Flooding the Zone, The Failing Infrastructure of Trump's Government

“[The president] shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States . . .” (U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section 2, Clause 2). America’s government and political system are set up like a system of water runoffs, storm drains, and dams. Stopping the power from collecting and accumulating around the president, ultimately keeping the power flowing out to the ocean that is the broader government and American people as a whole. Advice and consent is one of those storm drains. In the history of this country there have been only nine instances where the Senate rejected a president’s cabinet pick.

In Southern California it is not uncommon to experience flooding after even small amounts of rain. This is because after long periods of drought the soil becomes hard making it difficult for the water to be absorbed, leading to flash flooding. The U.S. government has gone through a long dry period where norms and bureaucracy kept things moving at a slow but steady pace. The flash flood warning sounded off during Trump’s first term but because he appointed people committed to maintaining the infrastructure of democracy, they were able to safely divert the water. The last time the Senate had to reject a president’s cabinet nominee was in 1989 - John G. Tower, George H.W. Bush’s pick for Defense Secretary. This drought has hardened the Senate. Nominating Matt Gaetz for Attorney General was the first sprinkle. Rolling right off the dry, dense soil, he didn’t even make it to a confirmation hearing. But as Trump continues to rain down on the political system and thereby the Senate, it’s beginning to soften.

During her confirmation hearing Pam Bondi could not bring herself to admit Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election, she could not answer whether or not she would follow an illegal directive from Donald Trump. Her confirmation hearing should have proved wholly disqualifying but she was in fact confirmed for Attorney General. Though extremely flawed, Marco Rubio is perhaps less unorthodox than putting a Fox News weekend host in charge of the Defense Department. Being confirmed as Secretary of State on January 20th, Rubio was the first of the rain to seep through the cracked dirt, making it more porous. Thus, creating an environment where it was possible for Pete Hegseth to trickle in behind four days later, even after he was exposed as an alcoholic and a womanizer, much like John G. Tower.

Hegseth was confirmed as Defense Secretary after being exposed for: Drinking to excess at both family gatherings and at work. He allegedly had to be dragged out of a strip club. He also paid a $50,000 settlement to a woman who accused him of rape. Beyond his personal issues, he is completely unqualified. The Defense Secretary is responsible for overseeing about 3.4 million people, but Hegseth twice proved incapable of running small nonprofit organizations - one of which had only ten employees at the time. People who worked with Hegseth at these organizations also reported him being drunk at work events and engaging in sexual misconduct. So a man with an enemies list can be the FBI director and an avid anti-vaxxer can head HHS because they’re in that sweet spot after the first few rains, when the ground is soft and can easily soak up the water. The first wave forced its way in and loosened the ground’s grip, now it is likely that the next round of cabinet picks will make their way in.

Even after a drought, when people may feel they need the rain most, the ground can only take so much before it becomes waterlogged. The American people and people around the world felt a desperate need for change. The voters viewed the incumbents as another four years of drought. A torrential downpour doesn’t fix decades without rain though; it causes, mudslides and destruction. Some of these changes do need to happen, but what Trump is attempting to do is essentially wash it all away in a catastrophic flood and attempting to rebuild from the ground up. It will be destructive, expensive and there will be casualties - especially when the people he put in charge of the rebuilding process are completely unqualified for the job.

People like John Adams knew storms were a possibility. He built storm drains, like advice and consent, to mitigate the damage they could cause. But the current Senate is making no effort to maintain the old infrastructure. Once all of Trump’s cabinet picks take office and the soil is bloated and can’t take any more, their failure will result in an epic flood. The Senate is going to wish they had maintained the storm drains while it was only drizzling.