Trump goes back to campaign mode
President-elect holds rallies in Michigan, Louisiana
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Appearing jovial and relaxed, Donald Trump plunged back into election politics Friday, a full month after he won the presidency, thanking Michigan voters and prodding Louisiana Republicans to turn out for Saturday’s Senate runoff election.
Trump regaled supporters in Grand Rapids with a lengthy recitation of his victories in a string of battleground states, including Michigan, which had not previously backed a Republican presidential candidate since 1988.
“They forgot about you people,” Trump said of his Democratic opponents. “In four years they’re not going to forget. But it’s not going to work because you’re not going to forget.”
Trump introduced Betsy DeVos, his choice for education secretary, who hails from West Michigan, and announced that Andrew Liveris, the chief executive of Dow Chemical, would lead a national manufacturing council. Liveris told the audience that Dow would soon bring a new research-and-development center to Michigan.
In Louisiana, the incoming president addressed a large crowd at an airport hangar, and at one point tossed his trademark “Make America Great Again” hat to a supporter.
Trump campaigned for Republican John Kennedy, the state treasurer who faces off Saturday against Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, a Democrat, for the seat of retiring Republican Sen. David Vitter. Neither won a majority in the November primary, leading to the runoff. Polls have shown Kennedy with a comfortable lead.
In private, people close to Trump said he was expected to name yet another Goldman Sachs executive to his White House team. The presidentelect’s National Economic Council is to be led by Gary Cohn, president and chief operating officer of the Wall Street bank, which Trump repeatedly complained during the election campaign would control Hillary Clinton if she won.
Washington state Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a member of the GOP House leadership team, emerged as a leading candidate to head the Interior Department, according to a person involved in the transition.
Major decisions remain for Trump, most importantly his choice for secretary of state. The deliberations have become a source of tension within his transition team, with chief of staff Reince Priebus said to be backing Mitt Romney while other advisers oppose the idea of selecting the 2012 GOP nominee, given his fierce criticism of Trump during the campaign.
Trump announced that Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor who was an early favorite, was no longer under consideration.
Trump’s day also included a meeting at his New York City tower with House Speaker Paul Ryan to discuss policy priorities.
“We are really excited about getting to work and hitting the ground running in 2017,” Ryan said after the morning meeting.
Trump brimmed with optimism during his two rallies, eager to begin implementing his agenda.