Donald Trump narrows in on Marc Rowan for Treasury secretary

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Good morning and welcome to White House Watch. Today let’s talk about:

Trump’s potential Treasury pick
The ethics investigation into Matt Gaetz
How the Middle East is preparing for Trump

Marc Rowan has become Donald Trump’s shiny new economic toy.

He suddenly emerged as a top contender for Treasury secretary, and rushed back from Hong Kong to meet Trump in Florida yesterday to make his pitch for the crucial role [free to read].

Rowan, chief executive of private equity firm Apollo Global Management, prepared extensively for his interview and has the support of some top Wall Street donors and Trump confidantes, according to people familiar with the situation.

With Trump’s team embroiled in infighting over his Treasury pick, this cabinet role is one of the few remaining positions Trump has left to fill.

With Howard Lutnick now out of the way, Rowan is jockeying for the role with hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, who is also being considered to lead the National Economic Council. Former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh is still in the mix, as is Tennessee senator Bill Hagerty, who was hanging out with Trump and Elon Musk at a SpaceX rocket launch on Tuesday.

Rowan advised Trump’s first administration on emergency measures to calm financial markets in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, but he really shot to prominence in political circles after playing a lead role in ousting president Liz McGill from the University of Pennsylvania amid anti-Israel protests on campus. Both Rowan and Trump are Penn alumni.

Rowan, who co-founded Apollo, took over as its sole head after the downfall of Leon Black, who had close ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He has been positioning Apollo — a titan of alternative asset management — for what he sees as a coming new age on Wall Street, in which the power of the banking industry is dwindling.

Team 47: who’s made the cut

Matthew Whitaker, who has little foreign policy experience and served as acting attorney-general in Trump’s first term, has been chosen to be US ambassador to Nato.

Howard Lutnick, CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, has been tapped for commerce secretary, which would put him in charge of imposing the sweeping tariffs Trump promised voters.

Former World Wrestling Entertainment chief Linda McMahon has been nominated to lead the education department, which Trump had pledged to shut down.

Television doctor Mehmet Oz has been named to head up the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

What we’re hearing

Middle Eastern officials are trying to get Trump’s ear as the war-torn region braces itself for a staunchly pro-Israel US agenda under the president-elect.

In Lebanon, many are pinning their hopes on auto tycoon Massad Boulos, who is the father-in-law of Trump’s youngest daughter, Tiffany. No other Lebanese voice is as well placed in the president-elect’s circle.

“Definitely the fact that he’s Lebanese, wants [what is best for] the long-term interests of his country, this could be a positive,” one Lebanese official told the FT’s Raya Jalabi. “But we have to wait and see.”

Lebanese officials said Boulos had not contacted the government in an official capacity or with a mandate from Trump. But he recently met Lebanon’s economy minister Amin Salam, among other notable figures, in Washington.

Meanwhile, Arab states are banking on Saudi Arabia’s close ties to Trump to temper the president-elect’s support for Israel. Arab officials are worried that Trump might approve any moves by Israel to annex the occupied West Bank, occupy Gaza or escalate tensions with Iran.

But they hope that Riyadh can leverage Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s relationship with Trump, the president-elect’s desire for financial deals and his anticipated push for a “grand bargain” that would lead Saudi Arabia and Israel to normalise relations.

“The key player in the region is Saudi Arabia because of their known relations with him, so it will be the linchpin of any regional actions the US might decide to do,” an Arab diplomat told the FT’s Andrew England.