CNN conservative political commentator Scott Jennings was surprised at Donald Trump’s choice Wednesday of Rep. Matt Gaetz to be the next attorney general, but suggested it’s an example of the president-elect stretching his wings a bit and showing his intention to shake things up in D.C.
“Are you not entertained?” Jennings asked, when questioned by CNN “News Central” co-host Boris Sanchez about the pick.
“I mean, this is the most entertaining transition I’ve ever seen,” Jennings continued. “I was as surprised as Paula, because it’s not a name that we had seen.”
“We’d seen some reporting, a lot of different names, frankly, a lot of really sort of well-heeled Washington legal types that were on the list. So I’m I’m as surprised as anyone. But what I take away from this is that this is a president-elect who is feeling his power,” the commentator contended.
Jennings served in a public affairs position in President George W. Bush’s White House, as well as on both his 2000 and 2004 campaigns. He has worked in journalism for decades.
NEW: Scott Jennings reacts to Gaetz for Attorney General
“ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? This is the most entertaining transition I’ve ever seen!”
“This is a president-elect who is feeling his power. Doesn’t feel like he’s in a mood to negotiate with DC.”pic.twitter.com/6ogu0navIO
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) November 13, 2024
“I mean, this is someone who is appointing people to things, whether it’s Gaetz or anything else we’ve seen today, who is feeling his power, feeling his influence, doesn’t feel like he’s in a mood to negotiate with the people in Washington, D.C.,” Jennings said.
The conservative commentator also pointed to Trump’s appointment of Fox News host and U.S. Army veteran Pete Hegseth as another example of him eschewing Beltway wisdom.
Do you want Matt Gaetz to be Attorney General?
“He’s here to do what he wants to do. And he’s going to expect the Republicans to fall in line. Now all these people, whether it’s Gaetz or Hegseth or anyone else, have to go to confirmation and go through these committee hearings and prove themselves like anyone else,” Jennings said.
“But it is apparent to me that Trump is in a decisive mood and is not someone who’s interested in picking things that he would consider to be watered down. So that’s my that’s my initial reaction to this. I mean, we truly learned about it two seconds before we came on here. So pretty wild day,” the CNN personality concluded.
Trump’s selection Wednesday of former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to be the next Director of National Intelligence is another choice that took Washington by surprise.
“News Central” co-host Brianna Keilar asked Jennings who he thought of the president-elect’s unconventional picks would be the hardest to get confirmed by the Senate.
Jennings pointed out even the most controversial among them, arguably Gaetz, has qualifications for the post. The congressman was a practicing attorney and is currently a member of the House Judiciary Committee, which oversees the DOJ.
“He, like everyone else, has to go up there and prove themselves. But you can’t underestimate Donald Trump’s influence over the Republicans in the Senate on this. And he’s going to be insistent that he get his government and his administration,” Jennings said.
He then noted, “Some of these picks are conventional– Marco Rubio [for secretary of state], for instance, a well-known name. But some of them are designed to shake up Washington, and I am assuming that is what Donald Trump believes he is doing with some of these folks.”
Other conventional choices so far would include his chief of staff Susie Wiles; Rep. Elise Stefanik as U.N. ambassador, former Rep. John Ratcliffe as CIA director, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel, former Rep. Lee Zeldin as Environmental Protection Agency administrator, and Florida Rep. Mike Waltz as national security advisor.
Some reporting lists Jennings as the possible Trump White House press secretary, though he appears to be a longer shot.
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