Trump continues election victory lap

US President-elect Donald Trump has announced Mick Mulvaney as his budget director, a conservative with no experience assembling a government spending plan.

President-elect Donald Trump

US President-elect Donald Trump is wrapping up his post-election victory tour. (AAP)

US President-elect Donald Trump is wrapping up his post-election victory tour, showing few signs of turning the page from his blustery campaign to focus on uniting a divided nation a month before his inauguration.

At each stop, the Republican has gloatingly recapped his Election Night triumph, reignited some old political feuds while starting some new ones, and done little to quiet the hate-filled chants of "Lock her up!" directed at Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.
Trump planned the tour's finale at the same football stadium in Mobile, Alabama, that hosted the biggest rally of his campaign. Also on Saturday, he announced the nomination of South Carolina Republican Mick Mulvaney to be his budget director, choosing a tea partyer and fiscal conservative with no experience assembling a government spending plan.

The raucous rallies are meant to salute supporters who lifted him to the presidency. But these appearances also have been his primary form of communication since the US election.

Trump has eschewed the traditional news conference held by a president-elect within days of winning. He's done few interviews, announced his Cabinet picks via news release and continues to rely on Twitter to broadcast his thoughts and make public pronouncements.

That continued on Saturday morning when Trump turned to social media to weigh in on China's seizure of a US Navy research drone from international waters, misspelling "unprecedented" when he wrote: "China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unpresidented act."

He later corrected the tweet. China said it intended to return the drone to the US.

Trump has repeatedly spoken of his fondness for being on the road. Aides are considering more rallies after he takes office, to help press his agenda with the public.

In Pennsylvania, he launched into a 20-minute recap of his Election Night win. The crowd cheered as the president-elect slowly ticked off his victories state by state. He mixed in rambling criticisms of pundits and politicians from both parties.

Trump also thanked African-Americans who didn't vote, saying: "They didn't come out to vote for Hillary. They didn't come out." Such rhetoric raised new questions about his ability to unify the country.

But Trump has also sounded some notes of unity on the tour. In North Carolina, he said: "We will heal our divisions and unify our country. When Americans are unified there is nothing we cannot do - nothing!"




Share
3 min read
Published 18 December 2016 5:48pm
Updated 18 December 2016 9:06pm
Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends