President-elect Trump has made quick work of pulling together a Cabinet and group of senior aides for his incoming administration, roiling Washington with some of his more controversial picks in the process.

Trump issued a flurry of nominations and appointments during his first full week as president-elect, sending lawmakers scrambling to react.

Here are five takeaways from Trump’s Cabinet thus far.

Trump prioritizes loyalty

The president-elect has long made clear that loyalty is paramount for anyone in his orbit, and his Cabinet picks thus far are a sign that he is rewarding those who have stayed on his good side.

Nearly every nominee or appointment Trump has made to date has been an individual who has defended the president-elect in some capacity, endorsed him on the campaign trail or stuck by him during some of his more turbulent moments.

Four Cabinet nominees – Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) for United Nations ambassador, Lee Zeldin for Environmental Protection Agency administrator, Doug Collins for Veterans Affairs secretary and John Ratcliffe for CIA director – were part of his impeachment defense team in 2020.

Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) has been one of Trump’s most brash and vocal defenders since 2016. Gaetz abruptly resigned from Congress when Trump rocked Washington by announcing the Florida Republican as the pick for attorney general.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard were prominent surrogates for Trump on the campaign trail after endorsing him as former Democrats. And Trump’s own personal criminal attorneys, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, were picked for top jobs in the Justice Department after representing him during the hush money trial earlier this year.

The assembled administration is a far cry from the “team of rivals” that formed the first batch of top officials in Trump’s first term.

“It does seem like this group is a closer knit group of people,”........

© The Hill