#1,040: The "Best and Brightest" Are Now "The Bottom of the Barrel"

June 09, 2025 / Kurt F. Stone

There is no absolute certainty as to where the expression “the best and brightest” comes from. Most sources believe it was originated by the former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara (1916-2009) who served under presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson at the height of the Cold War. Prior to his 7+ years (1961-1968) as head of DOD, McNamara worked for the Ford Motor Company, eventually becoming the first president from outside the Ford Family since its initial leader, John S. Gray, in 1903. When McNamara took over as chief of production at Ford, he created a staff of whiz kids who shook up what was then a dying corporation with modern business and analytical methods. He then brought many of these young people (among whom were Harold Brown [himself a future Sec. of Defense], Adam Yarmolinsky and Wiiiam Kaufman) into government.

McNamara used the phrase “best and brightest” when talking about his tenure at Ford in the 2004 Oscar winning documentary The Fog of War. The phrase became a pejorative because of David Halberstam’s 1993 book of that title, which detailed how the best and brightest nonetheless got us into the quagmire of Viet Nam. Sadly, after that book, the phrase was mostly used ironically . . . or sarcastically. (n.b. It has long been my belief that the phrase goes back to best of all British comic novelists, author P.G. Wodehouse, in his 1921 wheeze, Jeeves in the Springtime. I for one still use the term in its non-sarcastic Kennedy-era meaning . . . indicating the most capable people to work with.”

Which gets us to the current era.

One will recall that during the presidential campaign of 2016, Pumpkin Punim repeatedly boasted that if elected, he’d “surround myself only with the best and most serious people” - adding; “We want top-of-the-line professionals.” We know how that solemn oath turned out: during his first 18 months of his presidency, myriad members of his cabinet and senior staff departed - often under suspicious circumstances (remember Paul Manafort, General Flynn and Carter Page?). Less than 2 years after taking his first oath of office, nearly half of ITs cabinet and close advisors had either resigned or been fired . . . leaving in their wake a panel of “acting” secretaries who did not require Senate approval.

His second term can easily be summed up by a silly line from Herman’s Hermit’s 1965 smash hit I’m Henry the Eighth I Am (which, unbelievably, dislodged the Stone’s I Can’t Get No Satisfaction from the top of the billboard chart): Second verse, same as the first. . .

Felon 47’s second cabinet is, if anything, even more incompetent and less reflective of the American public than the first. The tie that binds them together is neither prior governmental experience nor the urge to serve; rather, it is lucre and loyalty . . . and ofttimes, a link to Fox News. Unlike JFK’s and LBJ’s “best and brightest” these men and women are the bottom of the barrel. Just consider that:

His initial pick for Attorney General, then-Florida Representative Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name from consideration after facing intense scrutiny of allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use. in late May, the disgraced Gaetz said he was considering a run for Governor of Florida.
David Richardson, the person named to head FEMA baffled his staff after admitting he had not been aware the country has a hurricane season. Richardson, who has no disaster response experience made this comment on the second day of hurricane season. Before joining FEMA he was assistant secretary of DHS’ (Department of Homeland Security) office for countering weapons of mass destruction, which has told staff he will continue to lead.
The DHS secretary, former South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem botched a question about habeas corpus - the legal right, guaranteed in the constitution, that allows people detained by the government to challenge their detention. I. Testifying during a recent Senate hearing, she claimed habeas corpus was the president’s “constitutional right” to deport people.
While discussing artificial intelligence, Education Secretary Linda McMahon referred to it as “A1” - like the popular steak sauce. Speaking at a summit hosted by Silicon Valley investors, the learned Secretary (who is a former professional wrestling promotor), said “I wish I could remember the source, but there’s a school system that’s going to start making sure that first graders or even pre-Ks have A1 teaching every year starting that far down in the grades.” More recently, when asked by Representative Summer Lee (D-PA) “Would it be ‘illegal DEI’ for a lesson plan on the Tulsa Race Massacre?” was, responded that she intends to “look into it more.”
Its Social Security Commissioner, Frank Bisignano, a Wall Street billionaire, told his staff that he didn’t even know that Social Security had a commissioner, and had to Google the job when he was offered it.
Sean Duffy, a former MTV reality television star (Road Rules: All Stars) and now the new head of the Dept. of Transportation won’t let his wife fly in or out of the Newark Airport due to safety concerns.
Thomas Fugate, a 22-year old former grocery clerk with zero government experience of any kind, was tapped to be the head of an $18 million terror prevention team, replacing William Braniff a U.S. Army veteran with more than two decades of national security experience and the former Director of the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) within DHS. CP3 staffers have expressed shock at how little Fugate knows about the basics of his role and likened meetings with him to “career counseling.”
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Need we say more? And last but certainly not least,
Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, who is a drunk who knowingly texted war plans and emailed them to his family and friends. Hegseth is a graduate of Princeton (class of 2003) who became a frequent contributor to The Princeton Tory, the school’s conservative newspaper. For a time he served as publisher, and he was responsible for articles that, as he wrote, “strive to defend the pillars of Western civilization against the distractions of diversity.” Among these pieces, which stirred controversy at Princeton, was an editorial he cowrote that declared that “the homosexual lifestyle is abnormal and immoral.” In other editorials he criticized Halle Berry for accepting the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Monster's Ball (2001) "on behalf of an entire race", and The New York Times for announcing that it would print gay marriage announcements, arguing that it would justify publishing marriage announcements for incestuous, zoophilic, and pedophilic relationships.

