|
| Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton greets supporters after speaking at the New Yorker Hotel in New York, Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016, where she conceded her defeat to Republican Donald Trump after the hard-fought presidential election. |
WASHINGTON
(AP) -- Emboldened Republicans claimed a mandate Wednesday for
President-elect Donald Trump after his astonishing election triumph, and
an emotional Hillary Clinton told crestfallen supporters the GOP victor
deserved a "chance to lead." President Barack Obama pledged a smooth
transition of power.
"We are now all rooting
for his success in uniting and leading the country," the president said
of the president-elect, the man who spent years questioning Obama's
birthplace and challenging the legitimacy of his presidency. Obama, who
had declared Trump unfit for the presidency, invited him to the White
House Thursday.
Trump was uncharacteristically
quiet in the aftermath of his triumph and made no public appearances
Wednesday. He huddled with jubilant, sleep-deprived advisers at his
eponymous skyscraper in Manhattan, beginning the daunting task of
setting up an administration that will take power in just over two
months. He also met with Vice President-elect Mike Pence and took calls
from supporters, family and friends, according to spokeswoman Hope
Hicks.
In Washington, Trump's scant transition
team sprang into action, culling through personnel lists for top jobs
and working through handover plans for government agencies. A person
familiar with the transition operations said the personnel process was
still in its early stages, but Trump's team was putting a premium on
quickly filling key national security posts.
According
to an organizational chart for the transition obtained by The
Associated Press, Trump was relying on experienced hands to help form
his administration. National security planning was being led by former
Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers, who previously worked for the FBI. Domestic
issues were being handled by Ken Blackwell, a former Cincinnati mayor
and Ohio secretary of state.
Trump was
expected to consider several loyal supporters for top jobs, including
former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani for attorney general or national
security adviser and campaign finance chairman Steve Mnuchin for
Treasury secretary. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Tennessee
Sen. Bob Corker were also expected to be under consideration for foreign
policy posts.
After struggling for months
with Trump's takeover of their party, Republican leaders embraced the
businessman in victory. House Speaker Paul Ryan, who was lukewarm in his
support throughout the campaign, praised him for pulling off "the most
incredible political feat I have seen in my lifetime."
"He just earned a mandate," Ryan declared.
Indeed,
Trump will take office in January with Congress fully in his party's
control, giving him strength to try to pass his agenda and turn the
Supreme Court in a conservative direction. Even Republicans were stunned
by the scope of their electoral success, including many who had been
privately predicting Trump's defeat.
Clinton's
emotions were raw as she addressed a crowd of supporters, eyes wet with
tears, who gathered in a New York ballroom. She said the crushing loss
was "painful and it will be for a long time" and acknowledged that the
nation was "more divided than we thought."
Still,
Clinton was gracious in defeat, declaring that "Donald Trump is going
to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead."
With
several million votes still to be counted, Clinton held a narrow lead
in the nationwide popular vote.
Most of the outstanding votes appeared
to be in Democratic-leaning states, with the biggest chunk in
California, a state Clinton overwhelmingly won. With almost 125 million
votes counted, The Associated Press tally had Clinton with 47.7 percent
and Trump with 47.5 percent.
Trump's sweep of
the battleground states that decided the election was commanding. He
carried Florida, Ohio and North Carolina, three of the election's
biggest prizes, and snatched reliably Democratic Pennsylvania and
Wisconsin away from Clinton.
Trump's support
skewed older, male and overwhelmingly white. His supporters said they
were deeply dissatisfied with the federal government and eager for
change, according to exit polls conducted by Edison Research for The
Associated Press and television networks.
If
Trump makes good on his campaign promises, the nation stands on the
brink of sweeping change in domestic and foreign policy. He's pledged to
repeal Obama's signature health care law and pull out of the landmark
nuclear accord with Iran. He's vowed to build a wall along the
U.S.-Mexico border and temporarily ban immigration from nations with
terror ties.
It's unclear whether Trump, a
highly unusual candidate, will embrace many of the traditions of the
presidency.
He'll enter the White House owning his own private jet as
well as a hotel just blocks away on Pennsylvania Avenue. He never
allowed journalists to fly on his plane during the campaign, as is
customary for White House nominees.
Issues of
transparency bubbled up right from the start. On Wednesday evening,
Trump aides said they would not bring the press corps to Washington with
the president-elect for his meeting with Obama, breaking long-standing
protocol.
Global stock markets and U.S. stock
futures plunged early Wednesday on word of Trump's election, but later
recovered. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 1.4 percent for the day
in trading in New York.
World leaders
congratulated Trump on his victory. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, who had a contentious relationship with Obama, called the
Republican a "true friend of Israel." British Prime Minister Theresa May
said the U.S. and United Kingdom would remain "strong and close
partners on trade, security and defense."
Russian
President Vladimir Putin was among the first to reach out to the
incoming American leader. Trump praised Putin throughout the campaign
and advocated a closer relationship with Russia, despite Moscow's
provocations in Ukraine and elsewhere.
U.S.
intelligence agencies have accused Russia of hacking Democratic
organizations during the campaign, actions Clinton's team saw as an
indication that Putin was trying to meddle in the election. Trump
notably did not accept the conclusions of intelligence officials.
