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CNN International: Trump And Biden Meeting Now At The White House; Republicans To Replace McConnell As Their Leader In The Senate; House Republicans Expected To Keep Mike Johnson As Speaker. Aired 11a- 12p ET
Aired November 13, 2024 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.
RAHEL SOLOMON, HOST, "CNN NEWSROOM": Good morning, and welcome to our viewers from around the world. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. I want to get straight to our breaking news this hour.
Any minute now, U.S. President Joe Biden will welcome President-elect Donald Trump to the White House. Hard feelings are being set aside, as the outgoing President prepares to meet with the man who is both his predecessor and his successor. Four years ago, then-President Trump did not offer any White House invitation to Mr. Biden. But soon, they will be discussing seeing their starkly different ideologies in the Oval Office.
Trump's first stop was at, in Washington, D.C., was at the Republican Candidate Forum. He was met with a joyous welcome for Republican lawmakers who are gathering to pick their leaders for the next session of Congress. Now, whomever they pick will help Trump carry out his agenda in the coming years. The President-elect addressed lawmakers and talked about the positive election outcome for the Republican Party. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND CURRENT PRESIDENTIAL- ELECT: You know we had like historic kind of numbers, especially for the President, but we won't get into that. But, the House did very well, and I think we're responsible for 31, helping you with 31, meaning, we could have lost by quite a bit, and we ended up -- I guess you'll be five up. Are you looking at five or four? Five or four, right? It doesn't matter. We get used to one for a little while. When you can get used to one, you can get used to anything. So, I just want to thank everybody. You've been incredible. We worked with a lot of you to get you in, and you helped me, and you helped me too, and my numbers were -- so, they say the 129 years, the most important election in 129 years. That's pretty good.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SOLOMON: Now, even before Trump touched down in Washington, the President-elect was sending shock waves through Washington, as he unveils more cabinet picks. On Tuesday night, he announced that Pete Hegseth would be the next Secretary of Defense. Hegseth is an Army veteran and a host on Fox News. He has s been an outspoken defender of Trump and a critic of current military policies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, FOX NEWS HOST: I'm straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles. It hasn't made us more effective. It hasn't made us more lethal. It has made fighting more complicated. We've all served with women, and they're great. It just our institutions don't have to incentivize that in places where traditionally, not traditionally, over human history, men in those positions are more capable.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: Now, Trump has also named South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem as his Homeland Security Secretary, and former Director of National Intelligence, John Ratcliffe, will be Director of the CIA. Two of Trump's biggest supporters on the trail, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, will lead a new Department of Government Efficiency. It's being created to find ways to slash the federal budget by July 4th of 2026, a date that will also mark the 250th birthday of the U.S. Musk said on his social media site X that they will also publish a leaderboard of, quote, "the most insanely dumb spending of your tax dollars."
Needless to say, a lot happening in Washington today, and CNN has a team of reporters and analysts across all of the developments.
First, let's bring in Arlette Saenz. So, Arlette, talk to us about what we expect to see today with this meeting between Trump and Biden. It's supposed to happen momentarily, within minutes from now.
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. Really any minute now, we expect President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump to meet in the Oval Office. It comes as President Biden has tried to show that he is committed to a peaceful transfer of power, and this meeting between the two former competitors is expected to be one key symbol in that transition process. Now, we don't know too much else about how this meeting will play out. The two men are set to meet in the Oval Office. Advisors have said that they likely will discuss domestic and foreign policy issues.
But really, for President, Biden, this is an attempt to give to Trump something that Trump did not give to him back in 2020. You will remember that after Biden beat Trump in that campaign, Trump did not invite Biden to the White House. He never conceded the election and did not attend that inauguration. And in fact, where the two men will be sitting in the Oval Office today is just a few steps away from the private dining room where former President Donald Trump watched the January 6th insurrection play out. That is something that Biden had often criticized Trump for in the days after he had left office. But really, this is a major moment, as the White House is set to enter
this new era after voters decided to send Trump back to the White House next year. It comes as President Biden is still coming to terms with the end of this election.
