Donald Trump's White House transition on course amid Hamilton, tweeting and Thanksgiving interludes
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It's been a week of transitioning, tweeting and talking turkey here in the US, where the whole country is about to take a much-needed holiday for Thanksgiving.
Phew.
It goes without saying it's been a pretty testy year in the Land of the Free, so the opportunity to celebrate the harvest and to share a meal with friends and family is timely.
We reckon the political ructions will get a fair airing over the roast with gravy over the next few days, but in our experience kids, talking it out is the best remedy! And don't forget the cranberry sauce.
As the current POTUS quipped when he pardoned his last turkey ahead of the holiday — "yes we cran!" (More on that later.)
On serious matters first though...
Mixing business with presidential transition
Get used to the expression "Emoluments Clause".
It's a clause that prevents a person from holding office and accepting any present or compensation from any king, prince, or foreign state.
Now, this could be a potential conflict of interest for Donald Trump, whose companies do business with entities controlled by foreign governments and people with ties to them, such as the Bank of China.
Mr Trump says he'll place his company into a blind trust — or into the control of his children — which hasn't happened, as yet.
Meanwhile, he continues to meet with business folk while he's in the process of transitioning into the White House.
Notable blurred lines this week include: a meeting with property developers from Mumbai, a phone call with the Argentinian President and a Buenos Aires Trump Tower project, and a renewed fight over British wind farms and his golf course in Scotland after a meeting with Nigel Farage.
Meanwhile, the Trump Organisation settled in the case brought against Trump University, agreeing to pay out $US25 million. Here's Mr Trump's tweet from March of this year:
And then here's his tweet after the settlement:
Speaking of his businesses: the Democratic Coalition Against Trump has released a new app to help those who still want to avoid the President-elect and his businesses at all costs.
Team Trump
Speculation is rife about who will make up the President-elect's cabinet.
The rumour mill is in overdrive, and Philip Bump from The Washington Post has put together this very helpful diagram to help keep track of all the appointment speculation:
Trump loyalists like Alabama senator Jeff Sessions have been given the nod as attorney-general by President-elect Trump and (amazingly) former rival Mitt Romney is rumoured to have the inside track for secretary of state — despite Trump loyalists fighting back.
Mr Trump is walking a thin line between party establishment figures and outsiders as his team comes together.
Former Texas governor Rick Perry's name also continues to do the rounds as a potential appointment. Will he waltz into the Trump administration?
Scratch that ...
And then there's South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley.
Mr Trump has named Governor Haley as his ambassador to the United Nations, in what seems to be an about-turn for the President-elect. After all, he had this to say about her back in March:
Or is it a thinly Machiavellian move by Mr Trump? As Dan Pfeiffer suggests, she is one of the Republican Party's rising stars — and it also means loyal Trumplican and Lieutenant Governor, Henry McMaster, will be promoted to governor.
By the way, we're betting "Trumplican" will be in the dictionary shortly.
Top-secret appointments
While we are slowly learning who will make up Mr Trump's cabinet, we're none the wiser on what policies may be implemented.
Until! Kris Kobach, the Secretary of State of Kansas, tipped his hand, so to speak.
He was photographed carrying a document titled "Kobach Strategic Plan for the First 365 Days".
Some of the details included "Bar the Entry of Potential Terrorists" and reintroducing the "National Security Entry-Exit Registration System".
This was a big oops for various reasons: the fact that it feeds concerns about a possible Muslim registry among them.
Musical madness
Last weekend, the cast of the popular Broadway show Hamilton delivered a post-show message to Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who was in the crowd:
Mr Trump was quick to jump on Twitter and criticise the cast in a tweet-storm the next day:
The story then erupted into a hotly contested debate about etiquette and the First Amendment — it escalated after Mr Trump supposedly chastised members of the major broadcast networks in a meeting at Trump Tower, but then tried to clear the air in a far-reaching interview with the New York Times.
Tweet tracker
On that, the tweets are coming fast and furious — and at all times of the night.
NY1 in New York has even started its own Trump tweet tracker, including a breakdown of the hours when he tweets:
Republican road trip!
The Republican domination of elected positions in America has led to what many see as a more divided country. Take this map from the Wall Street Journal, for example:
We've talked a lot about the divided America since November 8 and this map gives an indication of the mammoth divide between town and country:
Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton's popular-vote count continues to grow. Her lead is now more than 2 million votes. And meanwhile...
Where's Hillary?
We're no longer looking for Bernie, who's on the frontline of the fight for the Democratic Party — but what about this year's runner-up?
Spotted: this time at a Rhode Island bookstore with Chelsea and the grandkids. Not so bad.
Trump-a-ccino
Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz endorsed Democratic nominee Mrs Clinton during the election and victorious Trump supporters have wasted no time rubbing it in.
Supporters are going to their local coffee shops and ordering under the name of the next president so the barista must call out "Trump" when their orders are ready.
Pardon me?
In one of the most hilarious annual Thanksgiving traditions, Barack Obama pardoned two turkeys for his final time.
This year, Tatter and Tot were pardoned from the Thanksgiving table — and President Obama saved his best puns for last:
On the first day of Christmas...
It looks like the President-elect hasn't lost his salesman streak.
Released just in time for the holidays: your own Make America Great Again hat ornament from his campaign store.
Just in time for Christmas! And only $149!
With that in mind we'll be seeking out the Christmas tree vendors next week, but for the moment it's Thanksgiving!
Our best from the USA to you and yours, and if you're eating turkey this weekend, keep the dinner conversation nice!
Topics: world-politics, government-and-politics, us-elections, united-states
