I have already written content in relation to Donald Trumps cabinet picks. Since then, there have been several stunning developments that not even I could have foretold. A major contender for secretary of state has dropped out of being considered for the highly coveted position. Two democratic senators are under consideration for positions in the cabinet. For the first time, a non-scientist, be it a good or bad thing, is the leading candidate for the Department of Energy. So many different news stories and developments to keep track during this highly anticipated selection process for Trump's transition team. Luckily, I am here to help decipher all of the latest developments in regards to Trumps future administration. I will be doing my absolute best to give a fair and balanced assessment of Donald Trumps recent cabinet selections.

Secretary of State: Rex Tillerson

(Image: The New Yorker)

Starting off with, arguably, the most prominent position in the presidents cabinet, the Secretary of State is a senior official of the federal government of the United States of America heading the U.S. Department of State. The Secretary of State is nominated by the President of the Unite States and is confirmed by the United States Senate. The Secretary of State, along with the Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of Defense, and Attorney General are generally regarded as the four most important Cabinet members because of the importance of their respective departments. The secretary of state is primarily concerned with constructing and articulating the foreign policy of the United States. This includes but not limited to advising the president on foreign policy matters; participating in high level negotiations with other countries; provide credentials for U.S. citizens such as issuing passports and visas; and organizing the United States Foreign Service.

Donald Trump has selected current Exxon Mobil chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson to be America's next top diplomat. Rex Tillerson fits the profile of Donald Trump's emerging cabinet, which includes many rich business people. But the choice of an oil executive for secretary of state is the clearest sign yet that Mr Trump plans to approach foreign policy like a business, sending out his top diplomat to get the best deals for America. Mr Tillerson is said to have a good relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, alarming both Democrats and some Republicans.

Director of the National Economic Council: Gary Cohen

(Image: Wall Street journal)

According to whitehouse.gov, the National Economic Council (NEC) was established in 1993 to advise the President on U.S. and global economic policy. It resides within the Office of Policy Development and is part of the Executive Office of the President. By Executive Order, the N.E.C. has four principal functions: to coordinate policy-making for domestic and international economic issues, to coordinate economic policy advice for the President, to ensure that policy decisions and programs are consistent with the President's economic goals, and to monitor implementation of the President's economic policy agenda. The N.E.C. Director spearheads all efforts to help fulfill the four aforementioned functions of the council. The Director does not require apporval by the United State Senate.

Donald Trump has selected Gary Cohen, the current President an Chief Operating Officer Gary Cohn as the next Director of the National Economic Council. Putting Mr. Cohn in the White House would give Goldman Sachs veterans a major influence in economic decisions. Mr. Trump’s pick for Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs. However, despite the negative reputation that Goldman Sachs has in the public sphere, the appointment of both Cohn and Mnuchin is not necessarily a bad thing. At times, there can be tension between the N.E.C. and Treasury Department over who is in the driver’s seat of economic policy decisions. The presence of both men in the White House would allow for the two to tackle and implement economic policies from a unified perspective rather than a divided one.

Interior Secretary: Ryan Zinke

(Image: Montana Public Radio)

As the name implies, as with much of the federal bureaucracy, the Secretary of the Interior is the head of the U.S. Department of the Interior. The U.S. Department of the Interior is responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources; it oversees such agencies as the Bureau of Land Managment, the United State Geological Survey, and the National Park Service. The Secretary also serves on and appoints the private citizens on the National Park Foundation board. The Secretary must be approved by the United States Senate.

Donald Trump has selected Montana congressman Ryan Zinke, Republican, to head up the U.S. Department of the Interior. Zinke, who studied geology as an undergraduate at the University of Oregon and served as a Navy SEAL from 1986 to 2008 before entering politics, campaigned for his House seat on a platform of achieving North American energy independence. He sits on the House Natural Resources Committee as well as the Armed Services Committee. A lifelong hunter and fisherman, the 55-year-old Zinke has defended public access to federal lands even though he frequently votes against environmentalists on issues ranging from coal extraction to oil and gas drilling.

Labor Secretary: Andrew Puzder

(Image: CNN Money)

The United States Secretary of Labor is the head of the U.S. Department of Labor and is a member of the presidents cabinet. In addition to exercising control over the department, the secretary enforces and suggests laws involving labor unions, the work place, and other issues concerning business. As an interesting fact, seven women have served as Secretary of Labor, which is more than any other cabinet position.

