The Left lost the election thanks in part to scandalous and false “news” reports, often involving “unidentified” sources.

Americans caught on to that trick and now have little to no respect for such so-called news sources.

The same figures are attempting the same ploy in efforts to destroy incoming President Trump’s nominees for cabinet positions.

The reformers that Trump has nominated are all outsiders to the Deep State crowd, which had turned the nation’s capitol into a District of Corruption, to use a term often used outside the capital city.

The denizens of that cesspool will be happy only with nominees who reflect the same faults they flaunt.

One of the first things I learned upon entering the real newspaper world more than 60 years ago was to never cite an unnamed source in a newspaper article. It’s considered the height of dishonesty by anyone with integrity.

Washington insiders are furious with Trump, whom they already hated, for picking cabinet members who will clean up the mess that threatens the very life of this republic.

A column by Fred Lucas, White House reporter for The Daily Signal, publication of the Heritage Foundation, appearing on Page 4 of the Wednesday edition, provides an accurate synopsis of the qualifications of Kash Patel who was nominated for FBI director.

I cite The Daily Signal often because it is accurate and fair.

Patel’s Qualifications Listed

Columnist Victor Davis Hanson adds to Patel’s qualifi cations with this comment in a recent opinion piece on Townhall.com: “Many of Trump’s picks are well outside the usual Washington, D.C./New York political, media and corporate nexus.

“But that is precisely the point – to insert reformers into a bloated, incompetent, and weaponized government who are not part of it.

“Trump’s nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel, is already drawing severe criticism.

“His furious enemies cannot go after his resume since he has spent a lifetime in private, congressional, and executive billets, both in investigations and intelligence.

“Instead, they claim he is too vindictive and does not reflect the ethos of the FBI.

“But what will Patel not do as the new director? “He will not serially lie under oath to federal investigators as did interim FBI Director Andrew McCabe, a current Patel critic.”

That sounds like a sound set of qualifications to this country boy.

Then he adds these other points: “He will not forge an FBI court affidavit, as did convicted felon and agency lawyer Kevin Clinesmith.

“He will not claim amnesia 245 times under congressional oath to evade embarrassing admissions as did former Director James Comey.

“He will not partner with a foreign national to collect dirt and subvert a presidential campaign as the FBI did with Christopher Steele in 2016.

“He will not use the FBI to draft social media to suppress news unfavorable to a presidential candidate on the eve of an election.

“He would not have suppressed FBI knowledge that Hunter Biden’s laptop was genuine – to allow the lie to spread that it was ‘Russian disinformation’ on the eve of the 2020 election.”

President Trump’s other nominees have received similar vile treatment.

The Left’s game plan is to condemn every conservative nominee with slanderous made-up allegations.

Everyone of the Left’s criticisms should be considered a resounding endorsement for Trump nominees’ qualifications and abilities, at least from a normal point of view.

Even if one of the Trump nominees should make a misstep in office, it couldn’t be worse than the past four disastrous years.

That explains why American voters gave Team Trump a sweeping victory last month.

Heck, I’m even willing to give former Democrat RFK Jr. the benefit of the doubt.

I doubt that he will seek out “scientists” to demonize critics of masking should another gain-of-function virus be turned loose on the world.

Washington may soon become a place normal Americans might enjoy visiting.

Hurry Jan. 20.

Hegseth Being ‘Kavanaugh’d’

As to Pete Hegseth, who was nominated as Secretary of Defense, The Daily Caller provides the following: “President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, told SiriusXM’s Megyn Kelly on Wednesday that he believes he is the target of a “smear” campaign, comparing his experience to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation process.

“After Trump nominated Kavanaugh for the Su- preme Court in 2018, Democratic lawmakers quickly sought to derail his confirmation, portraying him as partisan and using sexual assault allegations that surfaced after his nomination to weaken his bid. On ‘The Megyn Kelly Show,’ Hegseth sat down to discuss the backlash against him, with Kelly asking if he believes he is being ‘Kavanaugh’d.’

“I had a member (of the Senate), not 45 minutes ago, look me in the eye in private – just he and I, – and say, ‘That’s what they’re trying to do to you,’” Hegseth said. “‘That’s their playbook. Get ready for more, and they’re gonna make it up, just like they have so far. All anonymous, all innuendo, all rumor, nothing sourced, no verification and they’re just gonna keep doing it, because you’re a threat to them. You’re a threat to their system. You’re a threat to all the things in Washington D.C., the swamp, the things that people have rejected. You’re a threat to that, and so they’re coming after you.’”

••• Any Republican senator who fails to vote for Trump’s nominees deserves to be “primaried” at his-her next election.