Donald Trump has promised for years to surround himself with ultra-loyalists who can shape his government according to his vision without barriers.

That’s exactly why he picked Matt Gaetz. Now he’s outPam Bondi is in and she is equally loyal.

Gaetz was deeply unpopular on Capitol Hill, but ultra-MAGA and ultra-loyal to the president-elect.

He was chosen by the president-elect to do his job as attorney general within the Department of Justice.

Critics called his choice “an alarming moment for democracy” and the man a “gonzo agent of chaos” – language that would surely only cement Trump’s decision in his own pride-disrupting mind.

Without the fact that the president-elect is himself a convicted felon, and a man found liable in civil court for his own sex crimes, the prospect of Gaetz, with all his baggage, making it through the nomination process would have seemed remote.

But Donald Trump’s Returning to the White House suggested that anything is possible.

And so, beyond his loyalty, Gaetz was Trump’s test for his foot soldiers on Capitol Hill. How loyal were they? Would they wave to everyone he appointed?

It turns out that Gaetz, and the storm surrounding his private life, was too much for some of them.

At least five Senate Republicans outright opposed Matt Gaetz’s confirmation. We understand that they communicated to other senators and people close to Trump that they were unlikely to be swayed.

Among them were the Republican old guard, such as Senator Mitch McConnell.

In addition to the hard “no” senators, there were between twenty and thirty other Republicans who felt very uncomfortable about having to vote for Gaetz in the Senate.

The main question is whether Gaetz was Trump’s deliberate, crazy choice that he knew deep down would probably never fly.

Was Gaetz the candidate he assumed would be vetoed by senators — who would then feel forced to wave through the rest of his nominees?

Will Pete Hegseth’s alleged sexual impropriety worry them because they believe the former Fox News host and Army major is qualified to lead the Department of Defense?

What about Tulsi Gabbard, who calls Russia’s state television candidate “our girl,” and the adequacy of her leadership of America’s intelligence services?

These are all agreements that politicians on Capitol Hill must consider and confirm in the coming weeks.

Read more:
Trump hands out top jobs: who’s in, who’s out?
Musk was chosen to lead Trump’s new efficiency department

We don’t yet know who Trump will choose to lead the FBI.

There are a number of names being put forward that will make Washington’s foundation shudder, but that is exactly why Trump was elected. He is the disruptor. He said that at every meeting, repeatedly.

He quickly switched to another name to replace Gaetz.

Bondi is the former attorney general of Florida. Professionally, she is in a different league than Gaetz. She has been a tough prosecutor, with a no-nonsense reputation.

She is also one of the most loyal loyalists. Her attachment to Trump goes back a long way.

I first encountered her in Philadelphia in November 2020, when she was among Trump surrogates claiming that the election had been stolen from them at the time by Joe Biden and the Democrats.

She was a leading proponent of false claims that the election was rigged and that Trump was the rightful winner.

The lawsuits that concluded this was all nonsense didn’t seem to convince her.

Now she is poised to lead the Justice Department as the nation’s top law enforcement official.