After his military service (during which he was a guard at the Guantanamo Detention Center in Cuba, and worked as a civil affairs officer first in Baghdad, then in Samarra), Hegseth returned to his native Minnesota, ran unsuccessfully for the United States Senate, ran a political PAC, and then spent 10 years (2014-2024) as a regular commentator and presenter for Fox News. In his inaugural press release after being approved by the senate, the secretary stated his goals and philosophy: “We will revive the warrior ethos and restore trust in our military. We are American military warriors.” Just recently, grafting this military modus operandi onto his abject phobia of anything smacking of DEI (and anything gay), he announced that he was stripping the name Harvey Milk (a Korean War veteran and the first openly gay man to win elected office in the United States), off of a USNS (United States Naval Ship) . . . a highly unusual and deeply disturbing act. And, to make things even worse, Hegseth added a hateful exclamation point to his homophobic deed by making his announcement on the first day of “Pride Month”, the monthlong observance of the LGBTQ+ community.

There is no timeline for the renaming or what new name the ship (a fleet replenishment oiler) will be. The Navy referred all comments to SECDEF Hegseth’s office, which provided a brief written statement: "Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos. Any potential renaming(s) will be announced after internal reviews are complete." Moreover, officials at the DOD say that other ships under review for possible name changes include:

USNS Thurgood Marshall (the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court);
USNS Ruth Bader Ginsburg (named after the late Supreme Court Justice, the first Jewish woman on the court;
USNS Harriet Tubman, named for the woman who helped slaves escape to freedom in the 19th century;
USNS Delores Huerta and USNS Cesar Chavez, both Hispanic labor leaders;
USNS Lucy Stone, a 19th century suffragette and
USNS Medgar Evers, a 1960s-era civil rights leader who, like Harvey Milk, was assassinated.

The above are all John Lewis-class ships, meant to be named after civil rights leaders and activist icons. The lead ship in the group is named after the noted American politician and civil rights leader.

In essence what SECDEF Hegseth and his Command-in-Chief have done is to offer a one-finger salute to the LGBTQ+ community. It’s all part of a larger effort to whitewash the accomplishments and arguably, the humanity of women and minorities in the U.S. Military . . . and American life itself.

If you are concerned . . . or weary . . . or frightened by all the totalitarian dreck that is making America less and less small-d democratic on an almost daily basis, I recommend that the majority of us not retaliate in kind (e.g. not giving back a one-finger salute to the MAGA maniacs and their delusional, self-anointed defenders), but rather by taking to the streets this coming Saturday, June 14: the day of the nationwide "NO KINGS” protests.

There are any number of trustworthy online sites where you can get information about what is happening in your community and across the country:

Newsweek

The “NO KINGS” website

Simply Google “NO KINGS DAY PROTEST” + THE NAME OF YOUR COMMUNITY Here’s an example

In the words of the late Rep. John Lewis: “Speak up, speak out, get in the way. Get in good trouble, necessary trouble, and help redeem the soul of America.”

Here’s hoping that the best and brightest can put the bottom of the barrel back where they truly belong . . .

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