BETHLEHEM, Pennsylvania — Former Trump officials are barnstorming Pennsylvania this week in hopes of electing the man who could give them roles in a second administration.
The Trump campaign launched a bus tour Monday made up largely of senior officials from former President Donald Trump’s first term. Among the surrogates were acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker; Kash Patel, an ex-chief of staff at the Defense Department; and Monica Crowley, a former spokeswoman at the Treasury Department.
Their message at three campaign stops — in Sharon Hill, Bethlehem, and finally Allentown — was almost singularly focused on Trump, reminding the crowd of his record in office and painting Vice President Kamala Harris as a continuation of the four years under President Joe Biden.
Still, the conversation at various points turned to the ways in which the election could serve as a a springboard to roles in a second term.
Patel, as he introduced Witaker at the event in Allentown, praised his 15 months leading the Justice Department.
“We’ve got to win to get guys like him back in there,” Patel said of Whitaker, who took over the department after Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation. “I mean, the bench is there. The bench is ready.”
At the earlier rally in Bethlehem, Patel praised Crowley, a former Fox News contributor, in a similar vein.
“The good news is that if President Trump wins, she’s going to go back and be in charge of pretty much everything,” he told the audience.
Trump’s first term was notorious for staff turnover, as he butted heads with officials from the Pentagon to the Justice Department, including loyalists like Sessions.
Some of those officials have gone on to endorse Harris in her abbreviated campaign for president. But those who have remained publicly supportive of Trump have become surrogates for his campaign, attending bus tours and rallies from North Carolina to Wisconsin.
The Pennsylvania tour will include other Republicans, including Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), as it heads west toward Pittsburgh.
In a series of brief interviews, each of the former officials deflected on whether they were interested in serving in a second term, insisting their energies were focused on electing Trump in November.
“I’m all about winning. In all seriousness, I’m doing everything I possibly can to make sure that he’s president of the United States,” Whitaker told the Washington Examiner. “That’s all going to take care of itself. He’s going to get whoever he wants.”
But already, Trumpworld is publicly weighing its short list for high-ranking positions, including his Cabinet. Patel has been floated as a head of the CIA or Justice Department, despite concerns over his experience level. Crowley has been mentioned for the role of national security adviser.
That list extends far beyond officials from Trump’s first administration. Former Rep. Lee Zeldin, also at Monday’s events in Pennsylvania, was name-checked by him in September for a possible role in dismantling the Education Department.
Meanwhile, a roster of Republicans who got passed over for vice president will be in contention for the same positions if Trump wins in November. In each case, loyalty to him and his agenda is expected to be the litmus test for appointments to a second term.
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“This time, he knows very well what’s required, and he also knows who to rely on for recommendations, and who not to rely on, who has betrayed him, who has stayed loyal,” Crowley told the Washington Examiner.
Trump’s family, in particular his sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., can be expected to have outsize sway in that process, while the transition team is being led by Linda E. McMahon, the former administrator of the Small Business Administration, and businessman Howard Lutnick.
