The Trump presidential transition effort is off to a blistering start. It has barely been a week since Donald Trump became the first man since Grover Cleveland to win a second non-consecutive presidential term, and too many people have already been tapped for high-profile positions within the new incoming Trump administration to possibly keep track of. Just when we all thought the news cycle might slow down a bit after the election, it seemingly has done the exact opposite! It's going to be a wild ride all the way through Inauguration Day, folks.

Many of those that President Trump has already tapped for his second administration, such as Pete Hegseth (!) for secretary of defense, Tom Homan for "border czar", and Mike Huckabee for U.S. ambassador to Israel, are genuinely sensational picks who epitomize the MAGA movement's overarching irreverence toward sclerotic bureaucracy, the professional Washington class, and the status quo. A much smaller handful of other picks, such as Kristi Noem for secretary of homeland security, leave something to be desired.

But the overall trend of Trump's selections thus far is clear. As David Axelrod (not someone I make a habit of quoting, to put it mildly) put it yesterday on X: "Say what you will about the direction he wants to take the country, but this is a wholly different feel from 2016. Trump is stocking his admin with seasoned loyalists who will not guide, but rather will BE guided, by HIM."

And that right there from David Axelrod really is the question. Will Donald Trump, his Cabinet secretaries, and his top-level political appointees actually be able to wield substantial power to steer the Washington, D.C. Leviathan in a reformist direction—away from ruination and decadence, and toward sanity and dynamism? Will Donald Trump actually be able to accomplish that which he did not quite succeed in doing the first time around—namely, "drain the swamp" once and for all?

It's an open question. But what we have seen thus far from the transition team thus far is, on the whole, nothing short of inspiring. There are some red flags, like Noem. And there are still a number of very high-profile and crucial positions, such as attorney general and treasury secretary, that still need to be selected. Attorney general is perhaps the single most important pick President Trump will make, and we will know a lot more about the direction of this second term after he makes that selection. Here's hoping for someone who can come into the Department of Justice with a wrecking ball and thoroughly clean the Augean stables.

But in general so far, it seems the Trump transition team has really done its homework. Let's hope the transition team keeps up the momentum, so that the incoming Trump-Vance administration can truly hit the ground running come January. It is imperative that not a single day be wasted. But at this still-very early stage, the incoming Trump-Vance administration seems well on its way to fulfilling its campaign vow to Make America Great Again.

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Our highlighted Newsweek op-eds from the past week include selections from yours truly, Gordon G. Chang, Lee Habeeb, Paul du Quenoy, and Darvio Morrow.

We will be back in your inbox next Wednesday! Have a great rest of your week and weekend, everyone.