Ron DeSantis, Joni Ernst potential Trump defense secretary nominees if Hegseth drops out: Sources

(WASHINGTON) — President-elect Donald Trump posted a flurry of announcements to his Truth Social account on Tuesday night, including the appointment of Kimberly Guilfoyle as the ambassador to Greece and Tom Barrack as the ambassador to Turkey.

Guilfoyle, a former fundraiser for Trump and a former host on Fox News, is currently in an established relationship with Donald Trump Jr.

In announcing her position, Trump wrote, “For many years, Kimberly has been a close friend and ally. Her extensive experience and leadership in law, media, and politics along with her sharp intellect make her supremely qualified to represent the United States, and safeguard its interests abroad.”

The post also stated, “Kimberly is perfectly suited to foster strong bilateral relations with Greece, advancing our interests on issues ranging from defense cooperation to trade and economic innovation.”

Tom Barrack is Trump’s longtime friend who chaired his first inaugural committee — and he was notably acquitted of federal charges accusing him of illegal foreign lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.

Barrack was charged during the first Trump administration and campaign, in 2021. During his trial, he was accused by federal prosecutors of acting as a foreign agent but failing to register between 2016 and 2018 while allegedly trying to “leverage his access” to Trump with his contacts in the UAE.

A jury found him not guilty on all charges — which also included conspiracy, obstruction and lying to the FBI — in November 2022.

Trump praised Barrack’s acquittal at the time, saying in a statement: “Great news for our Country, Freedom, and Democracy in that businessman Tom Barrack, who should have never been charged or tried, was just acquitted of all charges.”

Barrack’s testimony during the trial was at times critical of Trump. He said on the witness stand that his support for Trump politically was “disastrous” for him professionally, at one point mocking Trump’s understanding of the Middle East.

“This amazingly good businessman became the president of the United States who could not spell the Middle East,” Barrack said.

Asked about his criticism of Trump at the time of the acquittal, Barrack told ABC News: “I’m just done with politics.”

In announcing his ambassadorship to Turkey on Tuesday, Trump said that Barrack is “a well respected and experienced voice of reason.”

The president-elect also announced roles at the Federal Trade Commission. He named Andrew Ferguson as chairman and Mark Meador as commissioner.

“Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country. Sworn in as a Commissioner on April 2, 2024, he will be able to fight on behalf of the American People on Day One of my Administration,” Trump wrote in his announcement.

The post continued, “Andrew will be the most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our Country’s History.”

For Meador, Trump listed a series of degrees and accomplishments in the announcement post.

At the Office of Management and Budget, Trump announced Congressman Dan Bishop as deputy director and Ed Martin as the chief of staff.

For Bishop, he posted, “Dan has been a tireless fighter for our MAGA Movement in the House of Representatives on the Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees. Dan will implement my cost-cutting and deregulatory agenda across all Agencies, and root out the Weaponized Deep State.”

“Ed is a winner who will help Make America Great Again!” he wrote for Martin.

Lastly, Trump announced that Jacob Helberg will serve as undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment at the State Department.

In his post on Truth Social, Trump said, “In this role Jacob will be a champion of our America First Foreign Policy. He will guide State Department policy on Economic statecraft, promoting America’s Economic security and growth, and American technological dominance abroad. Jacob is a successful technology executive, has the knowledge, expertise, and pragmatism to defend America’s Economic interests abroad, and always puts AMERICA FIRST!”

Helberg is a former Democrat who went from being a little-known tech adviser to a rising star in Trump’s circles, known largely as a China hawk and as a major proponent of the bill that may lead to banning TikTok in the U.S.

He’s a commissioner for the U.S.-China Economic Security Review Commission, and he helped shore support on Capitol Hill for the bill that would ban TikTok if it’s not sold from its Chinese parent company by Jan. 19, 2025.

After Biden signed the TikTok bill into law earlier this year, Helberg posted photos of himself with several powerful members of Congress, including Speaker Mike Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, thanking them for being “truly outstanding people who can come together when our security is at stake.”

Helberg called TikTok a “Chinese weapon of war” in August, and he previously published a book titled, “The Wires of War.” The 2021 book is about tech-fueled wars shaping the world’s balance of power in the coming century, arguing that “without a firm partnership with the government, Silicon Valley is unable to protect democracy from the autocrats looking to sabotage it from Beijing to Moscow and Tehran.”

