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4 Dec 2024 15:54
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  •   Home > News > International

    Donald Trump announces Stephen Miller, Mike Waltz alongside swathe of key appointments as cabinet expands

    Donald Trump's White House is continuing to take shape, with the US president-elect announcing hardliner Tom Homan will oversee his strict immigration blueprint, among other key appointments.


    Donald Trump's White House is continuing to take shape, with the US president-elect announcing hardliner Tom Homan will oversee his strict immigration blueprint, among other key appointments including Mike Waltz, Marco Rubio and Elise Stefanik.

    Mr Homan was acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Trump's last administration, and had most recently been working at Fox News, where he was a regular critic of the country's border controls.

    Trump, who has been gradually war-gaming his administration at his Florida residence, Mar-a-Lago, since winning last week's presidential election, made the announcement in a post on social media on Sunday, local time.

    He said Homan would be "The Border Czar".

    "I've known Tom for a long time, and there is nobody better at policing and controlling our borders," the post read.

    "Likewise, Tom Homan will be in charge of all Deportation of Illegal Aliens back to their country of origin. Congratulations to Tom. I have no doubt he will do a fantastic, and long-awaited-for, job."

    On Monday, local time, multiple US media agencies reported Trump had also settled on speechwriter and advisor Stephen Miller as deputy chief of staff.

    While an official announcement has not yet been made, vice-president elect JD Vance described it as an "excellent choice" in a post on X.

    Mr Miller was a key aide in Trump's first administration and has defended the Republican nominee in the years since he lost the 2020 election.

    He has, over the past two years, been working on immigration blueprints for Trump, which include measures like detaining and expelling undocumented migrants from the US.

    Trump made immigration a central issue during his campaign.

    More key appointments include Waltz, Rubio

    Trump has asked US Republican Michael Waltz, a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, the Associated Press reported. 

    The move would put Waltz at the forefront of a litany of national security crises — ranging from the ongoing effort to provide weapons to Ukraine and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah.

    Waltz, a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida, was the first Green Beret elected to the US House, and easily won re-election last week. 

    Trump also selected US Senator Marco Rubio to be his secretary of state, news agency Reuters reported its sources as saying.

    The selection would put the Florida-born politician on track to be the first Latino to serve as America's top diplomat once the Republican president-elect takes office in January.

    Rubio was arguably the most hawkish option on Trump's shortlist for secretary of state, and he has in years past advocated for a muscular foreign policy with respect to America's geopolitical foes, including China, Iran and Cuba.

    Over the last several years he has softened some of his stances to align more closely with Trump's views.

    Trump also announced Republican congresswoman Elise Stefanik, a long-time ally, would be his administration's ambassador to the United Nations — an organisation he has repeatedly criticised.

    In a statement, the president-elect described Ms Stefanik as "strong, tough and smart".

    The 40-year-old, who represents New York's 21st district, has been a vocal supporter of Israel since the October 7 terrorist attacks in 2023 and earlier this year argued the US should "reassess" its funding for the UN.

    Trump also announced former Republican Congressman Lee Zeldin would become the administrator of the United States Environmental Protective Agency.

    He is another ally of the president's and regularly defended him during impeachment hearings in Congress.

    The announcements come after Trump confirmed strategist Susie Wiles will be his chief of staff — the first woman to ever hold the position — at the weekend.

    In recent days Trump had also confirmed two figures central to his previous administration Nikki Haley and Mike Pompeo, would not be given positions this time.

    Ms Haley had been ambassador to the UN and Mr Pompeo had been secretary of state.

    After being confirmed as the man to enact Trump's immigration controls and deportations, Mr Homan said the position was one he could not refuse.

    "I've been yelling and screaming about it and what they need to do to fix it. So when the president asked me, 'Would you come back and fix it?' Of course. I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't," he told Fox News.

    "I'm honoured the president asked me to come back and help solve this national security crisis, so I'm looking forward to it."

    © 2024 ABC Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved

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