Donald Trump auditions Cabinet prospects high above Manhattan
Donald Trump held court from his perch high above Manhattan on Monday, receiving a line of former rivals, longtime allies and TV executives while overseeing a presidential transition that at times resembles a reality show like the one he once hosted. Trump met with nearly a dozen prospective hires, all of whom were paraded in front of the cameras set up in the Trump Tower lobby as they entered an elevator to see the president-elect. Out of public view himself, he fell back on his TV star roots by filming a video that touted his legislative goals once he takes office. Trump; did not immediately announce any appointments after the meetings, which came on the heels of a two-day whirlwind of interviews at his golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey. Unlike his predecessors, who often spoke with Cabinet candidates under a cloud of secrecy, Trump has turned the search into a very public audition process. The extraordinary exercise took on a routine feel on Monday: First, former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown stepped off the gold-plated elevator into the marble-coated lobby after his meeting to declare to waiting reporters that he was “the best person” to become Veterans Affairs secretary. Next, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin, a candidate for interior secretary, did much the same, striding off the lift to say she had “a wonderful discussion” with Trump. Former Texas Governor Rick Perry declined to speak to reporters, but he did take time for a photo with the Naked Cowboy, the underwear-sporting, guitar-strumming New York institution who is normally a fixture at Times Square but has spent recent days camped out at Trump Tower singing about the president-elect. Democratic Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned her post on the Democratic National Committee after endorsing Bernie Sanders over Hillary Clinton, also met with Trump but entered and exited out of sight. She later defended crossing party lines to meet with Trump about U.S. involvement in Syria, saying in a statement she would never “play politics with American and Syrian lives.” Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a longtime Trump ally, also arrived with his wife, Callista, and told reporters that he indicated to Trump that he was interested in being a “senior planner” to coordinate long-term political efforts among the Republicans in control of all three branches of government. Senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said of the visitors, “Not all of them will be in his Cabinet and his federal government, but they are all incredibly important in offering their points of views, their experience and certainly their vision of the country.” No one was saying whether Trump would announce more appointments before heading to Florida for Thanksgiving. He was planning to leave Tuesday or Wednesday to spend the holiday at his Mar-a-Lago estate, while Vice President-elect Mike Pence will spend Thanksgiving in Mississippi, where his Marine son is stationed. Trump has largely remained out of sight since winning the election, save for a flurry of brief public appearances over the weekend, often with Pence at his side, to flash thumbs-ups and provide quick updates on his progress in building a government. He remained in the upper floors of his skyscraper Monday, seeking counsel on the phone and interviewing candidates all while keeping an eye on the cable news coverage of the day’s events. He appeared in a two-and-a-half minute video released late Monday in which he pledged to the American people that he was appointing “patriots” to his administration and reiterated a number of his campaign promises, including plans to renegotiate trade deals, scrap excessive regulations and institute a five-year ban on executive officials becoming lobbyists. The video — which made no mention of key pledges to build a border wall with Mexico or repeal the Affordable Care Act — continues the president-elect’s practice of trying to go over the heads of the media and take his case directly to the American public. Since Election Day, he has twice ditched the group of reporters designated to follow his movements and has so far eschewed the traditional news conference held by the president-elect in the days after winning. Trump has not held a full-fledged news conference since July. But the media were clearly on his mind as he met with executives and on-air personalities from TV networks. He frequently singled out the media — declaring them “so dishonest” — for criticism during the campaign, but it’s not unusual for presidents to hold off-the-record meetings with journalists when trying to promote policies or programs. Among the attendees were NBC anchor Lester Holt and “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd, ABC’s “Good Morning America” host George Stephanopoulos and anchor David Muir, CBS’ “Face the Nation” host John Dickerson, CNN’s Wolf Blitzer and several executives at the networks. None of the attendees would discuss the meeting with reporters in the lobby, though Conway said it was “very cordial, very productive, very congenial.” Those Trump met with over the weekend included former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a former critic now being considered for secretary of state; retired Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis, who Trump dubbed an “impressive” prospect for defense secretary, and billionaire investor Wilbur Ross, who is under consideration for Commerce secretary. “We’ve made a couple of deals,” Trump said Sunday. He gave assurances that “incredible meetings” would be bringing “incredible people” into the government. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
CBS News to overhaul 2016 convention coverage
CBS News will overhaul its coverage of the 2016 Democratic and Republican conventions to emphasize participants “on the ground” rather than chatter in the network’s skybox, CBS News President David Rhodes said. Dismissing any predictions of a candidate’s selection coming down to the convention wire — “It’s not going to happen,” he said — Rhodes said there is news being made by decision-makers and others at the convention. He said his bias is toward coverage of what they are doing and saying as opposed to putting resources into the “air-conditioned skyboxes” above the convention floor that typically showcase network reporters and analysts. Traditional keynote speeches and other major scheduled events will be aired, he said. But there is an ongoing “dance” between the political parties and networks over coverage, with all involved spending “a lot of money” on the conventions, Rhodes told a TV critics’ meeting Monday. CBS is on to tap to air primary election debates for the Democratic and Republican presidential contenders, with the network airing the Nov. 14 Democratic debate and the GOP one set for Feb. 13. Both are Saturday nights, which typically attract smaller TV audiences. The moderator for each will be John Dickerson, CBS News’ political director and anchor of “Face the Nation,” Rhodes said. He was asked if CBS would limit the number of candidates, as Fox News Channel did — using poll numbers — for the first Republican candidate debate last week. The first Democratic debate is set for Oct. 13 in Nevada. In a “perfect world,” every candidate would be able to participate, he said, but a line has to be drawn given large candidate fields. He said the formula for the CBS-aired debates would be made closer to the dates. Dickerson, who recently succeeded the retired Bob Schieffer as host of “Face the Nation,” spoke with relish about covering the ’16 election, and not just because of GOP contender Donald Trump or the unexpected candidacy of Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders. “This was going to be an exciting election before it became the Summer of Trump,” because both parties will be picking candidates in the absence of an incumbent president running, Dickerson said. Add to that the feeling of many Americans that politics is “rigged” against them and their worries about major issues including terrorism and it makes for an energized political climate, he said. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
