Which Republicans Might Serve in a Harris Cabinet?

For my Washington Month-to-month column at the moment, I argued Kamala Harris ought to make a marketing campaign promise to incorporate a Republican in her Cupboard.

My reasoning? It’s one of the best ways to amp up her outreach to on-the-fence Republicans and right-leaning independents (i.e. Nikki Haley voters) and supply an instance of how she would differ from Joe Biden, with out making any coverage concession that would rattle the Democratic base.

And traditionally talking, slightly bipartisanship within the Cupboard is sort of frequent. Each president from Franklin D. Roosevelt to Barack Obama had no less than one cross-over Cupboard member for a part of his administration.

I don’t assume Harris ought to commit to call any particular particular person to a selected put up. Nonetheless, it’s cheap to ask the query: Are there any believable choices for Harris to contemplate?

The reply is: Sure!

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Essentially the most Machiavellian transfer can be to select a sitting Republican U.S. Senator in a state the place a Democratic governor has the ability to nominate a Democratic alternative.

There are solely two states the place that’s the case: Maine and Kansas.

Three different states presently have a Democratic governor and no less than one Republican senator—Kentucky, North Carolina, and Wisconsin—however these state legal guidelines don’t give the governor energy to select replacements from a special celebration because the outgoing senator. Additionally, Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin are usually not precisely fascinating Democratic cupboard members.

And neither Jerry Moran or Roger Marshall of Kansas, each staunch conservatives, are possible candidates for becoming a member of a Democratic administration (although Moran does have a little bit of a bipartisan repute).

Susan Collins of Maine, one of many final remaining blue state Republican senators, has a extra distinguished reasonable streak. However she is usually a prepared partisan and barely crosses the aisle when her vote would decide the result. Put me down as skeptical she would think about a Cupboard supply.

Extra life like to me are among the Republicans who spoke on Harris’s behalf final week on the Democratic Nationwide Conference.

Mayor of Mesa, Arizona, John Giles is sensible for Secretary of Transportation. Giles runs a metropolis about 5 instances larger than South Bend, Indiana, the place the present secretary Pete Buttigieg as soon as served as mayor. (Out of 19 Transportation secretaries, 5 have been mayors.) And Giles has been vocal supporter of Biden’s infrastructure legislation and its funding of transportation tasks.

Former Lieutenant Governor of Georgia Geoff Duncan, as a former healthcare firm CEO, can be an excellent match for the Commerce Division (however most likely not Well being and Human Companies, as he has been crucial of the Reasonably priced Care Act.)

Different potentialities for Commerce embrace former GOP Representatives from swing states with enterprise backgrounds—Jim Greenwood of Pennsylvania and Dave Trott of Michigan. Neither spoke on the conference however have endorsed Harris.

As a veteran of the Air Drive and Air Nationwide Guard, former Consultant Adam Kinzinger is a believable decide for Veterans Affairs. Nonetheless, that job could be a bureaucratic nightmare and has broken multiple secretary’s repute. Harris may favor somebody with extra administration expertise, and Kinzinger may not need the trouble.

Harris needn’t commit herself to any particular people earlier than she’s had an opportunity to vet them.

However there’s no hurt in nodding in the direction of those that had been already welcomed to the conference stage as examples of the sort of particular person she would wish to embrace in her administration, as these are examples of the sort of “Nikki Haley” Republicans Harris is hoping will cross the aisle for her on Election Day.

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