By Lananh Nguyen
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The co-chair of U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's freshly minted transition team has begun tapping his network from a career on Wall Street to build a roster of thousands of candidates to serve in a potential administration.
“I want to support President Trump and assist him in finding the greatest talent, the greatest athletes to put on the field, to create a wonderful, first-class administration,” said Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick, who co-chairs the team with wrestling magnate Linda McMahon.
Its leaders, who are both major donors to Trump's campaign, are recruiting potential staffers, while the campaign handles strategy and policy matters in the run-up to the election.
Trump and Lutnick's relationship spans decades. After 658 Cantor employees died in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Trump offered support to Lutnick as the CEO rebuilt the firm by hiring thousands of people.
Now, Lutnick is fielding calls from contacts he has made at the helm of Cantor, which arranges deals in sectors including energy, technology and healthcare. He also runs brokerage BGC Group and is chairman of Newmark Group (NASDAQ:NMRK), a commercial real estate services firm, and FMX, a platform owned by some of Wall Street's biggest banks and traders.
Lutnick's selection is a nod to the business community from which Trump hired executives for his first administration, including former Treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin.
Trump's staffing has been the subject of intense speculation after conservative group Project 2025 floated a controversial agenda that recommends vast changes throughout the federal government. Trump has since disavowed the group's ideas.
A second Trump White House would likely seek to loosen financial regulations, while a potential Democratic administration led by Vice President Kamala Harris would probably pursue tougher financial rules.