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Of course, he had run against Trump for the first part of it, for about 15 months, before that halting debate performance that really derailed Biden's candidacy and eventually led to him dropping out. Now, Biden and Trump have spoken on a few occasions since that debate. Biden called Trump following the assassination attempts against him, and he also called him last Wednesday to congratulate him on his victory and invite him back to the White House.
But, President Biden has often criticized Trump as a direct threat to democracy, and most recently used this colorful language when he was campaigning back in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to talk about the former President and now President-elect.
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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: -- Trump and his Republican friends want to do. They wanted a giant tax cut for the wealthy. Now, I know some of you guys are tempted to think it is macho guys. I'll tell you what man. When I was in Scranton, we used to have a little trouble going down the plot once in a while. But, I'm serious. These are the kind of guys you like to smack in their ass.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAENZ: Now, I don't think that Biden will be using that kind of language in the Oval Office today with Trump, but it does come as he has confided in some that he believes that he could have still beaten Trump had he stayed in this race. So, certainly, this will be a very important meeting for President Biden, for Trump, as he is preparing to return to the White House, but also to this commitment of having a peaceful transfer of power. That is something Biden and his advisors have stressed he is trying to ensure it happens in the coming months. And for Biden, this is really him facing this new reality that the person that he had beat back in 2020 will now be returning to the White House in January.
SOLOMON: Yeah. You have to wonder if any of the potential awkwardness might be on display for all of us to witness. Arlette, thank you. Stick by.
I want to bring in Alayna to the conversation. Alayna, obviously, it's an equally consequential day for Capitol Hill. Talk to us about what came of Trump's meeting with GOP leaders.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN REPORTER: That's right. We only got to hear a snippet of it on camera, Rahel, before it cut off, and they had their private closed-door meeting. But, Donald Trump did what we were expecting him to do, which was take a victory lap. He touted his success in the election. He also claimed that he won the popular vote, and argued that he has a mandate now for when he comes to Washington. Now, I was also told that he was expected to talk about some of his cabinet decisions and whatnot, but really, the goal for him today was to try and unify the Republican Party around him and also position himself so that he has them at his back when he is sworn in in January.
Now, one interesting thing, of course, is who was traveling with him. We learned this morning that Elon Musk, who has essentially been at Mar-a-Lago the entire time, virtually every day, we're told, since Donald Trump won the election, he traveled with the President-elect this morning on his private plane in Washington and accompanied him to that meeting that took place behind me, Donald Trump just left moments ago, with House Republicans. Now, I'm also told by two Trump advisors that he is not expected to accompany Donald Trump to that White House meeting with Joe Biden. But, he is always unpredictable. So, we'll end up seeing whether or not Elon tries to show up.
But look, I do want to share some of what we heard from the closed- door portion of this and from some of Donald Trump's remarks. So, one source in the room had told our own Dana Bash that Trump said that he was with Johnson all the way. Of course, today was a big moment for House Speaker Mike Johnson, and whether he would get nominated again for the speakership role. He did not face any challengers. So, Donald Trump had very nice things to say about him there.
But then, Donald Trump also joked, noting that Elon Musk was with him, saying, quote, that -- saying that Elon, quote, "loves Mar-a-Lago". So, kind of hinting at that, of course, as you mentioned at the top here, Rahel, Donald Trump announced that both Elon Musk as well as his former Republican primary challenger, Vivek Ramaswamy, are going to together, be leading that Department of Government Ethics. It's very unclear as of now how exactly that is going to operate, but Donald Trump did say in that announcement that it would, quote, "Provide advice and guidance from outside of government". One thing we were told is that that this kind of position for Elon Musk ensures that he does not have to divest from his companies and his businesses.
Now, I also want to just quickly address some of the flurry of new announcements Donald Trump made in the last 24 hours about who he is going to be stacking both his cabinet and other top administrative roles within his second term. He announced that his U.S. Ambassador to Israel is going to be the former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, also the father of Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the current Arkansas Governor, but also someone who had worked in Donald Trump's former administration as Press Secretary. He also announced John Ratcliffe, his former Director of National Intelligence, is going to be the CIA Director.
