In a social media post on Saturday, President-elect Donald Trump said he would “not be inviting” his Republican primary rival Nikki Haley, who served in his first term as United Nations ambassador, nor his former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to join his next administration.
Haley ran a campaign that grew to be deeply critical of Trump and was the last major challenger standing before Trump secured the nomination. She did not endorse until after Trump was wounded in an assassination attempt in July and was not asked to campaign for him.
Pompeo served the duration of the first Trump term as CIA director and then Secretary of State, but has made some criticisms of his old boss in the years since, including for Trump’s handling of classified documents. Pompeo is also viewed by some of Trump’s more isolationist allies as too supportive of foreign intervention and, like Haley, is an advocate for the U.S. to continue to back Ukraine in its war against Russia.
Trump has long been at odds with Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelenskyy, blaming him for the war in the closing months of the campaign, and has claimed the war will be “resolved very quickly” if he was reelected. He has also been critical of the billions in military and humanitarian aid the Biden administration and Congress have given to Ukraine since Russia launched a full invasion in February 2022, a view shared by key allies including Vice President-elect J.D. Vance and billionaire Elon Musk.
David Sacks, a Trump donor and Musk ally who spoke at the Republican National Convention, has publicly advocated in recent days against Pompeo rejoining Trump’s administration.
“I will not be inviting former Ambassador Nikki Haley, or former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to join the Trump Administration, which is currently in formation,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “I very much enjoyed and appreciated working with them previously, and would like to thank them for their service to our Country. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
In a post of her own, Haley said she was “proud” to have served in Trump’s first administration and wished the president-elect, “and all who serve, great success” in the next four years. Pompeo’s political action committee did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but he posted on social media that he was also "proud" to have worked with Trump and mentioned attending a Pennsylvania rally last week.
"As you said, when we were together last week, you and I built the plan that made the world safer & led to no new wars," Pompeo wrote. "America firmly rejected the Biden-Harris foreign policy agenda. We have a duty to put America First again."
Pompeo, a former member of Congress from Kansas, was reportedly a candidate for secretary of defense. But speculation about his future did not last long. Last week, Sacks accused Pompeo of wanting to escalate the war in Ukraine and argued he’s “dangerously out of step with President Trump’s views” and boosted attacks on Pompeo from far-right influencers like Jack Posobiec, who has worked with the Republican National Committee and earned praise from Vance.
“I think that what a lot of people in, let’s call it the MAGA movement — the America First movement — are going to be looking at very closely is whether neocons worm their way into this administration,” Sacks said on “All-In” his popular Silicon Valley podcast. “The problem is that the Blob keeps infiltrating the Trump administration, or they did. They infiltrated [Trump’s first administration] by putting in [national security advisor] John Bolton and [Defense Secretary Mark] Esper and all these guys who frankly betrayed Trump. So I think a lot of people are looking closely at will neocons be able to worm their way into this administration. And if they do, it would be very, very sad.”
Trump has long valued personal and political loyalty among his employees, Cabinet members and congressional allies and responded harshly to criticism from former administration officials. Two of his defense secretaries, his longest-serving chief of staff and Vice President Mike Pence were among the many senior officials who urged Americans not to vote him back in office, including Esper who agreed with former chief of staff John Kelly’s labeling of Trump as a fascist.
Sacks' view on U.S. foreign policy is well shared in Trump’s camp and by the president-elect himself. Vance has frequently expressed opposition to U.S. tax dollars going to foreign countries, including specifically Ukraine and has said Ukraine will have to give up some of its territory to end the war. Musk, the richest individual in the world, has expressed similar sentiment about Ukraine and briefly joined Trump’s phone call with Zelenskyy last week, according to multiple outlets.
The tech billionaire poured tens of millions into Trump’s campaign and helped run some of its field programs while also personally appearing at rallies in the final months of the election and using X to boost the Republican nominee’s efforts. He is under discussion for a role in the next Trump administration, with the president-elect saying during the campaign he would put Musk in charge of improving efficiency in the federal government.
In lieu of Pompeo, Alabama Rep. Mike Rogers, the House Armed Services committee chair, is reportedly under consideration for Trump’s next defense secretary, according to Politico. Rogers is a close ally of Trump’s, but also a supporter of U.S. funding for Ukraine. Other candidates include Florida Rep. Mike Waltz and Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, though the latter man has removed himself from consideration, according to Axios. Before Congress, Waltz served as a Green Beret during the war in Afghanistan and as an advisor to two Defense secretaries and former Vice President Dick Cheney.
“I think you absolutely have to respect, even if you disagree with the president of the United States, he’s the only one the voters put in that position,” Waltz said on NBC News’ “Meet the Press NOW” on Friday when asked on how he would avoid the ending up on the outs with Trump like Esper and former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis if chosen for the job.
“So if you start getting into a position where you think you’re smarter than him or your ideas are better than him, that’s just not the right place to be,” Waltz added.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has said he’s open to a role in Trump’s next administration and has been discussed as a potential secretary of state. Other candidates to lead the State Department include Waltz, Trump loyalist and former U.S. Ambassador Ric Grenell, Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty and former national security advisor Robert O’Brien.
Trump has announced that his chief of staff will be campaign co-chair Susie Wiles, Tom Homan, former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director Tom Homan will serve as his “border czar,” and that he will tap New York Rep. Elise Stefanik to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.