The 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona was the first games in which professional basketball players were allowed to participate. Previously, college players competed against the professional national teams of the Soviet Union and other countries.
In 1988, the American team lost to the Soviets, settling for a bronze medal, their worst-ever performance in Olympic basketball.
Four years later, America sent the “Dream Team,” a collection of the best NBA players at the time. Players included Michael Jordan, Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen, and Charles Barkley among others.
Opposing teams were overwhelmed, losing games by an average of 44 points. Sports Illustrated called it “arguably the most dominant squad ever assembled in any sport.”
Another Dream Team is being assembled in Washington, D.C., under Coach Donald Trump. It, too, is arguably the best (or worst) administration ever built, depending on one’s political persuasion and whether one might be in the crosshairs (figuratively, for the censorship cranks – I am not calling for shooting anyone) of administration officials or cabinet secretaries.
At the time of this writing, nominees include:
- Secretary of State – Marco Rubio
- Attorney General – Matt Gaetz
- Director of National Intelligence – Tulsi Gabbard
- Secretary of Defense – Pete Hegseth
- Secretary of Homeland Security – Kristi Noem
- CIA Director – John Ratcliffe
- Secretary of Health and Human Services – Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
- Secretary of Veterans Affairs – Doug Collins
- EPA Administrator – Lee Zeldin
- Border Czar – Tom Homan
- National Security Advisor – Michael Waltz
- U.S. Ambassador to Israel – Mike Huckabee
By his own admission, Trump was the unlikely winner of the 2016 presidential election. He played nice with the Republican establishment by following their nominee recommendations. As a result, Trump got what he would describe as “stiffs,” like Reince Priebus, Jeff Sessions, Rex Tillerson, James Mattis, Christopher Wray, John Bolton, Mike Pompeo, Nikki Haley, Dan Coats, and Gina Haspel.
The Last Refuge
Unlike in 2016, President-elect Trump now knows the players — the good and the bad — and has a plan. As he said in a pre-election interview:
“We have to get the right people. When I first came here, I was only in Washington 17 times in my life, all of a sudden, I’m President. I really knew nobody. Some were good, some were rhinos. We had some that we have to do better.
So we will work with a lot of people to get a lot of people in. I now know sort of everybody. I’m not having to rely on people I didn’t know very well. I think we are going to have phenomenal people. I know the good ones, the bad ones, the weak ones, the strong ones. I think we are going to have great people.”
As Trump builds his Dream Team, one can gauge how dreamy this team is by watching the reaction from the left. As I was writing, I pulled up my X feed. Here are a few examples.
Elon Musk, the unlikely Robin to Batman Donald, responded to John Bolton calling Gaetz’s nomination “the worst nomination for a cabinet position in American history.” Musk replied, “John Bolton, who is a staggeringly dumb warmonger, being against someone is a great sign! Gaetz will be great.”
Congressman Robert Garcia whined: “RFK Jr. has no medical or scientific credentials and wants to gut the National Institutes of Health. And Marjorie Taylor Greene today cheered him on in our committee. This is outrageous and shameful.”
Jo, a trash-mouthed Democrat X shill in meltdown mode, shrieked: “Putting an anti-vaxxer in charge of public health is like putting the Unabomber in charge of the mail.”
These were the first three posts on my feed, and only the tip of the iceberg. Trump is obviously over the target, given the hair-on-fire response from the left.
Not only Democrats, but also some establishment Republicans are hyperventilating over Trump’s nominees. “They should be more experienced,” say those who cannot balance a budget.
Pete Hegseth is simply a Fox News commentator, not a 20-year decorated combat military veteran. He likely understands boots-on-the-ground military far better than the parade generals who led us in a failed 20-year war in the Middle East, a botched Afghanistan withdrawal, a Gaza bridge that fell apart faster than Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, and a DEI campaign that gave us Admiral Rachel Levine, a man who wears a dress.
The Beltway smart set says Matt Gaetz is a lightweight. We need a more experienced attorney or former judges like Janet Reno, Eric Holder, Loretta Lynch, Merrick Garland, Jeff Sessions, or William Barr. How did they work out for the Constitution and the rule of law?
What if Gaetz is part of a bigger play? If the Senate refuses to confirm him, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis can appoint Gaetz to fill Marco Rubio’s Senate seat, assuming he is confirmed as Secretary of State. Imagine Gaetz in the Senate, serving with those who voted against his nomination.
Or Gaetz could become AG via a recess appointment. This pathway has ample precedent: President Obama made 32 recess appointments, President Clinton made 139, and President George W. Bush made 171. If Trump makes a recess appointment, media shills will screech that it’s the first time any president has done such a thing.
Or perhaps Gaetz is a throwaway nominee, still finding himself in the Senate. Remember that Bill Clinton’s first two AG nominees, Zoe Baird, and Kimba Wood, were derailed over “Nannygate,” paving the way for Janet Reno, likely his ultimate choice, easily confirmed by an exasperated Senate.
Who might Trump nominate? Perhaps Wyoming Rep. Harriet Hageman, Texas AG Ken Paxton, or Missouri AG Andrew Bailey, all experienced attorneys.
As usual, Trump may be two steps ahead of his opponents now that he understands the political landscape in D.C.
The expert class criticizes RFK, Jr. for not having managerial experience. So what? His predecessor, Xavier Becerra, served in Congress, managing only his small staff and campaign contributions while presiding over crime-ridden California as the state attorney general.
I am delighted to see younger, less “establishment” nominees than other presidents’ selections. After all, these “smart and experienced” government officials are the ones who gave us a weaponized justice and intelligence system, endless wars, an open border, teenage genital mutilation, censorship, the COVID calamity, and a growing national debt of $36 trillion.
William F. Buckley, Jr. famously asserted, “I would rather be governed by the first 2,000 people in the Manhattan phone book than the entire faculty of Harvard.” Trump is filling his administration from the phone book rather than the faculty lounge.
This is a welcome change given how poorly the “credentialed class” has run the country for decades. The howling and shrieking from corporate media and the left confirm for me that Trump is doing the right thing.
Is this payback? Perhaps. I call it “the reckoning,” a necessary course correction that keeps America from descending into an Orwellian or Hunger Games dystopia.
Charlie Kirk summed it up well on X:
They spied on Trump.
So now they get Tulsi Gabbard.They tried to lock up Trump.
So now they get Matt Gaetz.They kept the border open.
So now they get Tom Homan.They tried to ruin the country.
And they are getting what they deserve.
Trump’s second term will be transformative. He won the Electoral College, the popular vote, the House, and the Senate. A majority of Americans eagerly want change, and Trump will deliver. His Dream Team clearly indicates that Trump’s version of “hope and change,” also known as The Reckoning, is underway.
Squishy Senate Republicans had better tread carefully. These nominations may be a loyalty test. Do GOP senators confirm Trump’s cabinet choices, or do they spit in his face under the “advise and consent” umbrella?
Voters gave Trump a mandate, and crossing Trump and the American people may not work out well for Senate Republicans. Don’t believe me? Ask Mitt Romney, Jeff Flake, Liz Cheney, and others.
Trump is just getting started. Inauguration Day is two months away. Yet, every day offers delightful new surprises. Social media is a potpourri of laughs, given the left’s outrage over Trump’s election and nominees. Considering that Planet Earth is 4.5 billion years old, isn’t this a great time to be alive?
Brian C. Joondeph, M.D., is a physician and writer. Follow me on Twitter @retinaldoctor, Substack Dr. Brian’s Substack, Truth Social @BrianJoondeph, LinkedIn @Brian Joondeph, Email brianjoondeph@gmail.com.