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But, I think there is a lot of other names that he made, but one big one that a lot of people this morning, as they were waking up, were focused on, and I will say many were surprised with, was that he appointed -- or he is appointing Pete Hegseth, the Fox News host, to run the Pentagon. And when I talked to those involved in these conversations in Trump world, they told me that many people were surprised by the selection of Hegseth, that it really came together very quickly before that announcement was made. I'm told that Donald Trump really likes him. They have a long-standing relationship. He thinks he is smart. He likes that he is a military vet. And one source also told me that Donald Trump thinks he has the quote, unquote "look" for the role. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Yeah. There was also some reporting that he was being considered for a role in the first term, but apparently he was too young.
TREENE: Right.
SOLOMON: OK. Alayna, thank you.
Arlette, let me bring you back into the conversation. Talk to me again, as we look at these pictures of the White House, of what Biden is hoping to accomplish with this meeting. We talked a little bit about the symbolism of the moment and how he is extending an invitation that obviously wasn't extended to him, and that advisors have said that they plan to speak about domestic and foreign policy. What is Biden hoping to get out of this?
SAENZ: Well, Rahel, I just want to let you know that we just got word from the print poolers over at the White House that this meeting between President-elect Joe Biden and -- President-elect Trump and President Joe Biden has started. It appears that they spoke very briefly, and Trump thanked the President for a smooth transition, noting that Trump said politics was tough, and Biden said, you're welcome. The reporters were then pulled out into the room for now this private portion of this meeting between President Biden and President- elect Trump to begin.
But, as we were talking about, for Biden, this is really a step in showing that he is committed to the peaceful transfer of power. This is a tradition that has gone back many, many decades to Presidents before. Trump was the only one to have shunned this tradition of inviting his successor to the White House. Biden is trying to restore some normalcy and some order back to these transitions.
But, heading into the meeting, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Biden also wanted to talk about the most pressing domestic and foreign policy issues of the day. Of course, Trump stands to inherit two major conflicts, one in Ukraine, as well as in the Middle East. Biden is expected to spend these final weeks that he is in office, especially arguing that aid for Ukraine should continue beyond his presidency. Biden has directed his team to disperse all of the approved aid and money to Ukraine, as -- at a time when Trump has really cast doubt on what that future U.S. support for Ukraine might look like.
There is also the conflict in the Middle East, which Biden's team is still hopeful that they can reach some type of ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, though, right now, those talks do remain at a standstill. I will note that President Biden, later this afternoon, is actually set to meet with the families of the American hostages who are believed to be held hostage and held captive by Hamas in Gaza. So, those two foreign policy issues are also items that could be on the agenda today.
But, for President Biden, this meeting is really an attempt to show that he is committed to this peaceful transfer of power, something that he was not afforded back when he had beat Trump in 2020, and this meeting is a key sign of that.
SOLOMON: Yeah. And just for our viewers who are looking at the screen, wondering why we have not seen Trump enter, he entered in an entrance where we don't have cameras, obviously. The mics that you see there are in the event that one or both leaders decide to speak. So, obviously, if that happens, we will bring it to you. But, Arlette, thank you. Good to have you. Alayna Treene, obviously, thank you as well.
Let me bring in our panel now. We have with us Molly Ball, who is a Senior Political Correspondent with The Wall Street Journal, as well as Larry Sabato, who is the Director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics. Good to see you both.
Larry, let me start with you. Beyond the symbolism that Arlette and I just spoke about at today's meeting, what else are you going to be looking for? What hat discussion points do you think might come up between Biden and Trump?
LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Oh, I'm sure that Biden will survey the world and probably key domestic issues, at least the ones that he thinks will influence Trump. Of course, this will mean nothing in the long run, just as the meeting between Trump and President Obama very similarly right after the election back in 2016 meant nothing. It took a few days, maybe a month, for Trump to start beating up on Obama again. He'll do the very same thing with Biden. But, it's an important symbol, and we need to remember, Trump takes what he won't give.
One of the most outrageous things that will live in history is what your correspondence have stressed, that when Joe Biden won that election and defeated Donald Trump, Donald Trump had a temper tantrum and also developed the big lie and carried out and attempted coup d'etat on January 6.
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He did nothing for Joe Biden. He didn't help with the transition. He didn't invite him to the White House. He couldn't even be (inaudible) for the swearing in of his successor. But, as I said, he takes what he won't give, and that kind of summarizes his personality.