Helberg’s harsh criticism of TikTok could clash with Trump’s vow to “save” TikTok, even though Trump tried to ban the app during his first administration.

Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance “have laid out an aggressive agenda to face the twin convulsions of technological and geopolitical change, and ensure America wins the economic contests that define this century,” Helberg wrote on X after Trump announced his appointment on Tuesday.

“The State Department will play a critical role in acting on this vision,” his post continued. “I look forward to earning the support of the U.S. Senate and working with @MarcoRubio to implement President Trump’s agenda.”

In previous years, Helberg and his husband were “significant supporters” of Ron DeSantis and then reportedly shifted fundraising support to Nikki Haley in 2023.

By midway through the following year, however, Helberg had personally contributed $844,600 to the Trump 47 Committee, Inc. and another $1 million to the Make America Great Again, Inc. super PACs, according to filing data made available by the FEC.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Amid mounting frustration from centrist voters and shifting party coalitions, one group thinks it has the solution to making parties and political candidates: comprehensive election reform.

Unite America, a philanthropic venture fund, is in the middle of a yearslong effort to support ballot initiatives that would fundamentally alter the way candidates are elected. Rather than hold party primaries, some of which independent voters can’t partake in, states would hold one large primary for all candidates for a race. Then, general election voters would be able to sift through winners in some form, including a ranked choice system or a competition between the top two vote getters.

In an interview with ABC News, Unite America Executive Director Nick Troiano said the system is intended to make the general election the race of consequence rather than low-turnout primaries in safe red or blue areas, making candidates accountable to voters of all stripes.

“If you’re a candidate, the advantage is you’re no longer only having to appeal to one side. You can talk to all the voters, and then all the voters can vote for whomever they want,” Troiano said.

“It’s really about trying to make the general election the election of consequence, meaning the primary, everybody can vote, everybody can run, but it winnows down to just a few candidates in a general election, when most people vote, should really be when the decision is made.”

The reform movement is ramping up at a time of transformation for both parties. Democrats, smarting from Vice President Kamala Harris’ loss, are looking to make a brand more palatable to working-class voters. And Republicans are expected to be tied even closer to President-elect Donald Trump after his win this month.

But the election reform efforts are coming off a rough election cycle.

Voters in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and South Dakota shot down ballot initiatives that would have instituted all-party primaries rather than contests grouping candidates of one party together. The effort marked a setback given rising conversations around other democracy-related issues like gerrymandering.

Troiano conceded the defeats, noting spending from both parties against the ballot initiatives and insisting that progress is not anticipated to be “linear.” Unite America’s advisors include those who worked on the marriage equality movement, which saw several states ban the practice in the 2004 election cycle but only to see same-sex marriage become federally legalized in 2015.

“Sometimes it’s two steps forward, one step back. But that’s how any movement that has made meaningful change in our country has worked. And so, we’re disappointed but not deterred from this mission,” Troiano said.

Some states already have versions of what Unite America is proposing.

Voters in 2022 implemented all-party primaries followed by ranked-choice general elections. Maine already has ranked choice voting. And other states like California and Louisiana institute so-called jungle primaries, which hold all-party primaries and then send the top two candidates to the general election if no contender hits 50%.

Rising independent voter registrations give Troiano hope that momentum will build for the reforms Unite America is pushing.

In the meantime, the group will conduct more research, link up with interest groups and push more ballot measures, Troiano said.

And, Unite America insists, both parties can benefit.

Democratic strategists have theorized that Harris lost this year’s presidential race because of a brand that was viewed as too far to the left — a reputation that could be confirmed by party primaries fueled by the most liberal voters. And Republicans have ceded ground in the suburbs, historically GOP power bases, with a reputation too firmly tied to Trump.

Democratic senators-elect who scored victories in Trump-won states were able to establish brands detached from that of the national party, and the only two Republican House members who impeached Trump left standing — California Rep. David Valadao and Washington Rep. Dan Newhouse — use all party primaries.

“I think both parties have a medium to long-term advantage in these reforms because it will help them nominate more mainstream candidates,” Troiano said. “Both parties have a declining market share of the electorate as independents continue to grow, so it is to their advantage to think about ways to broaden their appeal.”

