President-elect Donald Trump
is at his estate and golf club in Bedminister, New Jersey, this weekend
for a string of appointments with high-profile figures, including the
former GOP presidential nominee and governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney.
On Sunday morning, Trump tweeted, "Numerous patriots will be coming to
Bedminster today as I continue to fill out the various positions
necessary to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
Numerous patriots will be coming to Bedminster today as I continue to fill out the various positions necessary to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 20, 2016
On Saturday, Romney arrived for his meeting with Trump and members of
his transition team at the Trump National Golf Club about 1 p.m. and
left shortly before 2:30 p.m.
As he and Trump emerged from the meeting, the president-elect did not
approach the press, but, responding to shouted questions, told reporters
the meeting "went great."
But a readout released by the transition team late Saturday said Trump
and Romney "had a substantive and in-depth conversation about world
affairs, national security and the future of America. It was an
extremely positive and productive conversation."
Romney made a brief statement to the media, saying the meeting focused
on foreign affairs. He said he "looks forward" to a Trump
administration, but would not comment on whether he wants to be a part
of it.
"We had a far-reaching conversation with regard to the various theaters
in the world where there are interests of the United States of real
significance. We discussed those areas and exchanged our views on those
topics,” Romney said.
Romney did not respond to shouted questions regarding potential cabinet
positions and would not answer questions regarding his previous
statements calling Trump a "con man" and a "fraud."
Sources on Trump’s transition team told ABC News on Thursday that
Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, is under consideration
for secretary of state. One senior-level source directly involved in
the transition efforts said that Saturday’s meeting is also about
“mending fences,” as Trump and Romney have had a contentious
relationship.
Trump also met with well-known education activist Michelle Rhee and her
husband, Kevin Johnson, mayor of Sacramento; Betsy DeVos, another
education activist; and with retired Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis.
Meetings were also set with Chicago Cubs co-owner Todd Ricketts; anti-poverty advocate Bob Woodson; restaurant executive Andy Puzder; Republican National Committee finance chair Lew Eisenberg; and biotechnology billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, according to transition officials.
After the meeting with Mattis, who is viewed as a possible contender to
be nominated for defense secretary, Trump said, "He is the real deal, a
brilliant wonderful man, what a career. We'll see what happens. He is
the real deal."
And according to the readout, Trump and Mattis "had an incredibly
in-depth conversation on plans for national security. The discussion
included ISIS, the Middle East, North Korea, China, NATO and other
hotspots around the world."
Rhee is a possible contender for nomination as education secretary. The
transition team's readout said she and Trump "enjoyed an in-depth
discussion about the future of public education in our country. This
included the possibility for increasing competition through charter and
choice schools. They also brought the idea of merit pay for teachers
going above and beyond in their classrooms into the conversation."
As for DeVos, the readout said the conversation was "focused on the
Common Core mission, and setting higher national standards and promoting
the growth of school choice across the nation."
Of the meeting with Ricketts, the readout said the conversation
"involved domestic commerce, ingenuity and growth for our country.
Discussions on tax reform regulations and entrepreneurial initiatives
were also included."
Trump and Pence "had a great discussion with Mr. Bob Woodson regarding
community-based developments and opportunity," the readout stated. "They
also discussed plans to strengthen neighborhoods across America and
faith-based initiatives."
Regarding Puzder, the meeting focused on "regulations, labor reforms,
and freeing up small business loans for new and innovative business
ventures," according to the readout. "Discussion on international trade
was also included."
In the meeting with Eisenberg, Trump and Pence "discussed plans for
America First initiatives, bringing Made in America manufacturing to the
forefront and improving infrastructure," said the readout.
Dr. Soon-Shiong joined Trump and Pence for dinner, during which they
"discussed innovation in the area of medicine and national medical
priorities that need to be addressed in our country," according to the
readout.
Mike Segar/Reuters
ABC News was told that senior members of Trump’s transition team will
join him in the meetings at the Trump National Golf Club, including Vice
President-elect Mike Pence; Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus,
who will be Trump's chief of staff; Trump campaign manager Kellyanne
Conway; Republican National Committee communications director Sean
Spicer; transition team communications director Jason Miller; and
Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner.
Transition officials had previously said an announcement regarding a
national security appointment would possibly be made Saturday, but that
did not occur. Following the meetings, however, Trump said he may have
transition-related news to share on Sunday: "We'll hear some things
tomorrow," he told reporters.
When Trump and Pence arrived at the golf club at around 11 a.m., a
reporter shouted a question asking if the president-elect was looking
forward to the meetings today.
Both Trump and Pence answered in the positive. It was the first question
from the press that Trump has answered since his interview on CBS News'
"60 Minutes" on Nov. 10, two days after the election.
Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo
Trump’s meetings are expected to continue Sunday with New Jersey Gov.
Chris Christie, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Kansas
Secretary of State Kris Kobach, among others, transition officials said.
Kobach, one of the president-elect’s advisers on immigration, is known
as an immigration hardliner. He told Reuters recently that Trump's
policy advisers had discussed drafting a proposal for the
president-elect’s consideration that would reinstate a national registry
for visitors and immigrants from Muslim countries. Kobach also said in
the interview that Trump's immigration team has discussed drafting
executive orders "so that Trump and the Department of Homeland Security
hit the ground running."
But on Friday, the spokesman for the transition team on Friday
emphasized that Trump is not advocating any kind of broader registry for
Muslims.
“President-elect Trump has never advocated for any registry or system
that tracks individuals based on their religion, and to imply otherwise
is completely false. The national registry of foreign visitors from
countries with high terrorism activity that was in place during the Bush
and Obama Administrations gave intelligence and law enforcement
communities additional tools to keep our country safe, but the
president-elect plans on releasing his own vetting policies after he is
sworn in,” said Jason Miller, the transition team's communications
director.
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