Donald Trump has selected Andrew Puzder to head up the Labor Department. Puzder is the CEO of C.K.E. Restaurants, Inc. He earned a Juris Doctorate in 1978 from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Mo., where he served as Senior Editor on the Law Review. While practicing law in St. Louis, Puzder met Carl Karcher, the founder of the Carl’s Jr. quick-service restaurant chain. Karcher was embroiled in serious financial difficulties and asked Puzder to move to California as his personal attorney. In 1991, Puzder relocated to Orange County, Calif. He is credited with resolving Karcher’s financial dilemma, allowing Karcher to avoid bankruptcy and retain a significant ownership interest in the company he founded, CKE Restaurants, Inc.

In 1997, Puzder was named Executive Vice President and General Counsel for CKE. In 1997, CKE purchased Hardee’s Food Systems, Inc. Faced with serious financial and operational issues, CKR’s Board of Directors named Puzder as president and CEO of Hardee’s Food Systems in June 2000 and named him president and CEO of CKE Restaurants, Inc. in September of that year. Puzder is credited with turning around both the Hardee’s brand and CKE, allowing the company to survive become financially secure and return to growth.

Puzder, who has been called a “poster CEO for the regulatory reform effort,” has been a frequent lecturer at colleges and universities and a guest on business news programs including “Your World w/ Neil Cavuto,” “The O’Reilly Factor” with Bill O’Reilly, “Mad Money” with Jim Cramer, “Fast Money,” “Power Lunch” “Lou Dobbs Tonight” and “Squawk on the Street.”

Small Business Administrator: Linda McMahon

(Image: Politico)

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is a U.S. government agency that provides support entrepreneurs and small businesses. The SBA accomplishes this, namely, by handing out loans to to banks, credit unions, and other lenders who partner with the agency. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and strengthen the nation's economy by enabling the establishment and viability of small businesses and by assisting in the economic recovery of communities after disasters". The agency's activities are summarized as the "3 Cs" of capital, contracts and counseling.

Donald Trump has selected former World Wrestling (W.W.E.) Entertainment CEO Linda McMahon to lead the Small Business Administration. McMahon is the wife of billionaire W.W.E. promoter, Vincent McMahon, whose net worth FORBES estimates at $1.16 billion. The couple confounded the W.W.E., which now has a market capitalization of $1.5 billion, more than three decades ago. According to W.W.E.'s most recent annual report, Linda McMahon personally owns $84 million in W.W.E. stock. She served as CEO from 1997 until 2009, when she stepped down to pursue public office. Her unsuccessful U.S. Senate runs as a Republican in Connecticut in 2010 and 2012 cost the couple an estimated $100 million.

E.P.A. Administrator: Scott Pruitt

The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is the head of the Environmental Protection Agency - no surprise. The department, and by extension the secretary, is responsible for enforcing the nations Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, as well as other federal statutes concerning the environment. The administrator is nominated by the President and confirmed [or denied] by the United States Senate.

Donald Trump has selected Edward "Scott" Pruitt to be the next E.P.A. Administrator. Pruitt is an American lawyer and Republican politician from Oklahoma. Pruitt was a State Senator, representing Tulsa and Wagoner counties from 1998 to 2006. After a string of unsuccessful runs for congress and other statewide offices, Pruitt was elected to serve as Oklahoma's Attorney General in 2010. A post he has held ever since.

Since Pruitt hails from Oklahoma, an oil and gas intensive state, the move by Trump to nominate him, to some, is a move signaling an assault on President Obama’s climate change and environmental legacy. As Attorney General, Pruitt has made a career fighting the very agency he might soon be the administrator of. A move that, to some, presents a conflict of interest.

Homeland Security Secretary: John Kelly

(Image: Getty Images)

The United States Secretary of Homeland Security is the head of the Department of Homeland Secretary (DHS). D.H.S. is primarily concerned with protecting the U.S. citizenry. The department consists, primarily, of other bureaus and agencies transferred over from other cabinet departments - namely for their role in "protecting the homeland." These agencies include the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Protection Service, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Secret Service, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The secretary is nominated by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate.

