“We have by far the highest IQ of any Cabinet ever,” Donald Trump has said.
We at The Daily Beast can neither confirm nor deny that assertion—and of course, President Trump can’t either. But now that the Trump Cabinet is (finally) in place, we can compare its résumés with those of its predecessors in the Obama administration. How do they stack up? Here’s a sampling of five—you be the judge.
Department of State
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John KerryB.A. Yale University
Advanced degrees: J.D., Boston College Law School
Served in Vietnam, awarded Silver Star Medal, Bronze Star Medal, and three Purple Heart Medals.
Expertise: 29 years in U.S. Senate, serving on Foreign Relations Committee
Rex TillersonB.A., University of Texas
Advanced degrees: None
Expertise: No diplomatic or government experience. While CEO of ExxonMobil, awarded Order of Friendship by Vladimir Putin.
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Department of Energy
Rick PerryB.S., Texas A&M University, 2.5 GPA
Advanced degrees: None
Expertise: None. Had recommended the department be eliminated, until he learned what it did.
Ernest MonizB.S., Boston College, Summa Cum Laude
Advanced degrees: Ph.D. in theoretical physics, Stanford University
Expertise: Professor of physics and engineering at MIT for over 25 years. Fellow, American Academy of Arts & Sciences.
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Environmental Protection Agency
Gina McCarthyB.A., University of Massachusetts Boston
Advanced degrees: M.S. in Environmental Health & Engineering, Tufts University
Expertise: 20 years of state environmental jobs prior to EPA
Scott PruittB.A., Georgetown College in Kentucky
Advanced degrees: J.D., University of Tulsa.
Expertise: None. As an Oklahoma attorney general (with no science background), Pruitt sued the EPA many times, cut and pasted industry positions as his own, and denied the unanimous expert scientific consensus on climate change.
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Department of Education
John King Jr.B.A., Harvard University
Advanced degrees: J.D., Yale Law School. Ed.D. (“Doctor of Education”), Columbia.
Expertise: Former commissioner of education of New York, also taught for three years and founded a school.
Betsy DeVosB.A., Calvin College (a Christian religious university)
Advanced degrees: None
Expertise: Married a billionaire, cofounded a quack “brain performance center,” spent several years of advocacy for school vouchers, which she said would “advance God’s Kingdom.”
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Dept of Housing and Urban Development
Julian CastroB.A., Stanford University
Advanced degrees: J.D., Harvard Law School
Expertise: Mayor of San Antonio for 13 years
Ben CarsonB.A., Yale University
Advanced degrees: M.D., University of Michigan
Expertise: None. Widely acclaimed as gifted brain surgeon with no governmental or housing policy experience.
