Which Texans Could Trump Tap For His Administration?

Here are a few who made the list.

By Rhonda FanningNovember 10, 2016 11:48 am

President-elect Donald Trump will be meeting with President Barack Obama at the White House today to discuss the transition of power. With this comes much speculation around who Trump might add to his administration.

Patrick Svitek with the Texas Tribune says there’s a deep bench of appointees that could come from Texas.

Rick Perry, former governor of Texas

“I’d consider him among Texas Republicans a serious prospect for the Trump administration. Part of this is that both Perry and Trump have publicly spoken about this possibility before. …
If Perry were to serve some role in the Trump administration it would be related to one of his long-time passions – which is either veterans or the military. Perry also has some expertise when it comes to agricultural issues.”

Sid Miller, Texas Agriculture Commissioner

“He’s served on Trump’s agriculture advisory board, especially in the final days of the campaign. He was a very visible surrogate for Tump in Texas. … He courted controversy in the final days as well when that obscene tweet appeared on his Twitter account. I don’t know how much that hurts you in the hiring process in a Trump administration, but I imagine that Trump still views him as kind of a loyalist here in Texas.”

Don Willett, Texas Supreme Court Justice

“He was suddenly swept into the presidential race several months ago when, unbeknownst to him, Trump put him on a list of judges that he would appoint to the Supreme Court. And at the time Justice Willett did not say either way whether he’d be interested in doing it, he just said that he respected all the judges on the list and that it speaks to the value of the state judiciary.”

Katrina Pierson, national campaign spokeswoman for Donald Trump

“She’s been a frequent presence on cable news shows, often going on to defend Trump after whatever latest controversy has consumed his campaign. She has really built a profile as his most visible defender, and so if Trump runs his White House like he ran his campaign – with this brash and defiant style – then it would be a no-brainer to bring Katrina Pierson over to the press office as improbable … as that sounds to Trump’s critics.”

Michael McCaul, U.S. Representative for the 10th District of Texas

“He has been advising Trump on national security and foreign policy issues for a while now. Something that I’ve found interesting is that he is the rare Trump advisor, but he’s one of these Trump advisors who seems willing to stand up to Donald Trump when he disagrees with him. Michael Mccaul has been very open with the fact that he has expressed to Trump that he should be less friendly toward Russia and toward Vladimir Putin. Just by virtue of him being able to challenge Trump, and also be trusted by him on these very sensitive issues, that seems like a great combination for someone you’d want in your administration.”

Post by Beth Cortez-Neavel.