SOLOMON: Yeah. You compare that to Biden, who is obviously extending this invitation, but also called Trump the day after the election to congratulate him on his win.
Molly, let me ask, what are you watching in this meeting, as we wait to see if they decide to speak?
MOLLY BALL, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: I am interested to hear whether Joe Biden tries to persuade Donald Trump in some way, particularly as was being discussed earlier, on the subject of foreign policy. This has been so central to Joe Biden's term in office. He views it as, I think, the most important part of his presidency. And I think he is quite sincerely concerned about what Trump might do with regard to Ukraine, but also with regard to all of America's alliances abroad.
So, Trump doesn't necessarily take kindly to people who he views as trying to lecture him or tell him what he doesn't know about the processes of government. But, if he is able to have a cordial conversation with Joe Biden, I'm sure that that's the message that Biden is going to try to get across to him. And the question is, I think whether either of these men is able to communicate with the other, given their vast differences and all of the insults that they've heaped on one another.
SOLOMON: And as we await, and we do expect to see both gentlemen shortly, and so, obviously, we will jump in for that.
But, Larry, while I still have you, I want to ask, I mean, talk to us a little bit about what we've heard so far from Trump in terms of what the next cabinet may look like, whether we're talking about the Defense Secretary, whether we're talking about Homeland Security. I mean, give us a sense of your read based on the names that have been chosen so far, what it seems like Trump may be prioritizing or looking for and those closest to him in these next four years.
SABATO: Well, the word that jumps to mind immediately is loyalists. They are loyal to Trump. Most of them, at least the ones that I followed, when Trump says jump, they'll ask how high. I don't think they're likely to challenge you very much. The one that I think everybody is talking about and just shaking their heads about is picking a Fox host --
SOLOMON: All right. Larry, let me jump in, because my understanding is that we are actually hearing from President Biden. Well, we're seeing President Biden and President-elect Donald Trump. Let's listen together.
BIDEN: Like we said, let's do the transition, do everything we can to make sure you're accommodated what you need. We're going to get chance to talk about some of that today. So --
TRUMP: Welcome.
BIDEN: -- welcome. Welcome back.
TRUMP: Thank you very much. And politics is tough, and it's, in many cases, not a very nice world, but it is a nice world today, and I appreciate very much a transition that's so smooth. It'll be as smooth as it can get. And I very much appreciate that.
BIDEN: You're welcome. Thank you all.
SOLOMON: Larry, let me bring you back into the conversation and let you finish your thought. But, actually, what I really want you to weigh in on, if you might first, is Biden sort of getting at what you just talked about there. Biden said, I'm going to make sure you have everything you need. I'm going to be very accommodating. And then Trump, of course, did say, thank you. But, to your earlier point, that is not a gesture that was extended to Biden.
SABATO: Yes. And Biden looks like what he is, the adult in that pairing, because he didn't bring up the legitimate grievances that he has left over from 2020. He just accepts it and he moved on. And Trump always says something nice in a situation like this, when he is treated very well and praised. But, that doesn't mean it has any long term or even medium term, and maybe not even short-term effect on him. We all know him. He has s been out there since 2015 in a very public role as a candidate for President, and then through his term, and then he has been running ever since he left the first term.
So, these things are nice, and I think the symbolism is important, and Joe Biden is doing everything he can to make that a smooth transition, but it takes two to tango, and I don't think Donald Trump will be tangoing for very long,
SOLOMON: Molly, to that point, I mean, there are questions about whether this second term will be a bit more stable than the first term, or whether it will be turbulent. And I'm curious sort of what your sense is.
[11:20:00]
I mean, we heard Trump there say it's going to be a transition that is so smooth. I think he said it's going to be the smoothest transition there has ever been, that's me paraphrasing, but your thoughts about what we know so far, and whether that appears to be a more sort of disciplined administration, or if we can expect the same as four years ago.
BALL: Well, it's obviously much more disciplined than eight years ago. But, I think Larry is right. Right now, it's easy for Trump to be disciplined, or at least calm, because he is surrounded by people who are placating him and telling him he is great and the -- where the rubber hits, the road is going to be. When something doesn't go his way, how does he react? And we do have a lot of experience with how he tends to behave in that situation.
