President-elect Donald Trump’s nominees for jobs in his second term are receiving guidance about social media use ahead of confirmation hearings that will start next week.
Susie Wiles, who managed Trump’s campaign and will be his White House chief of staff, recently sent a memo to nominees, according to two sources with knowledge of the memo.
It asks nominees not to post on social media without approval from Trump’s incoming White House counsel, according to text of the memo that was read to USA TODAY by one of the sources. Trump selected David Warrington, who has worked as his personal counsel and a lawyer for his campaign, to serve as the incoming White House counsel.
Some of Trump’s nominees are expected to face a tough confirmation process. For example, senators are expected to press Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, on allegations of sexual assault, excessive drinking and more. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is also set to face questions on his history of vaccine skepticism.
The memo comes after a debate on social media last week involving Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who Trump appointed to lead his Department of Government Efficiency. Musk and Ramaswamy defended the use of H-1B visas, which were criticized by other prominent voices in Trump’s MAGA movement, including Trump’s former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon.
Limiting social media posts could help the Trump team avoid additional disputes or criticism.
The first source close to the transition said without direct knowledge that the H-1B debate may have sparked the memo, and that Trump’s team may have realized “what a massive distraction that was.”
However, the second transition source said the memo “was not in response to the H1B debate. It was a reminder of the guidance to intended nominees as confirmation hearings get underway next week.”
The new Republican-controlled Senate, tasked with approving Trump’s nominees, will be sworn in on Friday. Hegseth’s nomination hearings are set to start on Jan. 14.
