WASHINGTON: President-elect Donald Trump and his top aides pushed back aggressively Wednesday at accounts of a rocky transition, with Trump attacking the New York Times and his staff making efforts to assure the public that accounts of internal turmoil had been greatly exaggerated.
Despite the focus on public relations, there was little indication the team had progressed toward assembling an administration, and questions remained unanswered about the level of influence Trump’s family would exert in the new White House.
Rooms set aside for Trump staffers at the Pentagon, for example, remained vacant Wednesday, an indication that Trump’s team had yet to begin the complicated process of getting up to speed on the details of taking over the military and other sectors of government. The State Department had also heard nothing from Trump’s emissaries, even as Trump’s staff released an extensive roster of foreign leaders who had spoken with Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence.
A stream of visitors, including New England Patriots owner Bob Kraft, Silicon Valley financier Peter Thiel, Trump’s relatives, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and a few members of Congress streamed in and out of Trump Tower in New York, giving little indication of whether they were coming to give advice, apply for administration roles or simply offer congratulations.
Trump’s campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, whose role in the new administration remains undefined, was one of two top aides to speak with reporters in hopes of changing perceptions.
“You don’t form a federal government overnight, and these are very serious issues, very serious appointments, very serious considerations,” she said.
Conway said reports of firings and disorganization were false.
Yet she offered little clarity about who would be taking roles in the administration, including Trump’s son-in-law, 35-year-old real estate investor Jared Kushner. She said she did not know whether Kushner would be getting security clearance to attend top-secret briefings, but left open the possibility when asked whether it would be appropriate.
“It’s appropriate for whoever’s going to get the presidential daily briefing to have a security clearance,” she said. “It’s not just appropriate, [but] necessary.”
Kushner has drawn attention on many fronts, including multiple reports that he orchestrated the ouster of several transition figures with connections to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who successfully prosecuted Kushner’s father on tax evasion and other charges more than a decade ago. Kushner, who lacks government experience, could also face questions about conflicts of interest because Trump has said that his children will run his business empire while he serves in the White House.
Lobbyists may go
Jason Miller, Trump’s campaign communications director, tried to answer another set of criticisms, promising that Pence, who abruptly took over the transition team leadership from Christie on Friday, had begun “making good on President-elect Trump’s promise that we’re not going to have any lobbyists involved with the transition efforts.”
“When we talk about draining the swamp, this is one of the first steps,” Miller said. The team did not name any lobbyists who had been dropped from the group.
Despite the lack of apparent progress, Trump received a vote of confidence from an unlikely source: Vice President Joe Biden, who met with Pence at the U.S. Naval Observatory, the vice president’s official residence, where they dined with their wives.
“No administration is ready on Day One. We weren’t ready on Day One. I’ve never met one that’s ever been ready on Day One,” Biden said. “But I’m confident on Day One, everything will be in good hands and they’ll be able to handle everything.”
Pence will huddle with House Republicans on Thursday and meet with Democratic leaders as well.
Trump took out his frustrations over media accounts in the New York Times, angrily tweeting Wednesday morning about the paper’s coverage of his transition.
“The failing @nytimes story is so totally wrong on transition,” he wrote in one of several tweets criticizing the paper this week. “It is going so smoothly. Also, I have spoken to many foreign leaders.”