Tulsi Gabbard, Pam Bondi and Kristi Noem all have something in common besides their loyalty to MAGA – they’re all former Trump Cabinet members who have been replaced by men.
Staff shakeups are nothing new when it comes to President Donald Trump, whose first administration set a record for executive office departures. But nearly a year and a half into his second term, the turnover among Cabinet officials has been historic, according to a recent Washington Post analysis — because so far, the departures have all been women.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was the first to go after she was fired in March after a contentious Senate hearing about her federal immigration enforcement practices. Her dismissal set off a string of other high-profile departures, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer and, most recently, National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard.
Gabbard said she was stepping down June 30 to take care of her husband, who has a rare cancer, but Trump also made it clear he was unhappy that she hadn’t fully supported the war in Iran, according to the Daily Beast.
As they’ve vacated their offices, a slew of Trump-appointed male Cabinet members have taken their place. Trump announced Thursday that he’s nominating Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton to fill Gabbard’s role, according to the New York Times.
So far in this administration, just about 15% of all nominees of Senate-confirmed political appointees are women, compared with nearly 53% in President Joe Biden’s administration, according to the Post. Trump’s Senate-confirmed appointees comprise the smallest percentage of women in any administration since President George W. Bush.
In response, a White House spokeswomen told the Post in a statement, “President Trump has assembled the greatest Administration in history, selecting each member of his incredible team based on one criterion: their ability to deliver for the American people.”
Three women remain in Trump’s Cabinet: Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler.
