Trump's surprising picks for top jobs split long-time supporters

The ex-presidents choices for key national-security roles have made some of his core followers scratch their heads. Marco Rubio and Mike Waltz – both known for their tough stance on global issues dont match the stay-at-home ideas that got popular with many Trump supporters

Rubio‚ whos been active in the Senate about 4 years ago pushed back against quick exit from Afghanistan; he also wanted to make it harder to leave NATO (which Trump once thought about during his time in office). Waltz brings his Green Beret background and links to old-school Republican leaders – he worked with Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney back in the day

The MAGA-world restrainers are reeling; theyʼre dumbfounded

To balance things out Trump picked some different-minded people:

• Matt Gaetz for attorney general
• Tulsi Gabbard for intelligence director
• Pete Hegseth for defense secretary

Waltz has some new-style ideas though: last year he wanted special powers to fight Mexican drug groups but made it clear: “Im not talking about U.S troops but Im talking about cyber drones intelligence assets naval assets“

Pete Hegseth (who hosts on Fox) changed his mind about using military force – he calls himself a “recovering neocon“. Around 4 years ago he told NY Times that everyone needs to think different about wars and their cost‚ but at same time he wanted strong action against Iran which shows how complex these views can be

The whole group makes an interesting mix: youʼve got Russia-hawks sitting next to Gabbard (who some say agrees too much with Moscow about Ukraine). Its creating quite a stir in Republican circles – some think its disaster while others see it as smart balance