Say “Hello” to President Trump’s Triumvirate

by Jim Buckley

(Jim was founder and longtime editor/publisher of Montecito Journal until selling the weekly newspaper to an investment group nearly five years ago. He then became chief political columnist for the Santa Barbara News-Press and is now Editor-in-Chief of SBCurrent.)

Say “Hello” to President Trump’s Triumvirate

The entire second coming of Donald J. Trump’s presidency can be encapsulated in the successful nominations and ascendance of three key appointments: Marco Rubio as Secretary of State, Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense, and Pam Bondi as Attorney General.

And, of course, Donald J. Trump as President.

You need know no more.

And, if you haven’t paid attention to the senate confirmation hearings, let me put together some of each of the triumvirate’s statements:

Secretary of State Marco Rubio

“Little Marco,” as he was not so affectionately called by then-candidate Donald Trump during one of the debates in the run-up to the 2016 election, did seem rather small and, frankly, too young to be president nearly nine (can you believe it?) years ago. But I liked him then (and supported his candidacy until I boarded the Trump Train in the summer of 2016) and continue to like him.

As President Trump’s (don’t you just love that sound?) choice for Secretary of State, Rubio has matured, has tossed his tenuous support of “globalism” into the ashcan of history, and has enthusiastically gone Full Monty in support to the president’s “America First” agenda.

In his opening statement, Rubio notes that “At the end of World War II, the United States was, in the words of then Secretary [of State Dean] Acheson, tasked with creating a world order, ‘a free half’ out of chaos ‘without blowing the whole to pieces in the process.’”

Mr. Rubio notes too that “in the decades that followed, the global order they created served us well,” pointing out that in the U.S., not only did incomes rise and communities flourish, but newly created alliances had led to “stability, democracy, and prosperity.”

He then bemoaned that the triumphalism of the Allies had opened the way to “the end of history” and that a new “liberal world order” was about to replace outmoded “national interests.” All humans would become “citizens of the world.”

“This wasn’t just a fantasy,” Rubio says, “it was a dangerous delusion.”

He went on to paint a true portrait of what the abandonment of those “national interests” here in the U.S. had wrought: a shrunken middle class and a gutted-out industrial capacity. Globalism had “pushed critical supply chains into the hands of adversaries and rivals. An irrational zeal for maximum freedom of movement of people,” Rubio adds, “has resulted in a historic mass migration crisis here in America and around the world that threatens the stability of societies and governments.

“And across the West, governments now censor and even prosecute domestic political opponents, while radical jihadists openly march in the streets and drive vehicles into our people.

“While America far too often continued to prioritize the ‘global order’ above our core national interests, other nations continued to act the way countries always have and always will, in what they perceive to be in their best interest. And instead of folding into the post-Cold War global order, they have manipulated it to serve their interests at the expense of ours.”

Powerful words indeed.

Here are more:

“We welcomed the Chinese Communist Party into this global order. And they took advantage of all its benefits, But they ignored all its obligations and responsibilities. Instead, they have lied, cheated, hacked, and stolen their way to global superpower status, at our expense. [The Chinese government has banned Rubio’s entrance into their country because of his tough stand towards the Chinese Communist Party].

“In our very own hemisphere, despots and narco-terrorists take advantage of open borders to drive mass migration, traffic women and children, and flood our communities with fentanyl and violent criminals.

“And in Moscow, Tehran, and Pyongyang, dictators sow chaos and instability and align with and fund radical terror groups… The postwar global order is not just obsolete; it is now a weapon being used against us… Eight decades later, we are called to create a free world out of chaos once again.

“This will not be easy…

“During President Trump’s first term... there were no new wars, ISIS was eviscerated, Soleimani was dead, the historic Abraham Accords were born, and Americans were safer as a result.

“Now President Trump returns to office with an unmistakable mandate from the voters. They want a strong America. Engaged in the world. But guided by a clear objective, to promote peace abroad, and security and prosperity here at home.

“That is the promise President Trump was elected to keep.

“And if I am confirmed, keeping that promise will be the core mission of the United States Department of State.”

Attorney General Designate Pam Bondi

This candidate is a woman who will, if confirmed as United States Attorney General, once, and perhaps for all time, dispel any negative correlation between being blonde and being feckless.

“My overriding objective,” Bondi says, “would be to return the Department of Justice to its core mission of keeping Americans safe and vigorously enforcing the law. That requires getting back to basics – prosecuting violent crime and gang activity, stopping child predators and drug traffickers, protecting our nation from terrorists and other foreign threats, and addressing the overwhelming crisis at the Border.

“The Department of Justice must also return to defending the foundational rights of all Americans, including free speech, free exercise of religion, and the right to bear arms. That is what the American people expect and deserve from the Department.

“If confirmed, I will do what it takes to make America safe again…

“Like the President, I believe we are on the “cusp of a New Golden age” where the Department of Justice can and will do better… I will work to restore confidence and integrity to the Department of Justice – and each of its components. Under my watch, the partisan weaponization of the Department of Justice will end. America must have one tier of justice for all.”

Secretary of Defense Nominee Pete Hegseth

If you’re a FOX viewer, you’ll know this handsome ex-Army National Guardsman who’d served in Iraq and Afghanistan and earned two bronze stars. He is also a former co-host of Fox and Friends Weekend who has turned his life around from a notably unruly roustabout to a sober, religious, and devoted husband and father of seven.

You and I have learned to trust him; we believe he deserves that trust.

“The troops could have no better Commander-in-Chief than Donald Trump,” Pete says in his opening statement to the U.S. Senate Confirmation Committee, describing his mission as one “to bring the warrior culture back to the Department of Defense. [President Trump], like me, wants a Pentagon laser focused on warfighting, lethality, meritocracy, standards, and readiness.

“That’s it. That is my job.”

Hegseth promises to work to “restore the Warrior Ethos to the Pentagon and throughout our fighting force…, reestablish trust in our military, and address the recruiting, retention, and readiness crisis in our ranks.”

Other priorities include rebuilding the military, reviving America’s defense industrial base, reforming the acquisition process, modernizing the nuclear triad, “ensuring the Pentagon can pass an audit, and rapidly fielding emerging technologies…

“Finally, we will responsibly end wars to ensure we can prioritize our resources –and reorient to larger threats.”

Mr. Hegseth takes the ugly and unpopular trend towards DEI head-on: “We are American warriors. Our standards will be high, and they will be equal,” he stresses, “not equitable; that is a very different word. We need to make sure every warrior is fully qualified on their assigned weapon system, every pilot is fully qualified and current on the aircraft they are flying, and every general or flag officer is selected for leadership based purely on performance, readiness, and merit.

“Leaders – at all levels – will be held accountable. And warfighting and lethality –and the readiness of the troops and their families – will be our only focus.”

Hegseth surmises that President Trump chose him for Secretary of Defense because “He [Trump] believes – and I humbly agree – that it’s time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm. A change agent.”

As for Pete’s qualifications: “I’ve led troops in combat...been on patrol for days... pulled a trigger downrange... heard bullets whiz by... flex-cuffed insurgents... called in close air support... led medevacs... dodged IEDs... pulled out dead bodies... and knelt before a battlefield cross... this is not academic for me; this is my life.

“I led then, and I will lead now.”

Pete Hegseth concludes: “The President has given me a clear vision, and I will execute. I’ve sworn an oath to the Constitution before, and – if confirmed – will proudly do it again.

“This time, for the most important deployment of my life.”

These three smart, effective, and non-ideological public servants (along with many other similarly inclined potential appointees) represent the solid philosophical core of what we can expect from the incoming Trump administration.