That being said, when he won in 2016, he was very ill-prepared, and the people around him had -- did not have much of an organization. We're clearly seeing the way he is assembling his cabinet, even the way he is approaching these leadership elections that are happening right now on Capitol Hill, is much more organized, much more done with an understanding of the way the government actually works. Some of his picks for the cabinet have been somewhat disruptive. Others have been much more normal. There is still a lot to come in terms of the people that are going to be in n his administration.
So, I think we're all going to be looking at those signs to see what they portend. But, at least for now, we are certainly looking at a situation that is far less turbulent than after the 2016 election, but that is a pretty low bar.
SOLOMON: Yeah. Fair enough.
Arlette, let me bring you back into the conversation. We talked a little bit about whether any of the potential awkwardness might be on display. And an outside observer looking at President Biden and President-elect Trump might think there is no bad blood between them. I mean, what are you seeing in this?
SAENZ: I mean, they do at least seem to have these very cordial interactions, shaking hands, sometimes, Biden, you see there, laughing and smiling. But, certainly, there was a very bitter period of competition between these two men, where they both flung insults at each other on the debate stage and out on the campaign trail. And for President Biden, of course, he has directly -- he is called Trump a direct threat to democracy. This meeting is playing out just a few feet away from that private dining room where Trump had watched the January 6 insurrection play out, something that President Biden has often criticized Trump for.
But, for Biden's part, he wants to show that he is committed to this transition of power. He said in that statement that he hopes that there will be a smooth transition, Trump also saying that, and also making the point that politics can be tough at some point, and it certainly was a tough competition between Biden and Trump, as they campaigned against each other earlier in this election.
Now, I also want to note, we just got word from our sources in the First Lady's office that First Lady Jill Biden actually greeted Donald Trump with her husband when he arrived at the White House, and the First Lady gave President-elect Trump a letter of congratulations for former and incoming First Lady Melania Trump. Her office saying in that letter that she expressed that her team remains committed to assist in any way that they can with a transition process for the First Lady as well.
Of course, Melania Trump is not joining her husband on this trip to the White House, another sign of her unconventional role at times as First Lady. It's not expected that she would be moving to Washington, D.C., living in the White House full time, more likely splitting her time between other places such as Mar-a-Lago or potentially New York City as well. But, the First Lady, at least, is trying to make that overture to First Lady Melania Trump, saying that they're ready to help with any transition, along with what President Biden is doing here in this very Oval Office with his former competitor Donald Trump.
SOLOMON: Yeah. Arlette, stand by. Let me bring back in our panel.
And Larry, let me bring you in now. I mean, one thing that's also happening in Washington today, as we have these sort of dueling equally consequential events, is this vote in the Senate for their leader, and there was a question about whether, depending on who senators obviously choose, whether there would be any guardrails in Washington, because obviously, now you likely have a potential full red sweep. What are you watching for in terms of the Senate elections there and who they're choosing?
SABATO: Well, like everybody else, I'm looking to see if Rick Scott, the Senator from Florida, wins, because he is clearly, mainly a Trump cheerleader, and like some of the cabinet picks, if told by Trump to jump, he would ask, how high? Well, the Senate is a separate -- half of a separate branch of government, and it's usually very, very independent.
[11:25:00]
I think either of the other two are institutionalists. Senator Thune from South Dakota, Senator Cornyn from Texas, they're institutionalists. They're going to try and protect the Senate's prerogatives as well. So, that might be a piece of a guardrail. I don't think there are many guardrails around Trump anymore, but at least you would have that. They may insist on the Senate's prerogatives, and that would be a plus. Whether it will turn out that way, we'll obviously see.
Let me also add that President Trump, former President, future President Trump, in that House discussion there, the House of Representatives, talked about a great victory in the House. This is no great victory. The way we count it at my operation, they're going to be lucky to have 221 or 222 seats. Lucky. Well, 218 is a majority. So, there are plenty of rebels, mainly on the right, in the Republican Caucus in the House. And anybody who thinks that Speaker Mike Johnson, and he'll get it again, is going to have an easy time, hasn't followed the House of Representatives for very long.
