Final Swamp Watch – 17 January 2017

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Despite weeks of effort, Donald Trump was apparently unable to find a Hispanic to serve as Secretary of Agriculture. Was this because no Hispanics were willing to join his administration? Or was it because Trump just couldn’t build any kind of personal rapport with any of the Hispanics who came to Trump Tower to visit with him? We’ll never know.

Instead, our new Agriculture Secretary will be Sonny Perdue, the man who won election as governor of Georgia in 2003 by promising to let residents vote on a flag referendum that would allow them to return the Confederate battle cross to a central position in the state flag. In the end, the Democratic legislature refused to allow this, and instead compromised on a flag that ditched the rebel cross but included the Confederate Stars and Bars—something that most people don’t really recognize, but which kinda sorta appeased the racist Southern heritage faction of the Peach State.

I’m sure this appealed to Trump, and Perdue does have some agricultural experience—that is, assuming you count the fact that he runs a “global trading company that facilitates U.S. commerce focusing on the export of U.S. goods and services…such as blueberries, grains, onions, peanuts, pecans, soybeans, and spinach.” He’s probably done pretty well for himself in this business, allowing him to join his brother, Sen. David Perdue, in the rich man’s club.

Anyway, that’s it. Until and unless someone pulls out or is rejected by the Senate, Trump has now named his nominees for every cabinet-level position. As you can see, he tangled with the swamp, and the swamp won.

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PLEASE—BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things it doesn’t like—which is most things that are true.

We’ll say it loud and clear: At Mother Jones, no one gets to tell us what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please do your part and help us reach our $150,000 membership goal by May 31.

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