What is a “tsar”? Trump wants his people in place – and quickly

President-elect Donald Trump announced this on Sunday that he appoint a “border czar,” a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement director and immigration hardliner Tom Homanto join his government. However, Homan may not be the only such “czar” in the Trump administration.

“I am pleased to announce that former ICE Director and loyal border enforcement expert Tom Homan will be joining the Trump Administration responsible for our nation’s borders (“The Border Czar”), including but not limited to Southern border, northern border, all maritime and air security,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The term “tsar” is an abbreviation for a high-ranking executive branch official responsible for a specific policy focus.

These are not Senate-confirmed positions

The role of “tsar” allows a president to overcome the onerous checks and balances of the three branches of government. “Tsar” positions are not Senate-confirmed Cabinet positions, such as Secretary of State or Secretary of Health and Human Services. This means that a president can appoint this person to his administration quickly and without intervention from the Senate.

Trump wants to quickly put his people in their place, having seen in his first term how congressional authority can thwart an administration's plans. Trump said this in a social media post on Sunday.

“Sometimes voting can take two years or longer,” Trump wrote on Sunday, saying he wanted recess appointments. “They did that four years ago and we can’t let that happen again. We need positions filled IMMEDIATELY!”

Trump would not be the first president to appoint “tsars.”

Trump wouldn't be the first president to use “czar.” Such tsars were appointed by presidents of both parties. Former President Barack Obama had, at times, an “energy and environment czar,” an “Afghanistan czar,” a “car czar,” a “health care czar,” and a “car renovation czar.”

His holding of these positions was so widespread that in 2009 the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the history and legality of executive branch czars. The committee noted that some of these political czars were at one point confirmed by the Senate, while others held positions outside the White House and reported to a Senate-confirmed official. But a handful worked in the White House. The use of such “tsars” sparked intense criticism from Republicans, and even some Democrats expressed concerns about their authority.

But presidents before Obama also had “tsars.” President Bill Clinton had a “Y2K czar,” and President George W. Bush had an “AIDS czar,” an “anti-terrorism czar,” and a “reading czar,” among others. Historians believe this role dates back to Franklin D. Roosevelt, who rapidly expanded the size and role of the federal government.

Trump also had something of a “tsar” in his first term. Moncef Slaoui, A former pharmaceutical executive, he led Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration's initiative to accelerate COVID-19 vaccines.

During the Obama administration, Republicans criticized the growth of the administrative state and the decisions of unelected bureaucrats. And during the Trump administration, Trump supporters decried the so-called “deep state” of unelected career officers.

Vice President Harris has sometimes been called the “border czar,” although not by President Biden himself, as the president tasked her with tackling the influx of migrants at the southern border. Harris fought against that label as a Democratic candidate.

A “Czar” position could make room for controversial names like RFK, Jr.

The Senate will be controlled by Republicans when Trump takes office. But Trump could still have difficulty confirming some of the most controversial names, such as vaccine denier Robert F. Kennedy Jr., to Senate-confirmed Cabinet positions.

kennedy is on a short list being floated by some Trump allies for the job as the next head of the Department of Health and Human Services, several people close to him elected president campaign said. But it's also possible that Kennedy could take on a less formal role, such as that of a “tsar.”

Where does the term “Tsar” come from?

“Tsar” comes from the Russian word “tsar,” which is derived from the Latin word “caesar,” according to the World History Encyclopedia. Specifically, the term “tsar” refers to the rulers of Russia for hundreds of years. Ivan IV the Terrible was officially crowned “Tsar of All Russia” in 1547 and the title remained until the Russian monarchy was overthrown in the Russian Revolution of 1917.

Franklin D. Roosevelt, who greatly expanded the size and scope of the federal government, used “czars.” But even before his term, the term “tsar” was probably first used in the United States by Nicholas Biddle, who was appointed president of the Bank of the United States during the presidency of Andrew Jackson. He was sometimes called “Tsar Nicholas,” which overlapped with the reign of Russian Tsar Nicholas I.

Over time, the term has been used informally in the United States to refer to individuals selected by the President for principal positions and not subject to Senate review, consideration, or confirmation.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of “Tsars”?

Critics of such roles have argued that “tsars” disregarded the system of separation of powers that the forefathers had established. The late Democratic Senator Robert Byrd criticized both Obama and Bush for creating such roles in their administrations.

“The quick and easy accumulation of power by White House staff can threaten the constitutional system of separation of powers,” Byrd wrote in a published letter to Obama in 2009. “In the worst case scenario, White House staff have assumed leadership and control of program areas.” That is the legal responsibility of Senate-confirmed officials.

The president can, of course, appoint White House staff. The constitutional questions come into question when the president selects a school superintendent who is not confirmed by the Senate.

But for a president who wants to quickly appoint an ally, it is logistically much easier to get a “tsar” into office than a Cabinet secretary.

How effective a “tsar” can really be is up for debate – especially since “tsars” generally have no control over budgets.

Melissa Quinn contributed to this report.