D.C. is vibrating. You can feel it in the air—that specific kind of frantic energy that only happens when a second-term president starts tearing up the floorboards of the federal government. It's January 2026, and looking back at the list of Trump's picks so far, the one thing everyone seems to miss is that this wasn't just a search for staff. It was a loyalty stress test. Honestly, if you look at the survivors of the confirmation gauntlet, the "clown car" label some critics use is a bit reductive. It’s more like a wrecking crew with very specific targets.
Remember the Matt Gaetz chaos? That feels like a lifetime ago. He withdrew before he even reached a hearing room. But that set the tone. It told the Senate exactly how far the White House was willing to push the boundaries of "conventional." Since then, we've seen a steady stream of figures who aren't just there to run departments—they're there to fundamentally change what those departments actually do.
The Heavy Hitters of the Cabinet
The big names aren't just names anymore; they're sitting in the big chairs. Marco Rubio sailed through as Secretary of State with a 99-0 vote early on, which, in hindsight, was the last moment of real bipartisanship we saw. He’s been the traditionalist anchor in a sea of disruptors. But then you look at the rest of the board.
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Pete Hegseth at Defense was the first real earthquake. People thought the 51-50 confirmation vote would slow him down. It didn't. He’s already pushed for a "warrior culture" shift that’s basically upended the Pentagon’s HR manuals. Then there's Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at HHS. Love him or hate him, he’s doing exactly what he promised: questioning everything from vaccine mandates to the very existence of certain FDA sub-agencies. His 52-48 confirmation was a nail-biter, but now that he's in, the rollback on medical research funding has been swift.
The Power Players You Might Have Missed
- Pam Bondi (Attorney General): After the Gaetz flame-out, Bondi stepped in and secured a 54-46 win. She’s been much more surgical than her predecessor would have been, focusing heavily on "cleaning house" at Justice without the daily fireworks.
- Tulsi Gabbard (DNI): This one still makes heads spin in the intelligence community. Her 52-48 confirmation was a message. She’s now the gatekeeper for the nation’s secrets, and her skepticism toward the "deep state" is the administration's primary filter.
- Kristi Noem (Homeland Security): Confirmed 59-34, Noem has been the face of the border crackdown. She’s managed to stay mostly out of the "scandal" headlines while being the most aggressive enforcer of the administration's deportation policies.
- Scott Bessent (Treasury): A 68-29 vote showed that even some Democrats were okay with a billionaire running the money, as long as he kept the markets stable. He’s been the "adult in the room" on trade, even while Trump threatens tariffs on basically everyone.
Why Trump's Picks So Far Still Matter in 2026
We’re a year into this now. The initial shock has worn off, but the policy shifts are just starting to bite. You've got Linda McMahon at Education, a department the President literally wants to delete. She was confirmed 51-45 and has spent her first year basically auditing the department out of existence. It’s weird to watch a Secretary try to fire her own building, but that’s the 2026 reality.
Then you have the wildcards like Chris Wright at Energy (confirmed 59-38) and Doug Burgum at Interior (confirmed 80-17). These guys are the "Drill, Baby, Drill" dream team. They’ve moved faster than any previous administration to open up federal lands. If you're looking at your gas bill or the stock price of Exxon, these are the guys you’re watching.
The Recent Move: Joshua Rudd
Just a few days ago, on January 15, 2026, we saw Army Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd testifying before the Senate. He’s the pick for the NSA and Cyber Command. This is a big deal because the "dual-hat" role—one person running both the military's cyber wing and the nation's biggest spy agency—is on the chopping block. Rudd told lawmakers he’d be "objective," but the administration has been itching to split those roles for a while to gain more direct control.
The Strategy Behind the Chaos
If you step back, the pattern in Trump's picks so far isn't actually chaotic. It’s built on three pillars: loyalty, disruption, and deregulation.
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The administration didn't want managers. They wanted believers. This is why you see people like Russell Vought back at the OMB (confirmed 53-47). He knows where all the fiscal bodies are buried and how to withhold funds from programs the administration dislikes. It’s not about "running" the government anymore; it’s about redirecting it.
Most analysts get this wrong. They keep waiting for these picks to "settle in" and start acting like traditional bureaucrats. That’s never going to happen. From Lori Chavez-DeRemer at Labor (confirmed 67-32) to Howard Lutnick at Commerce (confirmed 51-45), the goal is a total pivot toward "America First" protectionism and a gutting of the administrative state.
Actionable Insights for 2026
- Watch the Budgets: With Russell Vought at OMB, expect "impoundment" to become a household word. He will likely try to freeze funds already allocated by Congress for things the White House hates.
- Health Policy Shifts: RFK Jr. is serious about the "Make America Healthy Again" thing. This means significant changes for food additives and pharmaceutical advertising. If you're in those industries, the regulatory environment just got much more unpredictable.
- Energy and Environment: With Lee Zeldin at the EPA (confirmed 56-42) and Chris Wright at Energy, the focus is 100% on production. Environmental impact studies are being streamlined—or ignored—at record speeds.
- The "Deep State" Purge: Keep a close eye on Tulsi Gabbard and Kash Patel (now FBI Director). Their primary mission is internal. They aren't looking at foreign threats as much as they are looking at the people currently working in the cubicles at Langley and Quantico.
The list of Trump's picks so far is essentially a blueprint for a different kind of American government. It’s leaner, louder, and significantly more partisan. Whether that leads to the "greatest cabinet of all time" or a "clown car" depends entirely on which side of the political fence you're sitting on, but one thing is certain: the old rules of D.C. have been shredded.
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To stay ahead of these shifts, monitor the Federal Register for "interim final rules" coming out of HHS and the EPA. These are the fast-track regulations that bypass the usual years of debate. Also, keep an eye on the "impoundment" cases likely heading to the Supreme Court; that's where the real power struggle over the purse strings will be decided.