In a few days, Donald Trump will become the President of the United States. Behind Vice-President Mike Pence, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, President Pro Tempore of the Senate Orrin Hatch, Trump's Cabinet will be the most important political actors in the country. Yet, so many of them actually believe in policies that go against the very principles of the agencies they've been nominated to lead. Also, they are the exact opposite of Trump's "Drain the Swamp" promises: rich elites, having a combined net worth of $4-6B (depending on which source you use). What follows is a quick primer on each, and the dangers they pose, in the order of the line of succession (after Mr. Hatch).

CABINET

• Secretary of State: Rex Tillerson (Texas). This ex-CEO of ExxonMobil has fought environmental protection, denies climate change, and has a cozy business relationship with Russia—including a deal put on hold by current sanctions, reportedly valued at $500B, though he denied under oath even discussing Russia with Trump. He is worth $325-385M, but has no experience in the public sector or statecraft.


• Secretary of Treasury: Steven Mnuchin (New York). A former partner at Goldman Sachs and hedge fund owner, worth over $300-600M, he greatly profited off the housing bubble that hurt so many Americans, and held the reins of one of the companies caught foreclosing on owners without proper due process. He has never held public office and is expected to propose tax cuts for the rich.


• Secretary of Defense: Gen. James Mattis, USMC (ret.) (Washington). While he's a career military man (USMC), he's still worth at least $5M. Of note, he retired in 2013 and immediately started profiting through a series of consulting jobs in the military-industrial complex. Yet, this cabinet post is supposed to be a civilian position; current law requires military personnel to wait seven years after retirement to accept this post—a law granted a special exemption by the current GOP-controlled Congress.


• Attorney General: Jeff Sessions (Alabama). A current Senator, and former Attorney General of Alabama, he has somehow garnered a net worth of at least $6M. Significantly, he was denied (by a Reagan-era, GOP-controlled, Congress) appointment of a federal judgeship for being too racist. He has also fought against equal disbursement of education funds, is against investigating local police forces acting unconstitutionally, and has falsely accused civil rights activists of election fraud. He will be both the top cop and top lawyer for the USA if confirmed, and would be the person to bring civil rights litigation on behalf of the American government—despite having a history of much the opposite.


• Secretary of the Interior: Rep. Ryan Zinke (Montana). A current member of the House of Representatives. He's one of the few non-absurdly rich people on this list (net worth $800k). Although generally supportive of federal lands, he frequently votes against environmentalists, and has favored coal and big oil. While an officer in the military, he misused travel funds, was repeatedly passed up for promotion, and has constantly exaggerated his experiences from that time. But, hey, at least he's a big outdoorsman.


• Secretary of Agriculture. Mere days from inauguration, Trump has still not chosen a nominee to head this agency.


• Secretary of Commerce: Wilbur Ross (New Jersey). Although he's the person nominated to head the federal agency responsible for economic growth, he's a billionaire (net worth $2.5-2.9B) who made his money purchasing bankrupt businesses and flipping them for a profit, speculating on other countries' economic crises, and was also an advisor for a financial advisory group. Not exactly the kind of outsider Trump promised. It is still unclear how his various business interests will clear ethical conflicts concerns.


• Secretary of Labor: Andrew Puzder (Tennessee). CEO of CKE Restaurants, which owns Hardee's and Carl's Jr., which have had greater reports of sexual harassment than similar companies; coincidentally, he has been accused by an ex-wife of personally committing domestic violence. Those companies have also repeatedly been found liable for unpaid wages. Despite being worth $45-110M, he's a critic of the minimum wage, has criticized paid leave provisions, and opposes overtime expansion. Nonetheless, he would be in charge of prosecuting minimum wage violations, overtime rule breaches, and ensuring workplace safety.


• Secretary of Health and Human Services: Rep. Tom Price (Georgia). HHS oversees health insurance (Medicaid/Medicare), promotes patient health and safety, ensures equal access to health care among disparate communities, and studies ways to better health care. He, however, has been a fierce critic of the ACA and other programs to help the most vulnerable citizens. His attacks on Planned Parenthood and “entitlement programs” have been accused of being politically motivated. Among his first expected moves would be massive budget cuts, including taxes against the rich, because who needs strong health care or rich people to pay their share? Meanwhile, he has a net worth of $10-18M. Did I mention he has absolutely no experience in administration?


• Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Dr. Ben Carson (Michigan). Has no government or administration experience, and while he grew up poor, and his mother reportedly used public housing, he has been a doctor, and rich, for many years (with a current net worth of $15-29M). He said of himself that he was “unqualified” for the position before later accepting the nomination; relatedly, he has no housing policy experience.


• Secretary of Transportation: Elaine Chao (Kentucky). Let's start here: she's married to Mitch McConnell. Yes, the Senator who has held up all forms of Obama-era legislation, including infrastructure spending, and most Democratic judicial nominees (Obama will leave office with twice as many judicial vacancies as Bush). She has a net worth of $25M, is well-adjusted in political circles, and has worked in various federal departments. She also sits on the boards of News Corporation (which owns Fox News) and Wells Fargo. She is one of the few qualified persons on this list, but she is also expected to push for large use of the private sector, rather than relying upon her own massive federal agency. So a transparent and fair bidding process will be required to prevent #Kleptocracy.


• Secretary of Energy: Rick Perry (Texas). A former governor, the man has absolutely no energy policy experience; he just ran a big state with lots of energy companies. His net worth is around $2M. You may remember he once said at a primary debate that he would eliminate three federal agencies, including the Department of Energy—only he forget the name “Energy” during the debate. He's pro-oil and gas and pro-fracking. He's also been accused of engaging in back room deals with special interests and big polluters.


• Secretary of Eduction: Betsy DeVos (Michigan). Another billionaire, worth around $1.25B. She's never gone to public school. Her children have never gone to public school. She has a history of supporting diversion of public funds to private schools, and of favoring Christian teachings in schools. She has also opposed school unions repeatedly, and even failed to disclose a contribution to an anti-Union group in her financial disclosures. Yet, she will be in charge of all federal public education policy and funding.


• Secretary of Veterans Affairs: David Shulkin (Washington D.C.). Currently an undersecretary of Health in the VA, he at least understands how the agency works; however, he'd be the first VA Secretary to not have military experience. In his favor, he left a high-paying private sector job to take this VA position (though still has a net worth of $16M). He was appointed by Obama, and Republicans have repeatedly attacked the administration of the VA, so it is unclear how they will ignore those facts now. But, he has said privatizing the VA (which many in the GOP favor) would be a “terrible mistake,” so maybe there's hope for one person on this list.


• Secretary of Homeland Security: Gen. John Kelly, USMC (Ret.) (Massachusetts). He has an excellent military career (including overseeing Guantanamo Bay for awhile), has taken a tough stance on border security, and believes increased immigration will allow more terrorists into the country. His net worth is $4M. No word yet on how he views taking off shoes at the airport.

What I hope is that people call their U.S. Congresspeople about this. Call or email. Complain. Express concerns. Go to town meetings, they really listen there. For a handy link to find who represents you, click here. Or Google it. But #Resist.