TRUMP TRANSITION WATCH: The press scrambles in New York
Here’s NBC’s Ali Vitali and Alex Jaffe on Trump ditching the press last night. “In a highly unusual move, President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday night left his Manhattan residence without notifying the reporters covering him or giving any indication of where he was going. The maneuver seemed to deliberately limit access to the media… This came after Hicks had told his press pool the day had ended, and the only indication of his departure was an unannounced motorcade. Trump's communications team did not respond to emails from the pooler requesting guidance. With his Tuesday night actions, the Trump Administration is shaping up to be the least accessible to the public and the press in modern history.”
From the New York Times: “President-elect Donald J. Trump’s transition was in disarray on Tuesday, marked by firings, infighting and revelations that American allies were blindly dialing in to Trump Tower to try to reach the soon-to-be-leader of the free world.”
The AP also sums up the strains in the transition team so far.
The Washington Post on how Steve Bannon’s radio interviews with Trump during the campaign show the dynamic between the two men: “At times, Bannon seemed to coach Trump to soften the harder edges of his message, to make it more palatable to a broader audience, while in other cases he pushed Trump to take tougher positions. He flattered Trump, praising his negotiating skills and the size of his campaign crowds.”
As he pushes himself as Secretary of State, the New York Times writes that “Mr. Giuliani’s business ties are a major red flag. He built a lucrative consulting and speechmaking career after leaving City Hall. His firm, Giuliani Partners, has had contracts with the government of Qatar and the Canadian company that is building the Keystone XL oil pipeline, and Mr. Giuliani has given paid speeches to a shadowy Iranian opposition group that until 2012 was on the State Department’s list of foreign terrorist organizations.”
TRUMP AGENDA: Americans unconvinced of a mandate
“Americans emerged from President-elect Donald Trump’s surprise victory in last week’s election with passionate and polarized reactions, overall expressing tempered optimism about his presidency but unconvinced that he has a mandate to enact a sweeping new policy agenda, according to a Washington Post-Schar School national poll. The poll finds Americans still reeling from Trump’s long battle against Hillary Clinton, with more than 7 in 10 saying the campaign made them angry and more than half feeling stressed out by campaign news. Trump’s supporters are largely ebullient when asked how they feel about the result, while Clinton backers range from disappointed to fearful to apoplectic.”
House Republicans picked Paul Ryan to stay on as Speaker.
And Republicans in Congress are trying to figure out what to do about health care.
NBC Out has a look at the LGBTQ voters who supported Trump.
Bloomberg notes that Trump’s election may have saved James Comey’s job, at least for now.
DEM WATCH: Delay in House leadership elections
NBC’s Leigh Ann Caldwell and Alex Moe have the latest on House Democrats delaying their leadership elections.
Here’s the Wall Street Journal video of NSA head Mike Rogers addressing the aims of the WikiLeaks releases.