Donald Trump has picked retired four star General John Kelly to be his Homeland Secretary. Kelly, the third retired general to join Trump's Cabinet, if confirmed by the Senate, would be responsible for carrying out some of Trump’s most controversial campaign pledges. This includes building a wall along the border with Mexico, boosting deportations of immigrants in the country illegally and vetting visitors from Muslim-majority nations. Kelly, 66, lead troops in multiple tours of intense fighting in Iraq and formally led the United States Southern Command, the Pentagon’s regional headquarters for operations in the Caribbean, Central America and South America.

Ambassador to China: Terry Branstad

(Image: European Pressphoto Agency)

The United States Ambassador to China is the chief American diplomat to the Peoples Republic of China. The United States has sent diplomatic representatives - note the term is different from Ambassador - to China since 1844. The President of the United States nominates individuals for the position and that individual is confirmed or denied by the United States Senate.

Donald Trump has selected Iowa Governor Terry Branstad be the next U.S. Ambassador to China. In the past, Branstad has called Chinese President Xi Jinping a "long-time friend" when Mr Xi visited Iowa before becoming Chinese leader. After Bloomberg first reported the nomination, which requires Senate confirmation, Beijing responded by calling Mr Branstad an "old friend". "We welcome him to play a greater role in advancing the development of China-US relations," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang.

Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Seema Verma

(Image: India Tribune)

The Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is the head for the Medicare and Medicaid Services (C.M.S.). Formally known as the Health Care Financing Administration (H.C.F.A.), the federal agency, under the supervision of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (H.H.S.), administers the Medicare program. The agency also works with state governments to administer Medicaid, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (S.C.H.I.P.), and health portability standards. The C.M.S. Administrator is appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate.

Donald Trump has selected Seema Verma to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Verma, an Indiana resident, is best known for her work on Medicaid issues and her close ties to Vice President-elect Mike Pence. She designed his Obamacare Medicaid expansion model -- known as Healthy Indiana Plan 2.0 -- and has advised several Republican states on how to add conservative elements such as health savings accounts and employment requirements to their programs.

Through her consulting firm SVC Inc., Verma has worked on other high-profile Medicaid expansion proposals for Republican governors. That includes Kentucky, where Republican Gov. Matt Bevin has threatened to pull the plug unless the Obama administration approves his pending request. Bevin's plan includes a work requirement as a condition of receiving benefits and lockout periods for failure to pay, and is modeled off of Indiana’s Medicaid expansion model.

Prior to consulting, Verma worked for the Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County, Indiana and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials in Washington, D.C.

White House Counsel: Don McGahn

(Image: The New York Times)

The White House Counsel is a staff appointee of the President of the United States - thus not requiring confirmation by the United States Senate. The primary role of White House Counsel is to advise President on all legal issues concerning the President's administration. The Office of Counsel to the President was created in 1943, and is responsible for advising on all legal aspects of policy questions, legal issues arising in connection with the President's decision to sign or veto legislation, ethical questions, financial disclosures, and conflicts of interest during employment and post employment. The Counsel's Office also helps define the line between official and political activities, oversees executive appointments and judicial selection, handles Presidential pardons, reviews legislation and Presidential statements, and handles lawsuits against the President in his role as President, as well as serving as the White House contact for the Department of Justice. The position has been described as one of the most powerful of the lesser known positions within the president's inner circle.

Donald Trump has selected Don McGahn to be his White House Counsel. McGahn is an American campaign finance lawyer and former member of the United States Federal Election Commission. He was chief counsel for the National Republican Congressional Committee from 1999 to 2008. If his record is a guide, McGahn will be a fierce proponet of the president-elect being able to to exercise authoirty independently on a wide variety of issues.

Secretary of Energy: Rick Perry

(Image: The New York Times)

The United States Secretary of Energy is the head of the U.S. Department of Energy. Originally the post focused on energy production and regulation. The emphasis soon shifted to developing technology for better and more efficient energy sources as well as energy education. After the end of the Cold War, the department's attention also turned toward radioactive waste disposal and maintenance of environmental quality. The secretary is appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate.

Donald Trump has selected former Texas Governor and 2012 Presidential Candidate Rick Perry to be his Secretary of Energy. In selecting Perry for this post, Trump is elevating him to a cabinet post that he [Perry] once vowed to eliminate - a proposal that lead to one of the most famous political gaffes in recent memory. If confirmed by the Senate, Perry will inherit a department that has focused on promoting clean energy and reducing dependence on fossil fuels, but has also seen domestic production of oil explode. And his selection is a nod to the traditional GOP emphasis on energy sources like coal and oil.