with Nike to rebuild sales.
Hill, who took the helm in October, previously said he would seek to repair Nike’s relationships with major retail partners. In addition to Foot Locker, Nike sells its sneakers to Dick’s Sporting Goods (NYSE:) and Nordstrom (NYSE:), among others.
Ahead of a shorter holiday season, Dick’s Sporting Goods said last week that it would stock plenty of basic favorites, such as Nike fleece clothing, for last-minute shoppers.
But when discussing sneakers, the retailer’s financial chief said he saw opportunities to expand Nike competitors such as On Holding and Deckers Outdoor (NYSE:)’s Hoka sneakers.
Foot Locker executives also said on Wednesday they would open more doors and increase their stock of hot selling products On and Hoka.
“We do expect things to be promotional as we think through the rest of the shortened holiday season here,” said Foot Locker CFO Mike Baughan.
By Lucia Mutikani
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. services sector activity slowed in November after posting big gains in recent months, but remained above levels consistent with solid economic growth in the fourth quarter.
The Institute for Supply Management survey on Wednesday also showed businesses are worried about potential tariffs on imports from President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration, warning of higher prices. Economists have echoed similar sentiments.
Trump has said he would impose a 25% tariff on all products from Mexico and Canada and an additional 10% tariff on goods from China on his first day in office.
“Many businesses fled to the sidelines in terms of capital spending plans in advance of the election,” said Stephen Stanley chief U.S. economist at Santander (BME:) U.S. Capital Markets. “I am generally optimistic about the medium-to-long-term outlook for business investment, but firms are likely to take their time before reengaging, waiting to see the details of tax, regulatory, and trade policy from the incoming administration.”
The ISM said its nonmanufacturing purchasing managers index slipped to 52.1 last month after surging to 56.0 in October, which was the highest level since August 2022.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the services PMI would ease to 55.5. A PMI reading above 50 indicates growth in the services sector, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy. The ISM views PMI readings above 49 over time as generally indicating an expansion of the overall economy.
The economy appears to have retained its momentum from the third quarter, with consumer spending rising at a brisk clip in October. Spending likely remained strong in November as auto sales surged last month. Construction spending also picked up in October, though business spending on equipment likely softened.
The Atlanta Federal Reserve is currently forecasting gross domestic product will rise at a 3.2% annualized rate this quarter. The economy grew at a 2.8% pace in the third quarter.
Despite the moderation in services PMI, more businesses reported growth last month relative to October. Among the 14 industries reporting expansion were wholesale trade, finance and insurance as well as construction and utilities. Only three industries, including mining, reported contraction.
Tariffs were top of mind for several businesses. Some in the construction industry said while they expected an increase in homebuilding, “the unknown effect of tariffs clouds the future.” Others in the information sector feared that “tariffs will affect prices for electronics and components in 2025.”
Similar sentiments were expressed by some providers of professional, scientific and technical services, who warned of a negative impact on inventories and higher prices in the hospital supply chain, adding that “what we saw during COVID-19 with startup U.S. production is a warning sign.”
Others in the transportation and warehousing industry said they were “holding capital projects until the (Trump) cabinet is complete.”
The ISM survey’s new orders measure fell to 53.7 from 57.4 in October. Nonetheless, domestic demand remains solid.
STRONG AUTO SALES
Data late on Tuesday showed motor vehicle sales increased to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 16.5 million units in November, the highest level since May 2021, from a pace of 16 million units in October. Oxford Economics estimated the rise in auto sales left consumer spending, adjusted for inflation, on track to exceed a 3% growth pace in the fourth quarter.
Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy, grew at a 3.5% rate in the third quarter.
Stocks on Wall Street were trading higher. The dollar slipped against a basket of currencies. U.S. Treasury yields fell.
“Some of the increase in vehicle sales over the past couple of months is inflated because of replacement demand following the recent hurricanes,” said Ryan Sweet, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics. “We expect this support to fade in December and the road ahead for vehicle sales is paved by fundamentals. The good news is that fundamentals will remain decent.”
Historically low layoffs and solid wage gains as well as high household net worth are driving consumer spending.
The survey’s prices paid measure for services inputs was little changed at 58.2. Rising prices for services like transportation, financial services and insurance have stalled progress in lowering inflation to the U.S. central bank’s 2% target.
The survey’s measure of services employment slipped to 51.5 from 53.0 in October. This measure has not been a good predictor of services payrolls in the government’s closely watched employment report.
Economists were equally dismissive of the release on Wednesday of the ADP National Employment Report, which showed private payrolls rose by 146,000 jobs in November after advancing by a downwardly revised 184,000 in October. Economists had forecast private employment would increase by 150,000 positions after a previously reported jump of 233,000 in October.
Nonfarm payrolls are expected to have accelerated in November after almost stalling amid disruptions from Hurricanes Helene and Milton as well as strikes by factory workers at Boeing (NYSE:) and another aerospace company.
Payrolls likely increased by 200,000 jobs in November after rising by only 12,000 in October, the lowest number since December 2020, a Reuters survey showed.
“The ADP tends to count striking workers and workers who couldn’t be paid because of weather as employed, whereas the BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) would not,” said Abiel Reinhart, an economist at J.P. Morgan.
“The implication for November then is also that ADP wouldn’t show a bounce-back from the end of the Boeing strike and hurricane effects. Those effects are driving our forecast for a large 275,000 gain in total payrolls in Friday’s BLS report.”
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