President-elect Trump’s incoming national security adviser argued Monday that the attack in New Orleans that killed 14 people underscored the need to quickly confirm a slew of Cabinet nominees.
Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) said on “Fox & Friends” that the terror attack in the early hours of New Year’s Day showed how critical it would be for Trump to have his national security team in place, including some more controversial nominees to lead the FBI and Pentagon.
“That has to be in place day one, guys, because this is a — this is a moment in transition of vulnerability and President Trump is going to project because he is a leader of strength, the narrative that we project on day one will be the just important and that’s having our people in place,” Waltz said.
He urged the Senate to confirm Pete Hegseth as Defense secretary, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as secretary of State, Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence, Kash Patel as FBI director, John Ratcliffe as CIA director and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) as Homeland Security secretary.
Gabbard and Patel in particular are expected to face tough confirmation hearings, with Democrats in particular raising questions about their fitness for their respective roles. Democrats and some Republicans have raised questions about Gabbard in particular, who has been accused of parroting Russian propaganda about the war in Ukraine.
Waltz, whose position does not require Senate confirmation, was far from the only Trump ally to use the New Orleans attack to push for swift confirmation of Trump’s nominees.
Incoming Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) posted on X that “every single national security nominee” should be confirmed by Jan. 20, and Donald Trump Jr. called on Democrats to prioritize “the safety and security of the American people ahead of their Trump Derangement Syndrome.”
