Will They “Agree To Disagree”?

5 days and counting before the big day that so many are looking forward to…..Trump will become president instead of president-elect.  (Let the peasants dance)

He, Trump, has been putting together his cabinet and now these people are going though Congressional scrutiny to determine if they are the right people for their designated jobs…..

If you are a supporter of the new lord high ruler then you may be aware of his positions on certain issues (somehow I doubt this but there could be a miracle in there)….but there is a slight problem brewing….some of these appointees are not holding to the line that Trump laid forth during his campaign…..

One of the themes emerging from coverage of this week’s confirmation hearings is points on which Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees have disagreed with him on major issues. Examples from the New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal:

  1. Retired Gen. James Mattis, the defense chief nominee, “classified Russia as the principal threat to the US and expressed little hope that Washington would develop a substantive partnership with Moscow, as Mr. Trump has suggested.” (The Journal)
  2. Mattis also said the US must abide by the “imperfect ­arms-control agreement” with Iran that Trump has threatened to dismantle because “when America gives her word, we have to live up to it and work with our allies.” (The Post)
  1. Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson’s comments on climate change didn’t sync with Trump’s prior statements that it is a hoax, saying America must “maintain its seat at the table on the conversations around how to address the threats of climate change, which do require a global response.” (The Post)
  2. Retired Marine Corps Gen. John F. Kelly, picked to lead Homeland Security, didn’t sound enthused about Trump’s plan for a border wall with Mexico. “A physical barrier in and of itself will not do the job,” he said, adding, “it has to be really a layered defense.” (The Times)
  3. Trump has said he would bring back waterboarding, but his pick to run the CIA, Mike Pompeo, is opposed. Pompeo said he would “absolutely not” follow orders from the president to use the interrogation technique. (The Journal)
  1. Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions also called waterboarding illegal, and, when asked about Trump’s proposed ban on Muslim immigrants (one he has since modified to refer to troubled nations, not religion) said, “I have no belief, and I do not support the idea that Muslims, as a religious group, should be denied admission to the United States.” (The Times)

On Friday morning, Trump himself didn’t sound concerned about the disagreements. “All of my Cabinet [nominees] are looking good and doing a great job,” he tweeted. “I want them to be themselves and express their own thoughts, not mine!”

The last line shows maturity….(if you believe that sort of con job)………but there is a problem with it….these people serve at the leisure of the president….basically that means to put it simply….do it my way or hit the highway.

Who will win this battle?

We will see who has principles and who is a spineless toad……my guess would be the later.

Is Kanye Really That Important?

Last week one of the big stories the media just had to cover was something earth shaking…..President-elect Trump had a meeting with celeb Kanye West.  Why would our president waste his valuable time meeting with a loud mouth douche that only wants attention…oh wait…we elected such a person…..

Just in case you were part of the group fascinated by Kayne then you missed some pretty amazing stories……because the media just had to report on some mundane bullshit that meant NOTHING in the grand scheme of things……

1. Drug overdose deaths have surpassed gun deaths and car accidents: It emerged this week that according to data from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), drug overdose deaths, largely driven by the nation’s ongoing opiate epidemic, have soared in the last year. Though heart disease is still the leading killer in the United States, over 55,000 Americans have died from drugs. The staggering figure comes even as the federal government has stepped up its efforts to combat opiate addiction, which have apparently failed to curb the health crisis brought on largely by pharmaceutical companies, the FDA, and overzealous doctors. This data suggests American’s aren’t getting their money’s worth: the DEA’s budget is almost $3 billion — but they’re still concerned about not being able to arrest people for weed.

2. Journalist calls CIA’s bluff on Russian hack claims: One angle the media has made sure to perpetuate is its unsubstantiated narrative that Russia hacked the U.S. presidential election. Over the last week, mainstream headlines have promoted the CIA’s anonymous claims of ‘Russian infiltration’ as fact, but while that story has received widespread attention, journalistic attempts to challenge it have not. Nevertheless, Jeremy Scahill, investigative journalist and author of Dirty Wars, offered a chance for the intelligence community to prove its claims. “U.S. intelligence agencies have repeatedly demonstrated that they regularly both lie and get things horribly wrong. In this case they may well be correct, but they cannot expect Americans to simply take their word for it,” Scahill wrote for The Intercept, pointing out the CIA’s own history of tampering with foreign elections and, worse, overthrowing elected leaders. Scahill effectively called the agency’s bluff and offered individuals within it a chance to validate the claims. “[I]f it comes to pass that the U.S. government refuses to back up these serious claims with evidence, then perhaps a patriotic whistleblower will do the public an important service,” he wrote, providing a link to The Intercept’s secure drop. One would think a media apparatus concerned with unearthing the facts about Russia’s involvement would promote an effort to substantiate their claims — claims other agencies have since disputed.

