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A28 u.s. news
Diabierna 13 november 2020

Trump's silent public outing belies White House in tumult

(AP) — Donald Trump to worry that the extended
spent 10 minutes in pub- legal battle could sap support
lic Wednesday honoring for the GOP candidates.
America's war veterans —
a veneer of normalcy for a Trump has also begun talk-
White House that's frozen ing about his own future
by a defeated president upon leaving office. He has
mulling his options, most- mused about declaring he
ly forgoing the mechanics will run again in 2024,and
of governing and blocking aides believe that he will at
his inevitable successor. least openly flirt with the
idea to enhance his relevance
Trump's appearance at the an- and raise interest in whatever
nual Veterans Day commem- money-making efforts he
oration at Arlington National pursues.
Cemetery was his first public While he ponders his op-
outing for official business in tions, his involvement in the
more than a week. He's spent day-to-day governing of the
the past few days in private nation has nearly stopped:
tweeting angry, unsupported According to his schedule,
claims of voter fraud. he has not attended an intel-
ligence briefing in weeks, and
The president has made no the White House has done
comments in person since little of late to manage the
Democrat Joe Biden clinched pandemic that has surged to
the 270 electoral votes on collecting ballots too late. the ballot counting, but at him about an endgame, ques- record highs in many states.
Saturday needed to win the some point soon he needs to tioning how much longer he
presidency. All the while, his “You are looking at BAL- turn his attention back to the wants to fight. The president’s resistance
aides grow more certain that LOTS! Is this what our lame duck session and putting to acknowledging the out-
legal challenges won’t change Country has come to?" a capstone on his first four Outside the White House, come of the race has stalled
the outcome of the election, Trump fumed. years.” However, few senior one prominent former ally the transition process. The
according to seven campaign Although his official sched- staffers have been around turned Trump critic warned head of the General Services
and White House officials ule has been bare of public the president in recent days, that the president was doing Administration, a Trump ap-
who spoke on the condition events, Trump has made sev- with many either in quaran- potentially irreparable dam- pointee, has held off on certi-
of anonymity to discuss the eral personnel moves — fir- tine after testing positive for age to the Republican Party. fying Biden as the winner of
thinking of the president and ing Defense Secretary Mark COVID-19 or in insolation “The real issue is the griev- the election.
others in the executive man- Esper and installing three after a confirmed exposure ous harm he is causing to The certification — known
sion. staunch loyalists in top de- or simply not wanting to be public trust in America’s as ascertainment — would
fense jobs. His pick as acting near the Oval Office, accord- constitutional system," for- free money for the transi-
Before setting off for the sol- defense secretary, Christo- ing to White House staffers mer Trump national security tion and clear the way for
emn commemoration at Ar- pher Miller, was among the and campaign officials. Staff adviser John Bolton wrote Biden’s team to begin placing
lington, Trump took to Twit- Pentagon brass that joined working from the White in a Washington Post op-ed transition personnel at fed-
ter on him at Arlington. House thinned out after chief Wednesday. “Trump’s time is eral agencies. White House
Wednesday to slam “fake of staff Mark Meadows con- running out, even as his rhet- spokesman Judd Deere said
pollsters" and grouse that Some supporters pushed firmed last week that he had oric continues escalating." he was “not aware” of any
a Republican city commis- back against the notion that tested positive for the virus. But no one in his inner circle communications between
sioner who defended the vote Trump is shirking his presi- Some staffers still believe the — West Wing staff or Cabinet the White House and the
tabulation in Philadelphia dential duties. election outcome can change — is forcefully pushing him GSA administrator on ascer-
wasn't a true Republican. He “The president is out there with litigation and recounts. to stop. tainment.
also sought to draw attention as much as he’s ever been on But there is a growing recog- Though he has been in the
to a Pennsylvania poll worker Twitter, and the White House nition among most that the Oval Office late two nights Biden on Tuesday played
who recanted allegations of team are moving ahead with election is lost and the build- this week, the president has down the importance of the
voter fraud on Tuesday be- budget and staffing priori- ing will be vacated by Jan. 20. done little in the way of gov- certification for now and said
fore reasserting his allega- ties,” said Dan Eberhart, a erning and has instead been his team continues to pre-
tions on Wednesday. prominent Republican donor Trump's moods have vacil- working the phones. pare to take reins of the U.S.
and Trump backer. lated over recent days. At government. The president-
Trump later posted a de- times, he has seethed with He has called friendly gov- elect also suggested he wasn't
bunked video that had pur- He added, “The president is anger, fuming that he lost to ernors — in red states like overly concerned that he's
ported to show poll workers understandably focused on a candidate he doesn’t respect Arizona, Texas and Florida not yet receiving the Presi-
and believing that the media — and influential confidants dent's Daily Briefing — a
–- including what he views as in the conservative media, highly classified intelligence
typically friendly Fox News like Sean Hannity. But he analysis.
-- worked against him. In has not been as responsive to
addition to misdoings with Republican lawmakers as be- Denis McDonough, who
mail-in ballots. fore the election. Always an served as White House chief
obsessive cable news viewer, of staff during the Obama
But aides say he has been he has been watching even administration and is now a
calmer than his tweets sug- more TV than usual in recent public policy professor at the
gest, showing greater under- weeks, often from his private University of Notre Dame,
standing of his predicament dining room just off the Oval said that even as Trump has
and believing that he needs Office. tried to stymie the transition,
to keep fighting almost as significant progress still has
performance, as a show to Trump's approach to two cru- been made. The Biden tran-
the 70 million people who cial Senate run-off elections sition team has published an
voted for him that he is still in Georgia remains an open ethics plan and the Trump
battling. In recent days, some question: He has not yet administration earlier estab-
aides, including his daughter signaled if he will campaign lished a White House Transi-
Ivanka, have started to talk to there, and aides have started tion Coordinating Council as