Donald Trump’s administration has already cleared a semi-historic hurdle, although it’s probably not one to brag about. His cabinet will be the first one in nearly 30 years (since the Reagan years) not to include a Latino member. The revelation comes as Trump reportedly appointed former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue for agriculture secretary, which was the last open cabinet position.
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the situation has been overblown, and he argued that Trump picked his cabinet members based on their merits, as reported by The Hill. He went on to say that with 5,000 positions in the White House, Trump will likely include some employees from the Hispanic community.
Still, some groups are not pleased. Hector Sanchez, chairman of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda, said the absence of a Latino cabinet member does not bode well:
“We’re extremely worried. This is anti-democratic. Trump has not only been the most anti-Latino, anti-immigrant president in the history of the nation, [but] by not including Latinos in his Cabinet he is just showing how he plans to govern.”
A different perspective has arrived from the (conservative) Hispanic Leadership Fund’s Mario Lopez, who told Washington Post that he was relieved that Trump wasn’t simply filling a “quota”: “I don’t believe in quotas or identity politics. The president, at the end, should appoint someone he feels comfortable with, regardless of their race or ethnicity.”
Intentional or not, Trump’s omission of Latinos in his cabinet may be seen as correlating with his anti-immigration views, which were well known since he first mentioned the Wall.
(Via The Washington Post & The Hill)