Note from Dr. Pat: As President-elect Donald Trump forms his administration, many of our readers are following his choices for major appointments with great interest. Diane Vacca will keep us up to date about each of these as the information comes in from Trump’s transition team. These articles are meant to be informative and factual, and every attempt will be made to deliver balanced information. We want to encourage our readers to stay involved in the process that promotes an informed and active body politic. Democracy is a fragile form of government that requires more civic involvement than we have seen in America in over a century.

President-elect Donald Trump’s first two choices to assist him in the White House were the men he felt had best supported him during his arduous campaign. Reince Priebus was an early supporter and remained faithful even as other Republicans abandoned Trump when the Access Hollywood scandal broke. For his loyalty, Trump rewarded Priebus with a plum assignment. The chief of staff is potentially the most powerful of the president’s men in the White House. With no previous experience in government, Trump will have to depend on his advisers as he navigates unknown waters.

Unlike the members of the cabinet, Priebus and Steve Bannon, senior counselor and chief strategist, do not require Senate confirmation.

Priebus, now in his third term as chairman of the Republican National Committee, is a choice that is likely to please the Republican establishment. He has worked with Speaker Paul Ryan and Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin for years. The three are more than friends, they are political soulmates and were called “The Cheesehead Mafia.” The Washington Post reported in 2011 that “they share a worldview, a set of conservative values and a determination to show the country that conservative values and a determination to show the country that conservative governance can solve many of the nation’s problems. And in Wisconsin, they found a way to unify the party establishment with the Tea Party movement, avoiding many of the conflicts that occurred in other states.”