AG Rutledge in talks with Trump transition, spokesman confirms

Attorney General Leslie Rutledge is in talks with President Trump’s transition team and is open to listening to offers for a position in his administration, her spokesman said today.

Rutledge has been mentioned as a potential EPA administrator by Politico and Fortune magazine. In response, Judd Deere, her spokesman, said, “Certainly, it’s an honor that General Rutledge is being mentioned for a post within the president-elect’s administration. I will say that she has been having conversations with the transition team just as she had with the campaign throughout the 2016 cycle. As you know, she was an early supporter of Mr. Trump and was an active surrogate, and so, certainly an honor for her to be mentioned among people that Mr. Trump is possibly considering.”

Deere said the conversations are “ongoing,” but whether she is being considered for a position would be a question for the transition team.

“I don’t know that she is, but according to media reports, it sounds like she is,” he said.

Deere pointed out that Rutledge has already launched her re-election campaign for 2018 and said she intends to run for re-election, “but her philosophy is if the White House and the president calls, she certainly has a duty to listen and to see what his ask is.”

Rutledge was one of three Arkansas elected officials to speak at the Republican National Convention, the others being Sen. Tom Cotton and Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who also have been mentioned in media outlets as being potential Cabinet picks.

Of the three, she gave the most aggressive endorsement, and she later made appearances on behalf of Trump, including one well-publicized, contentious interview with CBS News. As attorney general, Rutledge has opposed EPA emissions rules and joined other states asking the EPA to place a hold on its Clean Power Plan.

Cotton is being mentioned by some media outlets as a potential secretary of defense. A veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Cotton has created a national reputation as a defense hawk in favor of more military spending and a muscular American foreign policy, and he frequently appears on national media outlets.

Asked Wednesday about the potential appointment by radio personality Hugh Hewitt, Cotton said simply, “Donald Trump was just elected eight days ago. He’s going to make all these decisions about his White House staff and his Cabinet in due time, and I think we should all give him the time to make those decisions.”

Hutchinson was mentioned as a potential attorney general in a Wall Street Journal article the day after the election. Asked that day if he would have a job in a Trump administration, Hutchinson said, “No. I’m happy. How’s that for clarity?”

His spokesperson, J.R. Davis, later that day released a statement saying, “Governor Hutchinson is not interested in a position with the new administration. He has stated several times that being governor is the best job in America, and he has no desire to leave his current post as the state’s chief executive. As such, the governor will continue to focus on job creation, computer science education and making government more efficient for all Arkansans.”

Gov. Mike Huckabee did not speak at the Republican National Convention but was an enthusiastic Trump supporter and was mentioned by Politico as a potential Commerce secretary. His daughter, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, was a senior advisor in Trump’s campaign.

Next door, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin was mentioned by both Fortune and Politico as a potential secretary of the interior. Fallin campaigned on behalf of Trump and said after the election she would be willing to meet with him about a possible post in his administration, according to The Oklahoman.

Skip Rutherford, dean of the Clinton School of Public Service, participated in the presidential transition team when President Clinton was elected in 1992. He said the months between the election and the inauguration are a busy time. He said he received many phone calls from people who were interested in working with the administration. He said past relationships were important to Clinton, as numerous Arkansans had Cabinet-level appointments or key White House positions.

“It’s a crazy process because so much has to happen in such a short time,” he said.

He said some names are placed in the media as trial balloons to assist in the public vetting process. Meanwhile, other names appeared in media speculation that never were considered for those posts.

He said the three Arkansans that have been most mentioned the most, Rutledge, Hutchinson and Cotton, “would be very legitimate candidates.”

Rutledge “probably made enormous contacts within the Trump team, and so I think she would have to be strongly considered,” he said. “I don’t think that’s a trial balloon. I think that’s legit.”