Before2020 collects the information you need to do something now.

The incoming administration is dangerous. President-elect Trump is appointing cabinet members who have positions, records, and goals that threaten our planet and the rights and safety of people everywhere.

Don't get distracted by fake news and red herrings. Before2020.us aggregates and summarizes what Trump's cabinet stands for and what they have done. You can then take action — volunteer, donate, or follow organizations that are actively fighting against their positions and policies.

Trump's Advisors

Last Updated:
November 28, 2016 4:53 PM
Appointed

Vice President

Presiding officer of the Senate and part of President's administration.

b.
1959
Columbus, Ind.
Michael Richard Pence
Governor, Ind.
•
Republican
Vice President

Mike Pence

Mike Pence has made a career of restricting women's reproductive rights and attacking legal equality with punitive measures.

  • Pushed to defund Planned Parenthood in 2011 to eliminate abortion services in Indiana, which subsequently led to an HIV epidemic in 2015 during his governorship after five key clinics that also provided HIV testing were closed.
  • Co-sponsored a 2011 bill that only allowed for coverage of abortion procedures sought in the case of "forcible rape" and attempted to redefine the definition of rape; the bill was never passed.
  • Signed Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2015 which condoned discrimination against the LGBTQ community by businesses, and amended the act a month later due to protests and national boycotts.
To Be Announced
Pending Senate Approval

Department of Justice

Enforces the laws of the United States federal government.

b.
1946
Selma, Ala.
Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III
Senator, Ala.
•
Republican
Attorney General

Jeff Sessions

Jeff Sessions has a long history of racism and bias against African Americans, Muslims and immigrants that is on public record, making him categorically unfit to hold the position of chief law enforcement officer and lawyer of the U.S. government.

  • In 1984 as U.S. Attorney, Sessions attempted to suppress African American voters, which included wrongfully prosecuting three black civil rights activists for voter fraud.
  • His nomination for federal judge in 1986 was rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee due to testimony describing Sessions' racist statements and his approval of the Ku Klux Klan.
  • Has aligned himself closely with anti-immigration groups, including the Federation for American Immigration Reform
  • Called for a constitutional amendment to stop granting automatic citizenship to people born in the U.S.
To Be Announced
Pending Senate Approval

Department of Education

Establish policy for, administer and coordinates most federal assistance to education. Assists the president in executing their education policies and in implementing laws enacted by Congress.

b.
1958
Holland, Mich.
Elisabeth DeVos née Prince
Chair of the Windquest Group, the Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation, and the American Federation for Children
•
Republican
Secretary

Betsy DeVos

Betsy DeVos's career is defined by her advocacy of school choice and vouchers, deregulating and weakening the public education system, and proliferating private charter schools without regard to outcome.

  • Has never attended public school, nor sent her children to public school, nor worked for public schools.
  • As the main driver of Michigan's school overhaul, she is partly responsible for the dismal failure of Detroit's charter school system - what Douglas N. Harris, Director of Education Research Alliance for New Orleans, economist and leading charter-based school reform researcher calls "one of the biggest school reform disasters in the country."
To Be Announced
Appointed

Chief of Staff

Half managerial, half advisory. Hires and runs the Executive Office of the President and manages communication and information flow to/from the president.

b.
1972
Dover, N.J.
Reinhold Richard Priebus
Chairman of the Republican National Committee
•
Republican

Reince Priebus

As chairman of the Republican National Convention, Priebus worked to transform the RNC in accordance with the 2012 election autopsy report, including outreach to minority communities, supporting immigration reform, and reducing the length of the presidential primary season. Upon Trump's nomination as Republican candidate, he publicly encouraged a unified party in his support.

  • Will not definitively rule out that a Muslim registry is possible.
To Be Announced
Pending Senate Approval

Environmental Protection Agency

Protects human health and the environment by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress.

b.
Unknown
Baker County, Ore.
Myron Ebell
Director of Global Warming and International Environmental Policy at CEI, Washington DC
•
Republican
Administrator

Myron Ebell

Myron Ebell poses an enormous threat to the global environment, potentially reversing decades of U.S. environmental policy that regulates the second largest polluting nation in the world.

  • Although in agreement that temperatures have risen over the last few years, Ebell remains an outspoken denier of man-made climate change and the threat it poses to our planet.
  • Trump has stated desire to close down the EPA and pull out of the Paris accords - Based on Ebell's track record, he could be a strong proponent of both.
  • With no formal scientific education, Ebell's career has been focused on removing regulation for the benefit of large corporations, not protecting the environment.
To Be Announced
Pending Senate Approval

Central Intelligence Agency

Collects, analyzes, evaluates, and disseminates foreign intelligence relating to national security.

b.
1963
Orange, Calif.
Michael Richard Pompeo
Congressman, Kansas, 4th District
•
Republican
Director of National Intelligence

Mike Pompeo

Mike Pompeo has demonstrated support for the violation for human rights both in the U.S. and abroad in an effort to keep the U.S. safe.

