Trump expresses solidarity with Hegseth amid controversy

Update, 1:15 p.m.:

President-elect Donald Trump on Friday said his secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth enjoyed deep and widespread support. Hegseth was also doing very well despite media reports saying otherwise, Trump insisted. The president-elect added that Hegseth would be a fantastic, high-energy, and charismatic leader of the Department of Defense.

President-elect Donald Trump Associated Press / Photo by Evan Vucci

Initial post, 10:45 a.m.:

Trump nominates ambassador to China

President-elect Donald Trump late on Thursday said he was nominating former U.S. Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., for the post of U.S. ambassador to China. Perdue accepted the nomination, according to the president-elect’s statement. In addition to his government experience, Perdue has served as the CEO of a Fortune 500 company and worked in international business for 40 years, Trump said.

What other cabinet nominations has Trump made in recent days? Over the past few days, Trump has nominated:

• Rodney Scott to be commissioner of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency

• Caleb Vitello as acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement

• Brandon Judd as U.S. ambassador to Chile

• Anthony Salisbury as deputy homeland security advisor

• David Sacks to be the White House’s new artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency czar

• Frank Bisignano as commissioner of the Social Security Administration

• Former U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler as the new head of the Small Business Administration

• Former Congressman Billy Long to be the new head of the Internal Revenue Service

Dig deeper: Read Leo Briceno’s report about how Republicans are barely retaining their majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.