3. Man acquitted of charges of shooting at cops: After awaiting trial behind bars for nearly two years, this week Texan Ray Rosas was acquitted of attempted capital murder and aggravated assault charges against three police officers who incorrectly raided his home. The prosecution opted to drop those charges while retaining the counts of aggravated assault. But as local Corpus Christi outlet KRISTVreported, “The defense argued Rosas did not know he was firing at police, after SWAT actions were not carried out simultaneously and he was disoriented by a flash-bang grenade going off in his bedroom.” The jury acquitted Rosas of the remaining charges, setting a precedent that police should face consequences for incompetence and overzealous raid tactics (a similar scenario unfolded in Texas in 2014). Notable examples of police misconduct during raids include a baby who was seriously injured by a flash grenade that landed in its crib, as well as dogs killed by officers raiding the wrong homes. Considering SWAT raids have been on the rise in recent years — and according to the ACLU, 80 percent have been for search warrants — this court case is especially timely.

4. Lawmakers introduce “Stop Arming Terrorists” legislation: Late last week, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard introduced legislation with Rep. Thomas Massie and others calling on the U.S. government to stop arming, funding, and aiding terrorist organizations. Massie says the bill “would prohibit the U.S. government from using American taxpayer dollars to provide funding, weapons, training, and intelligence support to terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS, or to countries who are providing direct or indirect support to those same groups.” Indeed, the U.S. has long been arming al-Qaeda-linked rebels in Syria; Gabbard used mainstream outlets like the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times to support her claims. Though the news emerged before Trump and Kanye met, it’s doubtful the story would have garnered much mainstream attention, anyway — after all, it does not fit the Western narrative on Syria.

5. Chaos in Aleppo, Syria: This week, the mainstream media has focused intensely on ongoing events in Aleppo, Syria, which is largely considered ground zero in the Syrian civil war. Though the area has been held by rebels since 2012, a recent onslaught by Russia and the Syrian government has further endangered the lives of civilians, which corporate media has thoroughly covered. But what the media isn’t reporting is that, as Gabbard and Massie are attempting to highlight, the rebels in Aleppo aren’t all freedom-fighting liberators. Many are as extreme as ISIS and seek to impose extremist interpretations of Islam. Still, the media is quoting these U.S.-backed rebels as reliable sources — the same ones who, for example, beheaded a ten-year-old child over the summer (the U.S. stopped backing that group in 2015).

Because Syria is too dangerous for many reporters to visit on the ground, much of the reporting is comprised of second-hand accounts. Russian, Syrian, and Iranian outlets sing the praises of the Putin-Assad-led offensive, neglecting to acknowledge how many innocent civilians are dying in the process. On the flip side, Western media is attempting to perpetuate the false dichotomy that because Russia and Syria are bad, the rebels and the U.S. are forces of good. Still, Western media frequently cites the Syrian Observatory on Human Rights — run by a Syrian expat who runs a t-shirt shop in England — to further its claims. While the motives driving media narratives are convoluted and difficult to decipher, however, there are ways to help those in need. Donate to organizations like Doctors without Borders, the International Rescue Committee, and Hand in Hand for Syria, which focus on directly aiding civilians.

This incident is why the MSM, and I am talking about ALL the media that focuses on bullshit while the world burns, is complacent in the dumbing down of America….helping the movie “Idiocracy” become reality.

What’s Good For The Goose……

I have been waiting for our new el presidente to offer up his choices for our foreign policy and national security apparatus…..to say that I am disappointed in his choice for SecState would be an understatement….(of which I wrote and posted earlier today)

And then I got word of his choice for national security adviser……

The man Donald Trump has selected to be his top national security adviser “inappropriately shared” classified information with military officers from friendly countries while he was serving in Afghanistan. According to Army documents obtained by the Washington Post under a Freedom of Information Act request, Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn was investigated in 2010 after a Navy intelligence officer complained that he had shared secrets with “various foreign military officers and/or officials in Afghanistan.” Sources tell the Post that Flynn, who has admitted being investigated for sharing information with British and Australian officers, shared material with classified information about CIA operations in Afghanistan.