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(WASHINGTON) — From a multimillion-dollar law firm payout to six-figure endorsements and book deals, President Donald Trump’s nominee for health and human services secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., raked in at least $12 million in total income in the past two years, new personal financial disclosure forms show.

Kennedy boasted a vast amount of wealth across various investment funds, bank accounts and real estate properties totaling between $8.6 million to $33.4 million. However, he also reported a staggering amount of liabilities — between $3.4 million and $12.7 million — which could put him in the red on paper.

Kennedy’s liabilities include up to $1.2 million in credit card debt to American Express at a 23% revolving interest rate and three 30-year mortgages worth up to $10.5 million, according to the filing.

The exact values of his total assets and liabilities are unclear because federal financial disclosures are reported in ranges.

A major chunk of Kennedy’s income since 2023 was his nearly $9 million payout from his law firm Kennedy & Madonna LLP, which is now called Madonna & Madonna LLP after Kennedy resigned last week.

His main source of income from the past year stemmed from hefty referral fees from multiple law firms, arrangements which Kennedy noted in his ethics agreement that he will terminate upon his confirmation. However, he stated he plans to retain a contingency fee interest in cases that do not involve the U.S. government.

In his ethics agreement, Kennedy disclosed that among the cases he has referred to the Wisner Baum law firm are claims filed under the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP), from which he said he will divest his interest.

Kennedy, who has been a vocal supporter of cryptocurrency and has spoken at multiple Bitcoin conventions, also reported owning between $1 million to $5 million in Fidelity’s Bitcoin fund, the filing shows.

Kennedy also disclosed smaller holdings in biotech companies Dragonfly Therapeutics and CRISPR Therapeutics AG, as well as in other companies like Progressive Corp, Amazon and Apple, from which he said he plans to divest after his confirmation.

Credit card debt potentially doubled in 6 months

Kennedy’s credit card debt potentially doubled in just six months, a comparison of his liabilities in his new disclosure filing and his disclosure from last year suggest.

In July 2024, Kennedy, as a presidential candidate, disclosed having credit card debts to American Express worth $360,004 to $715,000, at roughly 23% revolving interest rate.

In his latest disclosure submitted in late December 2024 and publicly released today, Kennedy’s American Express debts snowballed into between $610,000 and $1.2 million.

It’s unclear how much, exactly, his credit card debt increased in the past few months because liabilities are reported in ranges, but the latest disclosure shows his debts have potentially grown exponentially.

Money from book deals

Kennedy is set to earn millions from multiple book deals, including up to $4 million in advances for books titled “Unsettled Science” and “A Defense for Israel.” Kennedy also earned $1,000 for an advance for a book titled “Vax-UnVax: Let the Science Speak.”

According to his disclosure, two of the three books have already been written prior to his nomination, and he does not plan to engage in “writing, editing, marketing, or promotional services” while serving as HHS Secretary.

Kennedy earned little income from the fourteen books he has already published – such as “American Values: Lessons I Learned from my Family” and “Vaccine Villains: What the American Public Should Know about the Industry” — making less than $200 from each title, according to the disclosure form.

Money from endorsements

Kennedy earned $100,000 from his endorsement of a boxing ball game called Boxbollen in a video he posted on his social media accounts last month, though he returned $50,000 after cancelling the contract following his nomination as health and human services secretary.

“Mr. Kennedy had a pre-existing contract prior to his nomination, after posting the video – he realized it was best to delete it and cancel the contract,” a source close to Kennedy told ABC News in November.

Kennedy also earned $200,000 in speaking fees during three days in November, speaking at the Rockbridge Fall Summit in Las Vegas — organized by a conservative donor network co-founded by Vice President JD Vance – and Genius Network Annual Event in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Hollywood money

Kennedy also disclosed dozens of sources of compensation from his wife Cheryl Hines, an actress best known for her role on HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

In addition to that show, Hines earns residual payments from multiple films and television shows including “Friends,” “Herbie,” “Waitress,” “The Conners,” “The Flight Attendant” and “A Bad Moms Christmas.”

Hines also received a $600,000 advance payment for her memoir “My Shade of Crazy.”

Oil rights, properties in Chicago

As was disclosed in his previous financial disclosure from his 2024 presidential bid, Kennedy had previously owned oil and gas rights in Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida but sold them in the past year, netting roughly $55,000 from the sales, according to the filing.

He also reported owning commercial properties in Chicago worth between $700,000 and $1.5 million.

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