Donald Trump promised to hire the best people. Then his National Security Advisor, Michael Flynn, was gone after just 24 days on the job — done in by his pillow talk with the Russians and his denial he had even been in bed with the enemy.

Today we discovered that another of Trump’s puzzling hires, Omarosa Manigault, recorded Chief of Staff John Kelly in the Situation Room — which is possibly illegal and definitely a national security no-no. I wonder how many other White House staffers have tapes. We know that Trump’s fixer, Michael Cohen, does.

Kelly himself is not without sin. He covered up White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter’s addiction to wife beating. And then denied knowledge of it. Trump has an uncanny ability to hire liars — especially as his Press Secretary.

Has anyone got off to a more notorious start than Sean Spicer? This prince of prevarication didn’t let pictorial evidence to the contrary prevent him from promoting Trump’s inauguration crowd as the largest ever. Caught in this obvious lie, he resorted to fantastical claims about online viewing or some such gibberish. And then there was the night he ran away and hid in the bushes.

But he was just the opening act for Sarah Huckabee Sanders. No one comes close in the variety of techniques she uses to not answer questions — lying, claiming she has already answered the question, calling the question or the questioner ‘dumb’ or ‘ridiculous’, claiming she hasn’t been briefed on that, directing the question to another agency or to “the President’s personal attornies”. 

Hovering ever so briefly above the Press shop as the White House Communications Director was Anthony Scaramucci. His tenure lasted 10 days and was notable mainly for an expletive-laced rant of an interview with Ryan Lizza in which he called Reince Priebus “a fucking paranoid schizophrenic, a paranoiac” and suggested he should resign. Which Reince did, having made no noticeable contribution beyond recommending Sean Spicer. 

The ‘Mooch’ also has some thoughts on Trump’s chief strategist, “I’m not Steve Bannon, I’m not trying to suck my own cock”. And three weeks later Bannon was gone — leaving in his wake Trump’s unconstitutional Muslim bans and the suggestion that Trump attribute racism to ‘many sides’ after the fatal neo-Nazi march on Charlottesville. Now Trump’s favorite racist is stirring up Europe’s white nationalists.

Assisting Bannon in his xenophobic agenda was Steve Miller. This charmer was not only up to his elbows in the Muslim bans, he was also the architect of the immigration family separation obscenity. This dyed-in-the-wool hater was mentored at Duke University by Richard Spencer, leading white nationalist and creator of the ‘alt-right’ euphemism for far-right bile-spewing. He’s still at the White House.

And let’s consider that both John Kelly and Attorney General, Jeff Sessions — the Keebler racist — also signed off on ripping families apart. Kelly because the kids would be well cared for — didn’t happen. Sessions because it was a biblical imperative — and there’s no greater sadism than religious sadism.

When not hiring liars and racists, Trump appoints the unqualified to cabinet positions. Betsy DeVos stumbled through her confirmation, famously suggesting that guns might have a role in schools to ward off grizzly bears. She believes that education should glorify God’s Kingdom. She has little use for minority protections, rape victims rights or preventing ‘for profit’ schools ripping off their students. And her yacht flies the flag of the Cayman Islands.

Another big fan of the guy in the sky is Dr. Ben Carson, the HUD Secretary. His only qualification to head the agency that runs public housing is that he once lived in public housing. He is rigid in his philosophy that, while he might have benefitted from the program, he’ll be damned if others should have it so ‘easy’.

Rounding out this troika of ignorance is Energy Secretary, Rick ‘Oops’ Perry, who didn’t even realize that his department was responsible for the nation’s nuclear stockpile. 

And what competence Trump did hire was often paired with a Marie-Antoinette sized sense of entitlement. First to show a taste for the high life, compliments of the American taxpayer, was HHS Secretary Tom Price. This lover of private jets was judged to have wasted at least $341,000 on travel upgrades.

However, Price’s excess is modest in comparison to the spending habits of erstwhile EPA Administrator Tom Pruitt — to whit, a $43,000 soundproof telephone booth, first-class travel, high-end hotels and $4.6 million for his enlarged security detail — there’s more, but you get the point. Pruitt defended his need to ride at the expensive end of the plane by citing ‘security’. Yet when he traveled home to Oklahoma on his own nickel, he always flew coach.

Pruit was also a shitty boss, blaming his staff for all manner of sins including giving huge raises to two aides he brought with him to Washington. 

Still in the cabinet is Treasury Secretary, Steve Mnuchin, who thought nothing of taking his label-loving, plebe-hating trophy wife, actress Louise Linton, on an air force jet to view the solar eclipse in Kentucky. Challenged on the expenditure, Mnuchin repaid $565 of the total cost of $26,900 to cover Linton’s travel. What a mensch. 

Mnuchin had previously aimed even higher by requesting a government jet to whisk him and the new Mrs. Mnuchin away to Europe for their honeymoon. He was shot down (figuratively). 

Interior Secretary, Ryan Zinke, has also shown a fondness for upgrading to helicopters from cars and taking government planes for no discernable Interior Department purpose. Back at his office, three interior double-doors were upgraded at a cost of $139,000. A spokesman claimed Zinke had no knowledge of the work — what, is he blind? 

Sometimes the victims of Trump hires haven’t been the taxpayers. Take Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross. He has the moral compass of his boss, as it turns out he may have swindled his partners and customers out of $120 million.

The biggest liar, cheat, fraud and expense account abuser is, of course, the man at the top – who is without equal in the number of lies told and in his exuberance for taxpayer-funded travel and leisure. And he may well also be the dumbest member of his administration. 

Trump swore he would “drain the swamp”. But instead, he brought his personal sewer to Washington.

The post “The Best”? From Flynn to Omarosa: A Litany of Trump’s Disastrous Hires appeared first on The Critical Mind.