SOLOMON: That's an interesting point. Yeah.
Molly, on that point, talk to me a little bit about, I mean, some believe, because obviously if it's a full sweep, I mean, there is obvious unity in terms of the party, but you still have these sort of factions. You have those who are more fiscally conservative, and a question of whether we will still see that in-party fighting that we have the last few years, because is Trump fiscally conservative enough? I mean, I'm curious how you see it.
BALL: As Larry said, there are going to be very narrow margins here, which means it only takes a few troublemakers to disrupt the whole caucus, and that's somewhat true in the Senate as well, if they get to the point where they are trying to pass legislation that takes 60 votes, that has to be done in a bipartisan manner, and particularly if one of the so-called institutionalists wins this majority leader vote, I think that's going to be a sign that there probably are not 50 votes, even among the Republicans, to get rid of the filibuster, and that has a huge impact on Donald Trump's ability to implement his agenda.
The party is unified around Donald Trump right now. There is no question. And part of what -- why he is here today, part of the things he is saying to them today is to emphasize, you hear him talking about his victory, his mandate, he is taking credit for the victories of all of these senators and representatives to underscore the message that he believes they owe him. He believes they should be grateful to him, and he believes that they should obey him as a result, and it's all going to be warm and fuzzy until there is actually legislation being discussed, and that's when it has the potential to get much more contentious, because, as Larry said, these margins are so narrow, pretty much anyone can throw a wrench into things.
SOLOMON: Yeah. OK. Larry Sabato, Molly Ball, thank you both. Great to have you.
We're going to take a quick take a quick break and we'll be right back.
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. President-elect Donald Trump is back at the White House. President Joe Biden welcoming Trump just moments ago. The two are holding a closed-door meeting in the Oval Office. Mr. Biden said that he is committed to a peaceful transfer of power.
And also happening right now, Senate Republicans are behind closed doors to decide who will lead their party in the upper chamber. While control of the House is still in question with some key races yet to be called, Mike Johnson says that he is confident he will remain the House Speaker. And for the first time in 18 years, there will be a new Senate Republican leader, replacing Mitch McConnell. Rick Scott, John Cornyn and John Thune, all vying for the top spot. The new leader will be chosen by a secret ballot.
CNN's Annie Grayer joins us outside the Hyatt in Washington, D.C., where House Republicans are holding their candidate forum. So, Annie, talk to us a little bit about how that meeting with Trump, how it went down.
ANNIE GRAYER, CNN REPORTER: Well, it sounds like it was a rah-rah celebration in the meeting that is wrapping up behind me. Trump came in and celebrated his big wins across the country. Speaker Mike Johnson called him "The Comeback Kid" and credited Trump for keeping Republicans in their seats and potentially holding on to their very narrow majority. And Trump threw his support behind Johnson, which is huge, because the Speaker is trying to navigate a very divided conference, and he has some outspoken critics, critics so to have President-elect Trump throw support behind Johnson was a huge deal. I'm told there wasn't a lot of specific policy discussions discussed in this meeting. It was mostly Republicans getting together, celebrating Trump, and really vowing to kind of follow his lead wherever they take him.
SOLOMON: Yeah. And what about the Senate leadership fight? Give us a sense, one, of how that's all going to go down and how it works.
GRAYER: Well, senators are meeting behind closed doors right now. Again, it's a secret ballot. We're told the senators are about to start voting any minute now, and they've really been keeping their votes close to the chest, because this is a big deal for Senate Republicans. There hasn't been a new leader in that chamber in 18 years, because Mitch McConnell is finally stepping down, and Donald Trump is watching this very closely, because he knows whoever is elected to this position is going to be key to whether he has help enacting his agenda or an obstacle.
And as you remember, with McConnell, there were often times that McConnell and Trump went head to head. So, he is looking for an ally to lead the Senate Republicans, and of the three, he hasn't weighed in officially, but a lot of right-wing officials and personalities, including Elon Musk, support Rick Scott. So, it's going to be a question of who wins here, just more traditional establishment Republicans like senators John Thune or Cornyn prevail, or to someone like Rick Scott, who has the backing of a lot of Republicans in the right wing make it through. So, we're watching that very closely.
