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Executive order signing has run rampant in the early days of President Trump’s term, with orders ranging from leaving the World Health Organisation to ending birthright citizenship. One such order has been his demand to bring federal DEI programs to an end, stating that ‘his administration would forge a society that is colorblind and merit-based’.
He doubled down on his disdain for such policies ten days later, when he blamed the FAA’s (Federal Aviation Administration) DEI policies for playing a role in the tragic accident which saw an American Airlines flight collide with a Black Hawk helicopter leaving no survivors.
Trump’s attacks on DEI policies are nothing new, but his decisions to end the policies across federal organisations and the US military show he means business. Trump’s desire to see a merit-based administration is fair and valid, except for the fact that he doesn’t act on this himself as is abundantly clear in his cabinet picks.
First we come to Pete Hegseth, recently confirmed US Secretary of Defense. Hegseth is a veteran of the US army, serving in Iraq and Afghanistan amongst others, and has been awarded several medals, including two Bronze Stars for his service to his country. Most recently however, he has been an anchor for the FOX News show Fox and Friends, the channel most known for its undying support of President Trump. To compare, Biden’s defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, spent 41 years in the US Army, receiving a Silver Star for his services in Iraq. He later became Commanding General of United States Forces – Iraq, before rounding off his service as Commander of U.S. Central Command, a job which sae him responsible for ‘all military operations in the Middle East and Afghanistan’.
President Trump’s pick for US Secretary of Health and Human Services, is Robert. F. Kennedy Jr, nephew to President John. F. Kennedy. RFK Jr is a former environmental lawyer and activist and is well respected in such fields, often representing indigenous groups in lawsuits. As far as his health qualifications, he has none. He is, however, outspoken on many health-related issues such as vaccines and processed foods. In contrast, Biden’s Health Secretary was Rachel Levine, a doctor and former Director of Paediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Physician General of Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania Secretary of Health before she served as US Health Secretary. Throughout her tenure, Levine was unjustly criticised by Republicans for being transgender and was often the subject of attack ads during the election.
The pattern repeats itself yet again with Trump’s pick for Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon. McMahon isn’t a total stranger to the the education scene, having sat on the Connecticut Board of Education, as well as the board for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. However, McMahon is most known for being chief executive of the WWE, a role she left in order to enter politics, where she failed to be elected to the Senate on two occasions. To compare yet again, Biden’s choice for Secretary of Education, Dr Miguel Cardona, spent two decades as a teacher in public schools, as well as ascending to the role of principal in an elementary school. He received two awards for his services to education in Connecticut, and he was also the Commissioner of Education in Connecticut before he assumed the role of US Secretary of Education.
While I could happily continue this list, I think it no doubt paints the picture of Trump’s blatant hypocrisy regarding DEI policies in America. President Trump may well have his grievances with regards to DEI, but to demand a merit-based administration and then fail to implement it within your own cabinet is hypocrisy of the highest order.
Edited by Isabel Whitburn
Image: ‘Presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at a campaign stop at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa‘, Matt Johnson, 2015 // CC BY 2.0
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