Bloomberg
President-elect Donald Trump has unnerved diplomats at home and abroad by having a series of freewheeling phone calls with foreign leaders — such as his talk with what the New York Times calls one of the world’s most durable despots.
The Times is referring to the president of Kazakhstan, for whom Trump voiced admiration. The president-elect also said he hoped to visit Pakistan, a country President Barack Obama has steered clear of, and told British Prime Minister Teresa May: “If you travel to the U.S., you should let me know.” Daniel Feldman, a former special representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, said Trump was taking a “cavalier” attitude to calls and was encouraging people not to take him seriously.
What Mattis means: Trump’s decision to name retired Gen. James Mattis to head the Pentagon is a strong signal that the president-elect wants a wartime leader at the Defense Department and not someone to just manage budgets, writes USA Today. If confirmed by the Senate, Mattis would be a departure from previous defense secretaries who have come from the ranks of civilian government or politics. The current defense secretary, Ash Carter, is a physicist who rose through the ranks of the department.
Read: Trump’s defense pick Mattis has ties to Theranos
Also read: Trump should not have picked a general as defense secretary
Clinton-Trump aide shouting match: The New York Post writes a forum at Harvard University devolved into a shouting match Thursday between top aides to Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. “If providing a platform for white supremacists makes me a brilliant tactician, I am proud to have lost,” said Clinton communications director Jennifer Palmieri. “I would rather lose than win the way you guys did.”
Kellyanne Conway, Trump’s campaign manager, responded: “Do you think I ran a campaign where white supremacists had a platform?” “You did, Kellyanne, you did,” Palmieri responded, according to the Post.
DNC chairman auditions begin: Democrats hold their first audition for a new Democratic National Committee chairman at a gathering in Denver on Friday, the Hill reports. Candidates including Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean will make their pitches to state party leaders at the Association of State Democratic Chairs. Many of those attending the meeting are deeply frustrated following the party’s election losses and haven’t made up their minds about who to support. “This isn’t a cinch for anyone right now,” said Peter Corroon, the state Democratic chairman of Utah.
