Chaos and controversy created by President-elect Donald Trump’s unconventional picks to head high-profile government positions will come with a price, according to prominent Republican strategist Karl Rove.
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Rove, a onetime senior advisor and deputy chief of staff to former President George W. Bush, said that price could cost Trump the political capital he needs to push through his second term agenda and win over public support.
And, Rove added, that’s especially true for his “catastrophically bad selection” of former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL).
“It’s likely that the only way Mr. Gaetz can be approved is if Mr. Trump expends enormous political capital to browbeat Senate Republicans into backing him. But no president has infinite sway, no matter how remarkable his electoral victory. Second-term chief executives tend to have even less,” Rove wrote Wednesday.
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The longtime Republican strategist, however, noted that the likely contentious confirmation hearings for Gaetz won’t be “the only circus act in town.” He predicted that Trump’s selections of former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Fox News weekend co-host Pete Hegseth could also muddy up the incoming president’s next administration’s momentum and “be messy and full of bad press.”
“The lack of a strategic approach in introducing key cabinet members has led to a missed opportunity to build public support for the incoming administration,” Rove wrote.
He concluded by writing that Trump’s penchant for chaos began to take shape even before he stepped foot back into the Oval Office, which he blamed on “inadequate vetting, impatience, disregard for qualifications and a thirst for revenge.”
“The price for all this will be missed opportunities to shore up popular support for the incoming president,” Rove said. “But at least it’ll make great TV.”