Flynn wasn’t disciplined over the security breach because it wasn’t done knowingly and “there was no actual or potential damage to national security as a result,” according to the Army documents. The Hill notes that Flynn said earlier this year that he wasn’t ashamed of “sharing intelligence in combat with our closest allies” and that the investigation found he had the correct clearances—which does not appear to have been the case. The Post reports that at this year’s Republican National Convention, Flynn, who retired from the military in 2014, led chants of “lock her up” after attacking Hillary Clinton for using a private email server. “If I, a guy who knows this business, if I did a tenth, a tenth of what she did, I would be in jail today,” he said

This guy is a loud mouth douche…..but that is my personal opinion of the man….my problem is a person like Gen. Patraeus gets caught passing vital info to a lover and biographer and he gets a misdemeanor and this guy passes info to foreign governments and he gets a high office in the Trump regime.

During the election process Mr. Trump said that he “knew more than the generals”….and yet he is surrounding himself with generals….and there is my problem….too many generals running a civilian government…..once a general always a general….there are many NatSec experts that were not in the military….those resources should be tapped….let old soldiers fade away…..

I am slowly thinking that the transition from war footing to one of sanity is sliding away.

Tea For The Tillerson

Tillerson?  How many are scratching their heads wondering what the Hell I am going on about?  Kinda reminds me of an album by some guy who use to go by the name of Cat Stevens…..but this something more serious.

Rex Tillerson is the appointee by Trump for SecState….he, Trump, interviewed many for the position…Romney, Rudy, Mr. 9/11 and others….first I think Romney was interviewed just to make him jump through hoops because he did not support Trump from the beginning……Rudy was just a pat on the back for being an incoherent pundit during the election…..but Tillerson?  Who the Hell thought he was a good idea?

Good question and there is an answer……

Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state wasn’t exactly his—at least not initially. Just two weeks ago, Trump was torn in trying to choose from one of four leading contenders: Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Bob Corker, or David Petreaus. Then the name of Rex Tillerson surfaced. The Washington Post reports that while a stymied Trump was speaking with former defense chief Robert Gates, he asked Gates if he had a different name to suggest. “I recommend Rex,” responded Gates. The previous day, former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice floated Tillerson’s name in a meeting with Mike Pence. Rice and Gates are partners in the international consulting firm RiceHadleyGates, and they know Tillerson because ExxonMobil is a client.

Trump “seemed intrigued,” Gates tells the Post. “It was not something he had considered.” CNN reports that Stephen Hadley, former national security adviser to George W. Bush and the third name in that consulting group, also expressed his support for Tillerson to Pence. Former secretary of state James Baker, who knows Tillerson because his firm has represented ExxonMobil on various business deals, similarly voiced support. Trump then met with Tillerson twice. “As soon as he met him, he told people that Tillerson is the kind of guy that walks in a room and commands respect,” a transition official tells Politico. Trump “liked Romney, liked Rudy, but Tillerson was a stronger guy. He liked his strength.” In statements on Tuesday, both Rice and Gates said they were thrilled by Trump’s pick.

All Exxon cronies must stick together….it is the code of cretins on the Right.  Kinda like Cheney and the Halliburton connection….this is how the “elites” roll.

I just realized that the American people have NO idea who has been appointed by Trump to fill the many positions in the government…..so being an upstanding sort of guy I give you the list…..

An index of those appointed to high-level positions in Trump’s Cabinet, the White House and key agencies.

Source: Who Is In The Trump Cabinet, Sub-Cabinet And White House Staff : NPR

You are welcome….for now you have NO excuse for being ignorant.  But then some do not an excuse, huh?

SecState–Good News/Bad News

I admit it….I am a foreign policy wonk….I believe that we can tell a lot about a future government when we see who the new prez puts his faith in for the top diplomat spot on his cabinet, Secretary of State….

I have said all along that I would wait to see where Pres. Trump put his trust when it came to the SecState position.

So far I have not been very impressed with his choices in other arenas…too many generals and billionaires to my liking.

