By Richard Lardner | The Associated Press WASHINGTON—Russell Vought sounds like a general marshaling troops for combat when he talks about taming a “woke and weaponized” federal government.
WASHINGTON—Russell Vought sounds like a general marshaling troops for combat when he talks about taming a “woke and weaponized” federal government.
Among the small cadre of Trump advisers who has a mechanic’s understanding of how Washington operates, Vought has advised influential conservative lawmakers on Capitol Hill, held a top post in the Trump White House and later established his own pro-Trump think tank. Now, he’s being mentioned as a candidate to be Trump’s White House chief of staff, one of the most powerful positions in government.
Trump’s attempts to reject the blueprint are complicated by the connections he has with many of its contributors. More than two-dozen authors served in his administration, including Vought, who was director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget. “A very determined warrior is how I would see Russ,” said a former Trump administration official who worked with Vought in the White House and requested anonymity to speak candidly about him. “I don’t think he thinks about whether or not he likes Donald Trump as a person. I think he likes what Donald Trump represents in terms of the political forces he’s able to harness.”Born in New York and raised in Connecticut, Vought has described his family as blue collar.
“I worked with a lot of different staff people and as far as work ethic, tenacity, intellect, knowledge commitment to principle, Russell was one of the more impressive people I worked with,” said former GOP Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas, who hired Vought in 2003. Vought told senators his remarks were taken out of context and said he respected the right of every person to express their religious beliefs.
Under Vought, OMB also withheld military aid to Ukraine as Trump pressured President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to investigate President Joe Biden and his son. Vought refused to comply with a congressional demand to depose him during the subsequent Democrat-led House investigation that led to Trump’s first impeachment. The inquiry, Vought said, was a sham.
Anticipating the fights to achieve this, Trump’s backers need to be “fearless, faithful and frugal in everything we do,” he said.Vought’s center was part of a coalition of conservative organizations, organized by the Heritage Foundation, that launched Project 2025 and crafted a detailed plan for governing in the next Republican administration.
Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a New York University history professor and author of “Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present,” criticized Project 2025 as “a recipe for mass chaos, abuses of power, and dysfunction in government.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Harris targets Trump by raising threat of ‘extreme’ Project 2025By Emily Birnbaum In Kamala Harris’ first public remarks as the leading Democratic presidential candidate, she vowed to defeat two enemies: Donald Trump and “his extreme Project 2025 agenda.
Read more »
DepEd reports 89.79% student enrollment for school year 2024-2025Defining the News
Read more »
Pact with NP, PFP seen helping ANP dominate 2025 electionsWITH the Villar-led Nacionalista Party (NP) joining the “Alyansa Para Bagong Pilipinas” (Alliance for New Philippines), President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said the coalition will become a dominant force in the 2025 National and Local Election (NLE).
Read more »
Sugar industry pushes to bring back SIDA fund allocation in 2025SunStar Publishing Inc.
Read more »
HEADLINES: Forces gather for 2025 polls| August 9, 2024Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Friday, August 9, 2024.
Read more »
PFP ni Marcos at NP ni Villar, sanib-puwersa para sa Eleksyon 2025Pormal na sinelyuhan ng Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) ni Pangulong Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. at Nacionalista Party (NP) ni dating Senate president Manny Villar, ang kanilang alyansa bilang paghahanda sa Eleksyon 2025.
Read more »