Top News | Trump Nominates 'Unfit' Dr. Oz to Run Medicare

Tuesday, November 19, 2024 ■ Today's Top News  Watchdog Aims to Track Army of 'Self-Enriching Grifters' Slated to Join Trump's Cabinet "The man who once said he was going to drain the swamp is instead flooding it." By Eloise Goldsmith As U.S. President-elect Donald Trump continues to select Cabinet picks for his second administration—and at least one is facing headwinds to confirmation despite a Republican-controlled Senate—the nonprofit consumer advocacy group Public Citizen Tuesday unveiled a new resource to keep tabs on potential conflicts of interest among Trump's appointees. "Like the first Trump administration, this administration appears ready to staff critical government posts with as many corporate lackeys and self-enriching grifters as they can hire," said Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen. The group's other co-president, Robert Weissman, said that"Donald Trump may have run for office pretending he was going to advocate for regular people, but his appointments show in reality he’s planning to govern, again, on behalf of the corporate class." "The man who once said he was going to drain the swamp is instead flooding it," Weissman added. Trump has already chosen many of the individuals he would like to serve in his Cabinet and other senior positions. On Tuesday he picked Mehmet Oz, the celebrity physician and TV personality known as Dr. Oz, to helm the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Other high profile picks include nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—a once prominent environmental lawyer who has spread false claims about vaccines—to head the Department of Health and Human Services, and selecting prominent Trump donor and the world's richest man Elon Musk to oversee a yet-to-be-created government agency devoted to slashing government spending and federal regulation. Musk will oversee that agency, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, with biotech billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy. Public Citizen's tracker so far details information for nine appointees, a list that "includes both Cabinet-level positions and other political appointments, many of which do not require Senate confirmation," according to a statement from the group. The tracker will be updated regularly and includes where the individual worked previously and former clients and/or business interests. Sean Duffy, Trump's pick for transportation secretary, previously worked for the lobbying firm BGR Group, according to the tracker, where he lobbied on behalf coalition that included multiple airlines. The group also details the past work of Susie Wiles, Trump's selection for chief of staff. Wiles has been a registered lobbyist on behalf of dozens of clients, including a tobacco company "that sought to block federal health restrictions on its candy-flavored cigars" and on behalf of a mining company "that wants to eliminate federal opposition to its plan to dig a massive mine in a pristine watershed," according to additional information on Wiles provided by Public Citizen that is linked in the tracker. "As chief of staff, she'll be in a position to influence permits, approvals, and contracts that her former lobbying clients paid her to lobby for," according to the tracker. The tracker notes that Musk's former clients and business interests include "himself" and the companies he owns, several of which are currently under federal probe. According to a longer briefing on Musk by Public Citizen, at least three of the entrepreneur's companies are currently under scrutiny for alleged misconduct by at least nine federal agencies. According to a pre-election breakdown by The New York Times, Musk's companies were "promised $3 billion across nearly 100 different contracts last year with 17 federal agencies." Both the probes and the contracts underscore Musk's exposure to a federal government that he is slated to play a key role in. Musk has framed his quest to curb government regulation as existential. "Unless Trump wins and we get rid of the mountain of smothering regulations (that have nothing to do with safety!), humanity will never reach Mars," he wrote on X in early October. After Trump's victory earlier this month, legendary consumer advocate Ralph Nader, who founded Public Citizen but hasn't been formally involved with the group for decades, warned of Musk's influence. "Get ready this January for chaos, revenge, greed, rampant abuses of power, and the unbridled control of corrupt plutocrats and oligarchs," Nader wrote. "With Elon Musk in the lead." 'Unfit': Trump Nominates Dr. Oz to Run Medicare "By nominating RFK Jr. and Mehmet Oz," said one public health expert, "Trump is giving his middle finger to science." By Julia Conley Sanders Says US Complicity in Gaza 'Must End' Ahead of Senate Vote to Block Arms to Israel "The United States government is currently in violation of the law, and every member of the U.S. Senate who believes in the rule of law should vote for these resolutions," said Sen. Bernie Sanders. By Jake Johnson G20 Leaders Reach 'Landmark Commitment' for Global Tax on Ultrarich "Now is the time to turn words into action and launch an inclusive international negotiation, extending beyond G20 countries, on the reform of the taxation of the superrich," said economist Gabriel Zucman. By Julia Conley Tax Dodging by Super-Rich, Big Corporations Costs Nations Half a Trillion Per Year: Study "The U.K. and the U.S. are both among the biggest enablers and the biggest losers of this lose-lose tax system," said the chief executive of the Tax Justice Network. By Jake Johnson Senate Finance Chair Says GOP Push for Medicaid Cuts Spotlights 'Real Trump Agenda' "The votes are tallied and Trump is headed back to the White House, so his campaign trail populism is over and done with," said Sen. Ron Wyden. By Jake Johnson JOIN THE MOVEMENT As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. JOIN WITH US TODAY ■ More News Low-Wage Workers to Democratic Leaders: Fight for Us or Face 'Consequences' Putin Shifts Nuclear Posture as Ukraine Fires Long-Range Missiles into Russia Tens of Thousands March for Indigenous Rights at New Zealand Parliament 'Using Fox as a Staffing Agency,' Trump Taps Sean Duffy for Transportation VIEW ALL NEWS ■ Opinion The Gaza Genocide Reveals That the UN Needs Serious Reform Though the U.N. was formed following the atrocities of WWII, now it stands largely useless in its inability to stop similar atrocities in Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, and elsewhere. By Ramzy Baroud Trump Is Creating a Government of Billionaires, by Billionaires, for Billionaires With his cabinet appointments, Trump wants to deflect our attention while he and his fellow moguls loot America. By Robert Reich What Prospects for Peace in the Age of Trump? Victory is by no means assured, but what alternative do we have other than to continue to fight for a better, more just world? By William Hartung VIEW ALL OPINION Call 207.775.0488 to donate by phone or mail a check to: Common Dreams · PO Box 443 · Portland, ME 04112-0443 · USA Common Dreams is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Your contribution is tax-deductible. EIN: 20-3368194