Team Trump II: Elon Musk and other MAGA Muskateers

TOI Correspondent from Washington: The oldest person to be elected US President at 78, Donald Trump will have only four years in the White House thanks to the 22nd Amendment of the US Constitution that a President can only hold the office twice. Unless of course he decides to become a dictator for more than just one day, a desire he has expressed, seemingly in jest. On a more serious note, Trump has said win or lose he will not run for office again, which means he will cede the Oval Office in 2028 when he will be 82.

Typical of the American political system, analysts are already eyeing potential successors in 2028, with all eyes on incoming vice-president JD Vance, who is only 40, and will become the highest-ranking member of the millennial generation in the US government. The challenge for Vance to step into Trump formidable shoes will not only come from other aspirants in the party, but also from Trump's own proclivity to entrust his children, including his daughter Ivanka, 43, and sons Donald Trump Jr, 46, and Eric Trump, 40, with political responsibility. Vance’s Indian-American wife, Usha Chilukuri, will now be the official Second Lady of the United States.

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Beyond family and political succession though, the most influential member of the Trump II inner circle is expected to be Elon Musk, the Tesla/SpaceX honcho who threw his mouth and moolah behind the MAGA Supremo to counter the liberal leanings of the legacy media. Already assured of a key role in the TrumpII administration, Musk -- was embedded with the MAGA Supremo in Mar-a-Lago as the results rolled in on Tuesday night -- will be a lodestar in an incoming dispensation that has pledged to cull government departments and expenditure in the name of efficiency. Although Musk posted a meme showing him bringing a kitchen sink into the Oval Office as Trump’s victory became imminent, he cannot run for President because he is not a US born citizen. But beyond the man behind the Resolute Desk, he is expected to be the most influential figure in the Trump II dispensation.

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With the MAGA Supremo’s disdain for the Washington elite now well-established (resulting in at least 40 members of his cabinet and inner circle being fired or forced to resign), there will be plenty of new faces in Trump II White House, including those who unquestioningly stood by him or kissed his ring after being defeated by him. Among them Vivek Ramaswamy, 39, the Indian-American bio-science entrepreneur who challenged Trump for the GOP nomination but folded quickly to become a camp follower. Two other Indian-Americans, Kash Patel and Shalli Kumar, stood rock solid behind Trump through all his trials and tribulations, and they will be looking for the spoils of office too.

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Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN during Trump I, will also be looking to make a comeback after a late endorsement of Trump after critical comments about his campaign. Trump has also promised to let Robert Kennedy Jr, a man who has pushed crank science for decades, "go wild" with the health portfolio. Given that dozens of senior personnel in Trump I White House either resigned or were fired, there will be many new faces in Trump II, with everyone expected to toe the line in what will almost certainly be an imperial Presidency, a system endorsed by the US Supreme Court staffed by Trump during his first term.

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That will include the military commanders and the head of the US Federal Reserve and the Justice Department, who Trump expects to be pliable and follow the dictates of the White House. Having asserted that the President can do no wrong once – or anything he does is right since he has the mandate of the people once he is elected – Trump II is expected to be wild ride without guardrails.