SOLOMON: Yeah. Also unclear who McConnell himself will vote for.
Annie Grayer live for us there in Washington. Annie, thank you.
And coming up, Donald Trump's pick to be U.S. Ambassador to Israel has made a number of controversial statements, including, quote, "there is really no such thing as a Palestinian". We will more on Mike Huckabee straight ahead.
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. You're watching CNN Newsroom. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York.
Moments ago, President Joe Biden welcomed President-elect Donald Trump at the White House. The Oval Office providing the backdrop for this remarkable meeting of two leaders with starkly different ways of seeing the world. Trump sat down a few feet from the dining room where nearly four years ago he watched the January 6 riot unfold on TV. But now, he is returning to Washington, emboldened by a decisive election victory. Earlier, he spoke with House Republicans, boasting about his sweep of all the swing states on the U.S. election map.
Now, the man Donald Trump has named as the U.S. Ambassador to Israel says that, of course, the next administration could support a possible Israeli move to annex the West Bank. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, an evangelical Christian, says that he fully expects Trump to continue strong pro-Israeli policies. Huckabee has left no doubt where he himself stands on key issues, wants to meet -- once meant to be resolved in an Israeli-Palestinian peace process. He has said that there is no such thing as the settlement, no such thing as occupation, and no such thing as Palestinians themselves.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE HUCKABEE, FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: Basically, there really is now suck thing as, I have to be careful saying this, because people will really get upset, there's really no such thing as a Palestinian.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SOLOMON: OK. Joining us now is Max Boot. He is a Foreign Policy Analyst and a columnist for The Washington Post. He is also the author of "Reagan: His Life and Legend". Max, great to have you on this day. Talk to me about just, we've gotten a slew of cabinet announcements, but the one that seems to have caught many by surprise is Trump's choice for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, a veteran, a current Fox News host, who has used his show to speak out on military matters important to him. Take a listen.
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HEGSETH: It's one thing to have DEI inside your corporation or inside your university. It's a whole other thing to have it inside the 101st Airborne. You can move to a different state if you want to go to a different school, or if you want a different tax rate. We only have one military, and if the military goes woke, then it is less equipped to fight the wars it needs to fight.
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SOLOMON: Max, your reaction to this pick and how it might shape America's military.
MAX BOOT, COLUMNIST, THE WASHINGTON POST, & AUTHOR, "REAGAN: HIS LIFE AND LEGEND": I think the Hegseth pick is, it a big concern, I would say, comparing the current picks to the ones that Trump made in 2017. Some of them were actually better. I mean, I would say Marco Rubio, Secretary of State, is an upgrade over Rex Tillerson. I would say that Mike Waltz as National Security Advisor is an upgrade over Mike Flynn.
But, going from Jim Mattis as Trump's Secretary of Defense to Pete Hegseth, that's not an upgrade. That's a massive down shift. I mean, Pete Hegseth is basically a Fox News personality, and I respect his military service, but he was a relatively junior officer. And in recent years, he has been kind of waging rhetorical on the military. During Trump's first term, he convinced Trump to go easy on three military members who are accused of war crimes. Just last week, Pete Hegseth said that General CQ Brown, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, should be fired. If you would actually become Defense Secretary and begin by firing the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs for no apparent reason other than perhaps some kind of political Vendetta, I think that would send a very destabilizing and very dangerous signal to the U.S. military. It would risk politicizing the armed forces.
SOLOMON: And when you think about the Secretary of Defense, talk to me a little bit about sort of what you would hope that person would bring to the job, whether it's the relationships, the leadership experience. I mean, where do you think Hegseth is lacking, in addition to what you just said?
BOOT: Well, I mean, Hegseth is -- has basically, he has never served in government. I mean, he has been a junior Army National Guard officer, but he has no experience in either branch of the government. He has never worked at the higher levels. And remember, the military -- running the U.S. military is one of the largest management jobs in the world. It's millions of people, civilians and military personnel, and there is nothing in his background to indicate that he has the experience or competence to do that kind of job.