But I did get some good news over the weekend…..Rudy, Mr. 9/11, withdrew from the SecState position……

You can whittle Donald Trump’s long list of Secretary of State candidates down a bit: Rudy Giuliani has pulled his name out of contention, per Trump’s transition team. “Rudy Giuliani is an extraordinarily talented and patriotic American. I will always be appreciative of his 24/7 dedication to our campaign after I won the primaries and for his extremely wise counsel,” Trump said in a statement Friday. “He is and continues to be a close personal friend, and as appropriate, I will call upon him for advice and can see an important place for him in the administration at a later date. … Rudy would have been an outstanding member of the Cabinet in several roles, but I fully respect and understand his reasons for remaining in the private sector.” Giuliani will stay on as vice chairman of Trump’s transition team, per CNN.

As Politico puts it, the former New York mayor “had previously publicly campaigned for the post,” and it’s unclear why he’s pulled out of the running for not just Secretary of State but any position in Trump’s administration, a move the transition team said happened on Nov. 29. Reince Priebus, who will be Trump’s chief of staff, said Giuliani had been fully vetted for any potential conflicts of interest and “passed with flying colors,” and that his business ties had nothing to do with his withdrawal. Giuliani said in a statement that he still “[looks] forward to helping the President-elect in any way he deems necessary and appropriate.” His biggest rival for the Secretary of State post was thought to be Mitt Romney; other possibilities include Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson, retired Adm. James Stavridis, Sen. Bob Corker, and former Ford CEO Alan Mulally.

I did not like the idea of Rudy for this position because of his ties through his consulting firm to foreign governments…..besides I think he is close to being senile.

Now for the bad news…..our new prez has made his choice for SecState…….it appears……

NBC News, the Washington Post, and other outlets are reporting that Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson will be the next secretary of state. Two sources close to Donald Trump say the president-elect is going to nominate Tillerson, likely next week—though nothing is official until he does. Tillerson apparently jumped ahead of other candidates like Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani, who withdrew himself from consideration. Tillerson, who has been head of Exxon since 2004, has a “close business relationship” with Vladimir Putin.

The Post notes that Tillerson’s work in Russia on behalf of Exxon is likely to result in “intense scrutiny” during the confirmation process. Heavy has a list of five things to know about Tillerson, including that he opposes sanctions against Russia, has no experience as a diplomat or in government, and has said the world will keep using fossil fuels “whether they like it or not.”

More on the bad news front…..uber war monger, John Bolton will be Tillerson’s deputy………so we will have a billionaire and a neocon running the State Department…..what could go wrong there?

Source: Report: Trump Chooses Tillerson for State and Picks Bolton as His Deputy | The American Conservative

I think it is a bad choice because of his, Tillerson, close ties to Russia, Putin to more exact, plus he has zero experience acting as a diplomat….plus he is a energy CEO that could be disastrous for the US in international negotiations.

The plutocracy takes shape……

“HUD”

Nope…not a misspell of the movie starring Paul Newman…..this one stands for “Housing and Urban Development”……

It appears that PEOTUS Trump has made his pick for this agency…..a person that earlier said that he was not qualified for a cabinet post and has said that he is not sure why he ran for president…..that person is Ben Carson……

Ben Carson is Donald Trump’s pick to run the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The president-elect made the announcement Monday morning, praising the retired neurosurgeon’s “brilliant mind,” reports Politico. “We have talked at length about my urban renewal agenda and our message of economic revival, very much including our inner cities,” said Trump. Carson, 65, has never held public office, but he has said his own experience growing up in poverty in Detroit would give him insight into this role. In his previous public comments on federal housing, he has criticized the Obama administration’s efforts as “social engineering,” notes the New York Times. In particular, he wrote an op-ed last year criticizing an anti-segregration rule and comparing it unfavorably to federal busing.

“I am honored to accept the opportunity to serve our country in the Trump administration,” said Carson, who became one of Trump’s most prominent backers after dropping out of the GOP primary race. In the role at HUD, Carson “will be enlisted to serve as Trump’s unofficial envoy to African-Americans,” says the Washington Post, even though, as with the 2015 op-ed, he appears to hold positions at odds with groups such as the NAACP. While some critics wonder why someone with a background in health would be a fit for public housing, an analysis at the Atlantic takes note of a growing consensus that housing is, in fact, a public health issue, especially in terms of children.

Someone is smoking some stiff stuff!

