Trump’s cabinet of men accused of sexual misconduct

president-elect Donald Trumpwho has been repeatedly and infamously accused of sexual assault and misconduct, now fills his cabinet with several men who have allegedly committed the same kind of violence.

At least four of Trump’s announced nominations for his administration have been accused of sexual misconduct ranging from sexual harassment to sexual assault and rape. Trump himself has been that way too accused by twenty women of sexual assault and rape, and last year a federal jury found him liable for sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll in the 1990s.

His rampant misogyny and disregard for the humanity of women have been hallmarks of his political career. The entire country heard him condone sexual assault in the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape leaked ahead of the 2016 election. Even his attempts to appease female voters due to much of his anti-women rhetoric are laughably sexist. Five days before the 2024 elections, he said promised to “protect the women of our country… whether the women like it or not.” His unapologetic sexism has been a dog whistle for many of his most ardent supporters, including several of those arrested for storming the Capitol on Jan. 6. HuffPost found had a history of violence against women.

“When we elect a president, we expect that president to provide security for women,” Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), vice chair of the Democratic Women Caucus, told HuffPost. “When he appoints men accused of sexual violence against women … he is betraying the women who voted for him, and he is betraying all women in America.”

Trump shocked even Republicans when he met the now former Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Gaetz was at the center of two investigations launched by the Justice Department and lawmakers into allegations of sex trafficking, sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. The DOJ decreased their investigation last year without charges.

The public got a preview of the House Ethics Committee’s findings Monday when an attorney representing two women who testified before the committee said Gaetz paid the women for sex in 2017. One of the women testified that she witnessed Gaetz having sex with an underage girl at a party that took place the same year Gaetz was sworn into Congress.

Gaetz has strongly denied all allegations. A spokesperson for Trump’s transition team refused the lawyer’s allegations on Monday, describing the accusations as “unfounded.”

Trump also said he plans to appoint Pete Hegseth, a host and Fox News TV veteran, as the next defense secretary. Hegseth was investigated for sexual assault for a 2017 incident in Monterey, California, in which he allegedly raped a woman working at the California Federation of Republican Women conference. He reportedly later paid the woman to keep quiet as part of a 2020 non-disclosure agreement.

Hegseth claims the meeting was consensual. Hegseth is also known for his push to pardon convicted war criminals, and his removal from President Joe Biden’s 2021 inauguration due to his so-called white nationalist tattooand for publicly advocating against women serving in combat roles.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s choice for HHS secretary, was accused of sexually assaulting his family’s nanny in the late 1990s, when Kennedy was married with five children. It was reported earlier this year, Kennedy texted an apology to the woman and said he had no memory of the incident. When later asked about the accusation, Kennedy responded said: “I’m not a church boy…I have so many skeletons in my closet.”

Billionaire Elon Musk, appointed by Trump to lead a new initiative to cut federal spending called the Department of Government Efficiency, was accused of exposing his genitals to a flight attendant in 2016 and trying to bribe her buying gifts to perform sexual acts, a Business Insider reported report. Musk’s company SpaceX paid her $250,000 in 2018.

“If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment, it is unlikely that this would be exposed for the first time in my entire 30-year career,” Musk told Business Insider, adding that the report was a “politically motivated hit piece”. and there is “much more to this story.” The Wall Street Journal published a report earlier this year about the “boundary-blurring relationships” Musk has had with several female employees at SpaceX.

Both Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, the other billionaire Trump chose to lead DOGE, reportedly fired employees who was concerned about sexual harassment And discrimination on the grounds of gender at their respective companies.

This trend of welcoming men accused of violence or misconduct against women started this year even before he won the White House. Trump’s first campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, was charged with misdemeanor battery about a 2021 incident in which he allegedly stalked and touched a woman at a charity event. Despite being let go after the first campaign due to the incident, Lewandowski was back at Trump’s side in August as a senior adviser for his presidential campaign. The 2021 case was later dismissed in exchange for Lewandowski doing community service and paying a $1,000 fine.

When people accused of violence come to power, they use that power to bury their alleged crimes and avoid accountability. Trump’s presidential victory probably means he will avoid any liability for his conviction on 34 offenses earlier this year. Gaetz hasn’t even been officially nominated for attorney general yet, and the Republican powers that be are try to bury the House ethics investigation into his alleged sexual misconduct.

Some of these nominations, like Gaetzmay encounter difficulties in obtaining Senate confirmation. Jennifer Simmons Kaleba, vice president of communications at RAINN, called on members of the Senate Judiciary Committee not to vote for Gaetz until they review the House Ethics Committee report, and urged the Judiciary Committee to gather all the facts and allow prosecutors to testify in each case. confirmation hearings.

“In these nominations, we see what survivors already know: when high-profile, powerful individuals accused of sexual assault are promoted without fully considering the allegations, everyone suffers,” Simmons Kaleba told HuffPost.

Regardless of the outcome, Trump’s decision to appoint men like Gaetz and Hegseth to some of the most powerful positions in his administration sends a clear message to survivors of sexual assault.

Trashelle Odom, the woman who accused Lewandowski of unwanted touching, summed up the sentiment in an October letter interview with CBS news. “I just broke down. I was very upset,” she said of Lewandowski’s return to Trump’s job. “He has his power back.”