With Inauguration Day right around the corner, Senate confirmation hearings well underway, and new staffers and event-goers flooding to D.C., there are a handful of high-profile nominees that NRB members should know.
Brendan Carr
The only nominee included here who doesn’t await a Senate confirmation hearing, Brendan Carr is set to be the next Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. Having served as a commissioner since 2017, Carr has consistently spoken out against heavy-handed regulatory schemes, government waste, and censorships. Carr has taken a pro-business approach, including rules that allow smaller, independent, and religious broadcasters to conduct their business without burdensome government interference. Carr has also offered his support to low-power television (LPTV), criticizing the FCC’s efforts to increase regulation on LPTV station owners and operators.
NRB endorsed Carr for chairman, with NRB President & CEO Troy A. Miller stating, “In order to ensure that the next four years of policy-setting are as impactful as possible for our industry, the choice is clear… Brendan Carr’s pro-business, pro-speech leadership will tremendously benefit America’s small, independent, and religious broadcasters and the hundreds of millions of listeners and viewers they serve.”
Olivia Trusty
President-elect Trump has nominated Olivia Trusty to serve as the next Republican commissioner at the FCC, restoring the Republican majority upon Trusty’s confirmation. Trusty brings extensive experience as an aide to members of Congress including Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Rep. Bob Latta (R–Ohio), and has served in multiple positions on committees of jurisdiction in the House and the Senate for the past decade.
Andrew Ferguson
Current Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Commissioner Andrew Ferguson was selected to take over as FTC chair. In announcing Ferguson as his pick, President-elect Trump said that “Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great Country.” Ferguson is expected to fight Big Tech and “investigate censorship of conservative viewpoints online.”
Ferguson is a bold free speech champion and recently said, “We must vigorously enforce the antitrust laws against any platforms found to be unlawfully limiting Americans’ ability to exchange ideas freely and openly.” Ferguson will inherit proceedings concerning Big Tech companies and will have to handle significant antitrust issues. He can also be expected to weigh in on AI and privacy.
Pam Bondi
Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is President-elect Trump’s pick for U.S. Attorney General. In her confirmation hearing on January 16, Bondi assured Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) that she opposes the weaponization of the FACE Act. Under the Biden administration, the FACE Act was weaponized, almost exclusively targeting peaceful pro-life protesters while ignoring many who targeted churches or pro-life pregnancy centers with violence and vandalism. Bondi indicated that she would enforce the law evenhandedly.
Harmeet Dhillon
President-elect Trump tapped Harmeet Dhillon to serve as the assistant attorney general for civil rights, stating that “Harmeet has stood up consistently to protect our cherished Civil Liberties, including taking on Big Tech for censoring our Free Speech, representing Christians who were prevented from praying together during COVID, and suing corporations who use woke policies to discriminate against their workers.”
Notably, the Civil Rights Division at the DOJ oversees prosecution of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE) Act.
Gail Slater
President-elect Donald Trump tapped a name known by many in the telecommunications field to lead the Department of Justice’s antitrust division. Veteran telecoms attorney and former Trump tech policy adviser Gail Slater is set to assume the role of assistant attorney general for the Antitrust Division at the Department of Justice pending a successful Senate confirmation.
In the announcement of Slater’s position, the incoming President stated that the DOJ’s antitrust team would work to fight the abuses of Big Tech and that Slater would “ensure that our competition laws are enforced, both vigorously and FAIRLY, with clear rules that facilitate, rather than stifle, the ingenuity of our greatest companies.” This will be a high priority for the administration, and Slater is set to inherit several high-profile antitrust suits, including two against Apple and Google, respectively. Slater’s work stands to have a significant influence on the communications marketplace as one can expect significant media mergers to come under the DOJ’s sights for review.
Sean Duffy
The former United States Congressman and Fox News host—a father of nine and husband of “Fox & Friends” host Rachel Campos-Duffy—received the nod to take the helm of the Department of Transportation (DOT).
Why will Duffy’s role as Transportation Secretary be important to broadcasters? The DOT plays an important role in the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, which is likely to be reintroduced in early 2025. This legislation directs that the Department of Transportation (DOT) issue a rule that requires all new passenger motor vehicles to have devices that can access AM broadcast stations installed as standard equipment. Support from the DOT secretary could be a propelling force to help the bill become law.
Mike Huckabee
In November, evangelical Christians supporting Israel were heartened to see that a Christian broadcaster and former pastor was chosen to serve as the next United States Ambassador to Israel. A friend of NRB, former Governor Mike Huckabee has been a long-time supporter of Israel. When asked about the administration’s views on Israel following his nomination, Huckabee said, “There’s never been an American president that has been more helpful in securing an understanding of the sovereignty of Israel—from the moving of the embassy, recognition of the Golan Heights, and Jerusalem as the capital, no one has done more than President Trump and I fully expect that will continue.”
From the communications marketplace to the diplomatic stage, President Trump’s nominations herald significant change in Washington. To get to know the nominees and their plans for their respective posts, be sure to tune into their confirmation hearings. Find a full list of nominees here and track scheduled confirmation hearings here.