I still do not understand why he, Trump, keeps picking people that obviously do not have an ounce of experience in the fields he is putting them in……since Carson was a doctor I would understand him as surgeon-general or the head of HHS…..but HUD?

Yet another conspiracist in the cabinet…..looks like it is gonna be a long 4 years.

Looky Looky Who Wants To Be A Czar

We have been watching as Pres.-elect Trump has been meeting this person and that….he is in search for key positions within his new government…and then there are those charges of nepotism…you know using his kids and family to load up the government positions….personally I think he is smarter than that….but there is one person in his family that might be a good choice.

The position is the new “climate czar” and the person is his daughter…..say what?

Politico is out with an interesting feature on Ivanka Trump that points out she might be the first “first daughter” in history to eclipse the first lady in influence. But perhaps the most intriguing part of the story is that it says she is planning to make climate change one of her “signature issues.” While the president-elect considers the issue to be mostly bunk, Ivanka Trump disagrees, and a source tells Politico that she’s already planning on how to make use of her public profile to push the issue. “If she can pull it off, her advocacy could come as a bit of solace to fearful Americans,” writes Annie Karni. She adds that nobody is closer to Donald Trump than Ivanka, who remains in relatively good standing in elite liberal circles.

Meanwhile, an analysis at the New York Times might also soothe fears of those who think a Trump White House will be disastrous in terms of progress on global warming. The gist of the piece by Eduardo Porter suggests that even if Trump reneges on last year’s Paris accord and kills Obama programs such as the Clean Power Plan, the momentum toward cleaner energy is impossible to stop. He cites a report by the Breakthrough Institute that suggests the importance of international treaties may be overstated when it comes to reducing carbon. The takeaway: “As long as [Trump] keeps the nation’s nuclear power plants online, continues tax incentives for wind and solar energy, and stays out of the way of the shale energy revolution, ‘the US might outperform the commitments that the Obama administration made in Paris,'” say the researchers.

Would she be a better choice?  It depends…she will have her daddy’s ear and she thinks the climate change is a coming problem….it should work out for the better.

She has taken to meeting with Al Gore on the climate thingy….maybe she is serious…..

Ivanka Trump is meeting Monday with climate change activist and former vice president Al Gore.

The President-elect’s daughter, who reportedly wants to make global warming one of her signature issues, will meet with Gore at Trump Tower in Manhattan, according to transition spokesman Jason Miller.

Source: Ivanka Trump to meet with Al Gore | TheHill

Of course all this is speculative until he announces his choice….but it is a damn sight better than one of the toads that hates science.

Thoughts?

DoD, You Have A Leader

I have been waiting for two appointments made by PEOTUS Trump, SecDef and SecState these will be very telling in our pursuit of a Trump foreign policy.

SecState has been a yo-yo, a game of appearances and so far nothing of substance….but SecDef had been a relative silent choice….that is until yesterday….an unofficial official announcement was made that a choice had been made…..Gen. Mattis for SecDef….

Sources tell the Washington Post that Donald Trump has picked a “Mad Dog” for secretary of defense. That’s just one of the nicknames held by retired Marine Gen. James Mattis, who CNN notes is also known as the “Warrior Monk.” Apart from spending four decades with the Marines, Mattis was recently the chief of US Central Command—a role in which he clashed with President Obama over Iran—and spent time as the supreme allied commander of transformation for NATO. John McCain has called Mattis “one of the finest military officers of his generation and an extraordinary leader.” He has a “cult-like following” among infantry Marines and soldiers, the Military Times reports.

“He speaks truth to everyone and would certainly speak truth to this new commander in chief,” a former Pentagon official tells the Post. Mattis has raised eyebrows—to say the least—in the past with quotes such as “It’s fun to shoot some people” and, “Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.” Trump has called him the “real deal.” Mattis would require a special waiver from Congress before being confirmed because he’s been a civilian for less than seven years. Despite a Trump transition spokesperson saying no decision has been made, Donald Trump Jr. tweeted that Mattis was offered the gig and an official announcement is expected next week.

Mattis sees Putin in a different light as Trump…will this be a point of contention between the two?

Trump, himself, made the appointment official in his Victory Tour he began yesterday….however there is a slight problem…you see he has been out of the military for 3 years and the law is it must be 7….he will need a waiver….which he will probably get for Congress is controlled…..but there may be some push back from the Dems…..just to be a pain in his ass.

