Former WH Aide Spots Exactly Why Trump’s ‘Drunk On Power’ With Cabinet Noms

Sarah Matthews, a former White House aide who served under Donald Trump, brushed off talk of the president-elect playing “4D chess” with his cabinet picks as “kind of hilarious” on Friday before explaining why that’s far from the case.
Matthews, in an interview with MSNBC’s Chris Jansing on Trump’s controversial nominations, dismissed “discourse” that the president-elect is making “crazy” picks knowing they’ll fail so the Senate could confirm his second choices.
“That’s not what’s happening,” said Matthews, a former White House deputy press secretary in Trump’s first term who resigned after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack.
“He knows that he is drunk on power right now because he feels like he was given a mandate by winning the popular vote.”
She added that Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the president-elect “doesn’t have to worry about running for reelection.”
“So, in this term, he wants to put up the people that he wants,” Matthews said.
“So it is not some 4D game of chess that he’s playing of trying to put out a sacrificial lamb, like a Matt Gaetz for AG, and so that way his other nominees can squeak through.”
Matthews’ comments arrived after Jansing played a clip of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy predicting that the Senate won’t confirm now-former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) to be Trump’s attorney general.
“You can talk to [the] president, but it’s a good deflection from others,” said McCarthy in an interview with Bloomberg’s Haslinda Amin on Thursday.
Trump’s AG pick has sparked bipartisan calls for the House Ethics Committee to release the findings of its probe on Gaetz, who has faced allegations of sexual misconduct and illegal drug use.
After Trump announced his AG pick, Gaetz resigned from Congress, a move that promptly ended the committee’s probe.
The committee was reportedly just days away from voting on releasing its “highly damaging” report on the investigation.
Matthews said she thinks Trump “genuinely” wants Gaetz to be his AG but some senators still “might not go for it.”
Earlier in the MSNBC appearance, she said the push back is probably making Trump “even more sure” that he wants Gaetz for the job.
“Because he doesn’t want someone who’s going to please the establishment. He wants someone who is going to be a loyalist and who’s going to do his bidding at the Department of Justice, he doesn’t want an independent DOJ,” she said.
Don’t let this be the end of the free press. The free press is under attack — and America’s future hangs in the balance. As other newsrooms bow to political pressure, HuffPost is not backing down.
Would you help us keep our news free for all? We can’t do it without you.
Can’t afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
You’ve supported HuffPost before, and we’ll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can’t do it without you.
Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all.
You’ve supported HuffPost before, and we’ll be honest — we could use your help again. We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can’t do it without you.
Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all.
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.