“Anthem’s Policy Sparks Backlash Amid UnitedHealthcare CEO’s Assassination Investigation”

By Rosaland Tyler
Associate Editor
New Journal and Guide

NAACP President & CEO Derrick Johnson released the following statement after Cabinet nominees were announced.

“From accused criminals to confirmed authors of Project 2025, the President-elect’s cabinet appointments present a daunting outlook for the next four years,” Johnson said in a recent statement on the NAACP’s website.

“Let’s be clear – Our 2025 should be a year that advances the progress made in the last four years, not seek to revert it,” Johnson added. “The NAACP stands firm in our beliefs that education is the backbone of democracy, healthcare is a human right, and economic empowerment begins with equity. Any sworn leader of our nation must seek to uphold the rule of law, not subvert it. We will continue the fight to make progress on the key policies that will enrich the lives of all Americans, not just a privileged few.”

Some news reports predict, “Many of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees are likely to face an easy path to confirmation, even some who may be controversial,” CBS News noted.

Other news reports predict “Some of his choices could face difficult confirmation fights in the Senate, even with Republicans in control, and two candidates have already withdrawn from consideration,” The Associated Press noted.

Throughout history, just a small number of cabinet picks have been voted down by the Senate, Josh Chafetz, a professor of law and politics at the Georgetown University Law Center, told McClatchy News. “However, the number is so small only because most nominees who would fail on the floor withdraw from consideration before that happens,” he noted.

A simple majority of senators present at the time of the vote is necessary to approve the nominee, according to the center.

Cabinet officials will head 15 executive departments: the Secretaries of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the Attorney General, according to the White House site.

The Senate will be split 53 Republicans to 47 Democrats in the new session, meaning Republicans can lose no more than three votes to confirm nominees without requiring some bipartisan support. A 50-50 tie can be broken by Vice President-elect JD Vance.

Oklahoma Republican Congressman Bob Ed Culver said Trump’s Cabinet choices reflect a “changing of the guard” – nominees who are focused less on bureaucratic tradition and more on working for the people.

But, Yolette Ross, chair of Cherokee County (Oklahoma) Democratic Party, said presidents have the right to pick whomever they want to serve in their Cabinets, but there must be a system of checks and balances that includes extensive background checks by the proper authorities, specifically the FBI.

Ross said Trump has not yet signed the agreement to allow the FBI to screen his choices, and she wonders why.

“I have concerns with a few of his nominees who don’t appear to meet the basic qualifications for the positions for which they have been nominated,” Ross said.