What Is ‘Ethno-Nationalism’?

For at least a decade there have been accusations thrown around by the two so-called parties about each others agendas…..on the Right they seem to prefer the term “socialist” without knowing exactly what a socialist is all about…..and then on the Left they want to use the term “racist” or Fascist”……In my opinion both are wrong….so wrong….

After his election, Trump made his campaign dude, Bannon, his adviser….which was a smart move for the position does not need Congressional confirmation…..but once he was named the terms started flying around like flies on a turd.

This article appears in The American Conservative (yes I read that publication….surprise….surprise)…..

According to recent reports in the mainstream media, Steve Bannon is a supporter of “ethno-nationalism,” and that is scary. It is also, since everything the left doesn’t like is slapped with this label, “racist.” Sometimes, the word “white” is thrown in the mix of charges to make them extra scary, as in this tweet from the Southern Poverty Law Center. (If Bannon is a “white nationalist,” what work is “ethno” doing in that tweet? Or if he is really an “ethno-nationalist,” why is “white” thrown in except as a propaganda technique?)

To make their point, people are citing quotes from Bannon like this one: “‘When two-thirds or three-quarters of the C.E.O.s in Silicon Valley are from South Asia or from Asia, I think …’ he said, trailing off midsentence before continuing a moment later, ‘a country is more than an economy. We’re a civic society.’”

Source: What Is ‘Ethno-Nationalism’? | The American Conservative

I am not sure that I will agree with their conclusions but I felt that they needed some exposure…..it still sounds like a code word to me…

If I had heard this piece on audio only I would have sworn that was a piece by Pat Buchanan.

Below is an op-ed, not mine, on some afterthoughts of the Trump victory….

I was in the lobby of a theatre this week after the election, having an honest talk about Donald Trump. A lady came over to me and my friends and whispered, “keep your voice down or you’ll get arrested.” I told her she was being ridiculous and she responded that we all had to be careful. He would arrest his critics. I understand some people are upset. I’m upset. But paranoia leads to isolation. The worst thing we can do is silence ourselves, to act as if the danger is worse than it is. There are real problems. Let’s not pretend to have problems that don’t exist.

So what is the situation that shows itself in the election of Donald Trump?

Source: What Comes After Denial? Thoughts on Donald Trump’s Movement – Amor Mundi – Medium

Who Will Lead The VA?

Nothing is more needed than supreme leadership for our millions of veterans…..the VA is tasked with making sure that our vets get the best service and care possible.

So far I have not been impressed with the choices our new prez has been making for his new government….I see very little change from the days of Obama…he has made dismal choices so far in my opinion…..

Word has leaked out on just who he may task to lead the VA…it is a person that cannot finish a job once it is started……a person with more mouth than clout.

Does Donald Trump have a big job lined up for loyal supporter Sarah Palin? The former Alaska governor is a candidate to head the Department of Veterans Affairs, a Palin aide and a Trump transition team official tell ABC, which notes that the VA is the largest government agency, with more than 300,000 employees. USA Today reports that Palin appears to be very keen: In a Facebook post Wednesday, she praised Trump as a “commander-in-chief who will champion our vets.” She also shared a video from her SarahPAC political action committee on her ideas to fix the agency’s problems, along with an endorsement from son-in-law Dakota Meyer, a Medal of Honor recipient who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Chicago Tribune reports.

A spokesman for Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan tells Alaska Dispatch News that the senator would like to see Palin head the VA. “Alaska has more veterans per capita than any other state, making this position critically important for our state,” he says. Palin would be the first non-veteran in the role, though her son Track Palin is an Iraq veteran. ABC notes that former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown, who spent 35 years in the Army National Guard, is also being considered for the post and, unlike Palin, has visited Trump Tower for meetings. Rep. Jeff Miller and Gen. Keith Kellogg have also been connected to the role.

If this is truly Trump’s choice then it will make me sick.  A loud mouth without guts or principles…..to look after our veterans.

I believe that only someone that has actually served in the military can know just what are the needs of a veterans.  I thought is Sen Chuck Hagel he is a conservative and has actually fought in a war and served as a soldier.

Palin’s service to Alaska only lasted a half term before she cut and ran…..the VA needs people of conviction and courage….of which she has NEITHER!