  • Believes Guantanamo Bay should remain open to protect the U.S. from its inmates, who have been indefinitely detained without trial and tortured. 
  • Supports the National Security Agency's surveillance programs, which include illegal interception of phone calls and internet communications of millions of Americans.
  • Has made negative blanket statements about Muslims implying their threat to the U.S., most notably during Congress in 2013 after the Boston Marathon bombing when he accused Muslim leaders for being complicit in the attacks and misrepresented their condemnation of the attack.
  • Would "roll back" the Iran nuclear deal which was intended to strengthen peace and stability in the region and in the world.
To Be Announced
Pending Senate Approval

United States Ambassador to the United Nations

Represents the United States on the U.N. Security Council during General Assembly meetings.

b.
1972
Bamberg, S.C.
Nimrata Randhawa
Governor of South Carolina
•
Republican
United States Ambassador to the UN

Nikki Haley

Nikki Haley is the first female and Indian-American to serve as governor of South Carolina. There is little information on how she would represent the U.S. as UN Ambassador, given the limited scope of her experience in foreign policy.

  • Is pro-life and supports anti-abortion legislation, which would jeopardize the U.S.' stance of an integral UN goal dedicated to ensuring universal access to information and education regarding sexual health, reproductive rights, and family planning.
  • Signed a legislative act to outlaw the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement: a Palestinian-led campaign that promotes blacklists and deals refusals with Israel until they comply with international law and acknowledge Palestinian civil rights.
  • Requested a halt for Syrian refugee resettlement in South Carolina until more extensive security checks are set in place.
To Be Announced
Appointed

Senior Counselor to the President

Has the president’s ear on all topics. Senior member of the Executive Office of the President.

b.
1953
Norfolk, Va.
Stephen Kevin Bannon
Executive Chairman of Breitbart News
•
Republican

Stephen Bannon

Stephen Bannon's anti-elite, populist values channeled through Breitbart News, documentaries, and other media have widely galvanized anti-immigration, neo-nationalist sentiment within the U.S.

  • Is a founding board member and executive chairman of Breitbart News, the self described "platform for the alt-right" widely known to publish misogynist, xenophobic, and racist material.
  • Bannon's appointment as Trump's chief strategist and senior counselor has been praised by Richard Spencer, the president white nationalist group National Policy Institute; David Duke, former Ku Klux Klan imperial wizard; and Rocky J. Suhayda, chairman of the American Nazi Party.
To Be Announced
Appointed

National Security Council

Advises and assists the President on national security and foreign policies.

b.
1958
Middletown, R.I.
Michael Thomas Flynn
Retired, previously director of the Defense Intelligence Agency
•
Democrat
National Security Advisor

Michael Flynn

The retired Army general and former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency has expressed and supported partisan attitudes toward ethnic groups that call into question his judgment as an independent military expert.

  • Has repeated incendiary anti-Islam rhetoric, and has quoted that "Islam is a political ideology…it definitely hides behind this notion of it being a religion."
  • Is a current member of the board of advisers for leading anti-Muslim hate group, ACT for America, which has pushed for legislation against Muslims and refugees.
  • Has exhibited basic contempt for international law, including the Geneva Conventions and laws prohibiting torture.
To Be Announced

Open Positions

Undecided

Department of State

Foreign affairs.

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of the Treasury

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Defense

Protect and serve!

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of the Interior

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Agriculture

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Commerce

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Labor

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Health and Human Services

Enhance and protect the health and well-being of all Americans

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Housing and Urban Development

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Transportation

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Energy

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Veteran Affairs

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of Homeland Security

b.
•
Secretary
Undecided

Department of State

Leader of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. Charged with representing the U.S. on the U.N. Security Council and during almost all plenary meetings of the General Assembly.

b.
1972
Bamberg, S.C.
Nimrata Randhawa
Governor of South Carolina
•
Republican
United States Ambassador to the UN

Nikki Haley

Nikki Haley is the first female and Indian-American to serve as governor of South Carolina. There is little information on how she would represent the U.S. as UN Ambassador, given the limited scope of her experience in foreign policy.

  • Is pro-life and supports anti-abortion legislation, which would jeopardize the U.S.' stance of an integral UN goal dedicated to ensuring universal access to information and education regarding sexual health, reproductive rights, and family planning.
  • Signed a legislative act to outlaw the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement: a Palestinian-led campaign that promotes blacklists and deals refusals with Israel until they comply with international law and acknowledge Palestinian civil rights.
  • Requested a halt for Syrian refugee resettlement in South Carolina until more extensive security checks are set in place.