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[link removed] [[link removed]] John, we’re only in week one of Donald Trump’s presidency and the red flags are glaring.

Amongst the hundreds of executive orders, memoranda and proclamations that he signed, we can’t forget that Trump stacked his Cabinet with millionaires and billionaires–many of whom have extensive business ties, or previous ties to Trump, that may lead to serious conflicts of interest.

We’ll tell you more about some of Trump’s nominees below, but first, we’re asking for your help. CREW is committed to ensuring our government is accountable to, and works for the people, not just the wealthy and powerful. If you can support our work with a donation today, please contribute below: [[link removed]]Donate → [[link removed]]

So, who are some of Trump’s nominees, and why do they raise concerns?

Pam Bondi, nominee for Attorney General

John, we’ve spoken about Pam Bondi and her relationship to Donald Trump many times before.

A prior relationship with or support for the president is not disqualifying on its own, but Bondi’s record—which includes serving as President Trump’s personal lawyer during his first impeachment inquiry and pushing unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud following the 2020 election—indicates a heightened loyalty to Trump and a willingness to support unfounded claims, and that raises serious questions about her willingness to faithfully carry out the duties of the attorney general.

The attorney general has a wide range of responsibilities, from representing the United States in legal matters to ensuring that the president and executive branch comply with the Constitution. Given the gravity of their role and the power they hold, it is important that the attorney general ensures the independence of their office and does not impede oversight of the agency.

This is especially true given that during his first term, Donald Trump manipulated Department of Justice officials and he has repeatedly stated the importance of loyalty in his second administration and his desire to use the DOJ, including the FBI, to go after his perceived political enemies.

To ensure that Bondi meets the necessary requirements to be the attorney general, CREW encouraged the Senate Judiciary Committee to evaluate her using three criteria: that she will put the Constitution and the rule of law before the interests of the president, adhere to the highest ethical standards and respect the independence of the Department of Justice inspector general. They must ensure that she can carry out the responsibilities of the role in a nonpartisan manner in accordance with the laws of the Constitution and with loyalty to the American people—not to President Trump.

Russell Vought, nominee for Director of the Office of Management and Budget

Russell Vought should not be confirmed as Director of the Office of Management and Budget.

For years, Donald Trump and his allies have planned to purge career civil servants and replace them with political appointees through an executive order known as Schedule F.

During his tenure as OMB Acting Director and then Director from January 2019 to January 2021, Vought was a central figure in attempting to implement Schedule F and dismantle our government’s current merit-based civil service system. In his first hours in office Trump resurrected that plan and there are already reports of purges of civil servants happening throughout the government.

Vought has publicly stated that he wants to put career civil servants “in trauma,” and that when “they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work because they are increasingly viewed as the villains.” Vought called for “an army of investigators” to prosecute current and former government officials who sought to hold Trump accountable.

We submitted testimony saying the Senate should reject Vought’s nomination, and by extension, reject his plan to replace independent civil servants with political loyalists who prioritize blind obedience over following the law.

Lee Zeldin, nominee for administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

The EPA enforces Congress’s environmental laws across a wide range of industries, helping to protect the nation’s air and water, conserve natural resources and protect against environmental risk. When businesses or individuals violate environmental laws and regulations, the EPA imposes civil or criminal penalties on violators through a variety of enforcement actions.

Since leaving Congress in 2023, Zeldin has been paid thousands of dollars by three public relations firms to author three op-eds related to environmental policy. Zeldin did not disclose that he was paid to write those articles at the time of publication.

Two op-eds were about corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices, and another on New York State’s climate goals and fracking policy. The public does not know on behalf of which clients these firms paid Zeldin, but they are likely entities with a vested interest in influencing public opinion and public policy on environmental policy.

These payments raise questions about whether Zeldin will act in the best interests of the public, rather than in service to private industry. We submitted testimony to The Committee on Environment and Public Works saying that it must not consider Zeldin’s nomination until he discloses to the Committee which clients paid for his op-eds and demonstrates that those payments will not improperly influence his decision making.

John, the potential conflicts of interest from Trump’s nominees are glaring.

We need leaders who will always prioritize the missions of the agencies they serve, and the will and best interests of the American people. These Trump nominees need to prove they can be trusted to do so, and we need to make sure that we hold the entire Trump administration to account whenever we see conflicts of interest arise.

CREW is fighting to expose potential conflicts of interest to bring to light the corruption that could ensue in the Trump administration–and we will always fight for accountability whenever we find our government leaders are not serving the interests of the people.

Please help support CREW’s work by making a donation to CREW today → [[link removed]]If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your tax deductible donation will go through immediately to ActBlue Charities Inc. and be disbursed to CREW within 30 days:

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Thank you,

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