A handful of Democrats and anti-Donald Trump Republicans have offered cautious praise for the president-elect’s early picks to staff up his second administration, especially in foreign policy roles.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) led the chorus after Trump tapped Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to serve as US ambassador to the United Nations late Sunday.
“For those of us, who have been fighting antisemitism at the United Nations, they’re about to get some needed medicine [in] @EliseStefanik,” Moskowitz, who was re-elected to a second term last week, posted on X Monday evening.
Moskowitz, who recently revealed there had been a plot against his life, has been an outspoken supporter of Israel and clashed with progressives over the spate of anti-Jew sentiment that has swept college campuses since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas.
Stefanik, 40, went viral last year for challenging the presidents of Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Pennsylvania over their handling of antisemitism on campus.
Shortly after Trump’s victory became clear last week, Moskowitz also praised Trump’s incoming White House chief of staff Susie Wiles as one of the “greatest campaign strategists” who has long vexed Democrats in the Sunshine State
He also lauded Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.), whom Trump has asked to serve as his national security adviser.
“Congrats to my friend @michaelgwaltz. He and his wife @JuliaNesheiwat (who served during the Obama administration) have served our country with distinction,” Moskowitz wrote Tuesday morning.
In the upper chamber, Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) commended his colleague Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) as a “strong choice” for secretary of state.
“Unsurprisingly, the other team’s pick will have political differences than my own. That being said, my colleague @SenMarcoRubio is a strong choice and I look forward to voting for his confirmation,” Fetterman wrote on X.
Reports that Rubio would land the role as America’s top diplomat also drew cautious optimism from former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), a longtime Trump critic.
“You know, Marco Rubio has been obviously kind of changing. I think he even voted against Ukraine aid, which was very surprising, when I learned that,” Kinzinger told CNN’s “The Source” late Monday.
“By no means is he like a neocon,” he added. “As far as picks go, I think compared to some of the other names that were floating around, people who really don’t have any experience in foreign policy, I think this is a pretty good one.”
Alyssa Farah Griffin, who served as White House director of strategic communications in the first Trump administration before turning against the 45th president, also praised the picks of Walz and Rubio.
“Y’all know I’m not a Trump fan,” wrote “The View” co-host on X Tuesday, “but I root for America. Waltz as NSA & Rubio as SecState are good for America & the world.”
Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV), who caucuses with the Democrats and was registered with the party until earlier this year, also gave Trump broad praise for some of his early staffing picks.
“I think that basically, he’s putting some good people in, I’m going to work with him and help him any way I can,” the retiring lawmaker told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Tuesday.
Republicans are projected to hold 53 Senate seats when the new Congress convenes Jan. 3, making it likely that most, if not all, of Trump’s nominations will be confirmed with minimal drama — even without Democratic support.
