Lake County Councilman and county Republican Party Chairman Randy Niemeyer has been tapped to be a part of President-elect Donald Trump’s transition group collaborating in convention calls with Department of Transportation officers.
Niemeyer, who misplaced in his race to U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan, D-Highland, in November, mentioned he’ll doubtless serve on the transition group throughout former Wisconsin Rep. Sean Duffy’s affirmation hearings as transportation secretary.
“I ran for Congress as a result of I wish to serve my nation. If I can serve my nation on this approach, I’m pleased to do it,” Niemeyer mentioned.
As Trump’s second administration takes form, former federal officers word variations in method as nominees and appointees improve.
Leslie Lenkowsky, professor emerita of public affairs and philanthropic research at Indiana University’s Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, mentioned presidential transition groups’ technique differs primarily based on the administration’s targets incoming.
Trump’s transition group has been distinctive in that that is his second non-consecutive time period, which means “there’s not quite a lot of thriller among the many prime management,” Lenkowsky mentioned. His transition group additionally had the distinctive high quality of being headquartered at Mar-a-Lago, the Florida resort owned by Trump, reasonably than in Washington, D.C., Lenkowsky mentioned.
In deciding on members of the transition group, Lenkowsky mentioned Trump selected individuals who have been lively in Republican Party politics, who’ve demonstrated some extent of loyalty to Trump and a few expertise within the space during which they work.
A member of the incoming administration reached out to him to assist with the Department of Transportation’s transition, Niemeyer mentioned. The place is voluntary, Niemeyer mentioned.
Niemeyer, who can also be a small enterprise proprietor and truck driver, mentioned he can’t reveal many particulars in regards to the work he’s doing as a result of he has signed a nondisclosure settlement, however that he has participated in some convention calls with Department of Transportation stakeholders.
During calls, the group mentioned experiences, analyzes and legislative suggestions forward of Duffy’s affirmation, he mentioned.
“It’s about making the foundational items for them,” Niemeyer mentioned. “I loved the calls we participated in.”
Transition group members are usually not paid for his or her work, Lenkowsky mentioned. Typically, they have to cowl the price of any journey and lodging bills as a part of their work for the group, he mentioned.
Sometimes, transition group members signal formal agreements to not share their experiences or info with the general public, Lenkowsky mentioned. For instance, when he served on Reagan’s transition group, Lenkowsky mentioned he signed paperwork much like a consulting settlement, he mentioned.
Duffy served within the U.S. House for practically 9 years, from 2011 to 2019. He was a member of the Financial Services Committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on Insurance and Housing. He left Congress in 2019 and is co-host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business. Duffy is a former lumberjack athlete and appeared on MTV’s “The Real World: Boston” in 1997. He met his spouse, former “The Real World: San Francisco” solid member Rachel Campos-Duffy, on the set of “Road Rules: All Stars” in 1998.
In his announcement to change into transportation secretary, Trump mentioned Duffy would use his expertise and relationships constructed over his years in Congress “to keep up and rebuild our nation’s infrastructure and fulfill our mission to usher within the golden age of journey, specializing in security, effectivity, and innovation. Importantly, it’ll drastically enhance the journey expertise for all Americans.”
Trump wished Duffy to run for governor of Wisconsin in 2022, however Duffy refused, saying he needed to handle his 9 kids, together with his youngest son who had a coronary heart downside.
Niemeyer mentioned Duffy will deliver his expertise working in Congress to the position of transportation secretary.
“I feel he will probably be nice at his job,” Niemeyer mentioned.
The work a transition group does could possibly be influenced by whether or not or not incoming division secretaries have quite a lot of trade expertise, Lenkowsky mentioned. The much less expertise the incoming division secretary has, the extra work the transition group should do, he mentioned.
Niemeyer mentioned he had no direct contact with Trump whereas he was a member of the transition group.
“I’m a small participant within the group. But that is superb, I’m pleased to contribute to the group,” Niemeyer mentioned.
Lenkowsky served on the presidential transition groups of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.
Reagan’s transition group was extremely organized, Lenkowsky mentioned, and included the creation of smaller groups that reported to a lead individual, who reported to a management group, who reported to the president.
While a part of Reagan’s transition group, Lenkowsky mentioned he was a part of a group that dealt with worldwide broadcast efforts comparable to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Lenkowsky mentioned he and one other individual met with company officers, studied paperwork and drafted a 10-page report.
“We reported as much as one individual, who reported to others,” Lenkowsky mentioned. “It was very hierarchical.”
On Bush’s transition group, Lenkowsky mentioned he performed a minor position. Bush’s transition interval was shorter as a result of the outcomes of the 2000 election had been delayed till December, when the Supreme Court dominated in Bush’s favor in a Florida recount case, he mentioned.
While Bush’s transition didn’t embody the creation of subgroup groups, Lenkowsky mentioned Bush workers members have reached out to varied professionals to get their opinions on what points the president ought to handle.
Lenkowsky, who was working at AmeriCorps on the time, mentioned he spoke with an individual who would change into a member of the White House coverage workers about what Bush would possibly do to meet his marketing campaign promise to mobilize “armies of compassion,” a.ok.a. volunteer teams throughout the nation.
“I defined to him how they might use AmeriCorps to do that,” Lenkowsky mentioned. “It was very casual. I had no sense of hierarchy.”
Since Trump was elected, Marjorie Hershey, a professor emerita of political science at Indiana University Bloomington, has mentioned the selections he has made have been primarily based on emotion reasonably than politics.
“He’s not likely used to being attentive to what different individuals must say, as a result of he is by no means needed to,” Hershey mentioned. “Lots of what he is doing is emotional reasonably than political.”
akukulka@post-trib.com
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