[11:40:00]
He is -- what he has been doing for the last few years is basically sounding off on Fox News, which is, it's saying a lot of things that Trump likes. But, there is a huge difference between being a television personality, and actually commanding the Armed Forces. And whoever is Secretary of Defense, he is in the chain of command. He is somebody who is part of the decision-making that puts people's lives at risk. He has the future of the U.S. military in his hands, which is the most powerful fighting force in the world. And I just don't see anything in Hegseth's background to indicate, give me any confidence that he would be the right person to do that.
I think there are a lot of other people, including Mike Pompeo, the former Secretary of State, who Trump ruled out for that -- for any cabinet job, who I think would be much better, or Tom Cotton, the Senator, now he is going to be Chairman of Intelligence Committee. Hegseth is just the wrong guy in one of the most important jobs in the world.
SOLOMON: Yeah. What about Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas, as the next Ambassador to Israel? I mean, as we pointed out in the intro there, he is staunchly pro-Israeli, including the country's claims to the West Bank. And here are some of his comments from 2017.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HUCKABEE: There are certain words I refuse to use. There is no such thing as a West Bank. It's Judea and Samaria. There is no such thing as a settlement. They are communities. They are neighborhoods. They are cities. There is no such thing as an occupation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOLOMON: How do you think this appointment is being viewed? I mean, I think we can sort of guess within Israel, but also among these -- the Arab world.
BOOT: I mean, I think it's a concerning choice, especially because you have Prime Minister Netanyahu is sending to Washington as the Israeli Ambassador, somebody who is very involved in the settler movement in the West Bank. And now, you're -- Trump is going to send to Israel an ambassador who is very much pro-settler. And so, the forces are lining up potentially for Israel to annex the West Bank, which I think would be a disaster and would greatly set back Israel's relations with the Arab world, and would also compromise the democratic character of the State of Israel, because basically Israel would be annexing millions of Palestinians who would not have political rights within Israel.
I think that's a very dangerous situation for Israel's long-term security and its future as a democracy. But, keep in mind, Huckabee is only going to be the ambassador. I mean -- and that's not a decision- making function. The decision is really going to be made in Washington. And so, I hope that Mike Waltz, the new National Security Advisor, will give trump the benefit of his expertise and knowledge, to make clear why this would be such a dangerous move to allow Israel to annex the West Bank.
SOLOMON: What about Marco Rubio as Secretary of State? I know you mentioned that. That actually seems like that could be a good fit. I mean, talk to me about that.
BOOT: Well, that's the choice that I think gives me the most confidence. And I think he is better than pretty much any other alternatives that I've heard mooted, because Rubio is somebody who has been very active in foreign affairs, in the Senate. He served on the Intelligence Committee. He served on the Foreign Relations Committee. He has a real passion for democracy and for standing up to hostile regimes.
I was -- many moons ago in a previous incarnation, I was even a foreign policy advisor to Senator Rubio's 2016 campaign, and I've been dismayed to see since then the extent to which he has kind of trimmed his sales to win favor with Trump by, for example, opposing aid to Ukraine. I think that is a concern. But, I think on the whole, he is still somebody who is very much committed to an internationalist vision of American foreign policy, to American leadership in the world. And he is not an isolationist, which is why you saw some of the extreme MAGA circles greeting his nomination with consternation and concern. And I think Rubio is somebody who, I think is, is, is probably the best possible choice you can get out of a President Trump for such a senior position.
SOLOMON: Yeah. On Ukraine, we've heard him say that it's appeared to reach a stalemate and that it should be sort of wound down or concluded soon, which makes you wonder sort of how Ukrainians are viewing that.
Max Boot, great to have your insights and perspectives today. Thank you.
BOOT: Thank you.
SOLOMON: And still ahead, Donald Trump has the job for two key supporters. We're going to have a live report on the poll that he wants Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to play.
We'll be right back.
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[11:45:00]
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SOLOMON: We're looking at live pictures of the Senate there, as they vote for Senate Majority Leader. We could have a new majority leader any minute now. Of course, we will bring that to you just as soon as it happens. You can see our Manu Raju there standing by. But, also happening now, President Joe Biden has been meeting with President- elect Donald Trump at the White House. And moments ago, they shook hands as they sat in front of the fireplace. It was the first time that they had been in the same room since the CNN debate in June. Mr. Biden told Trump that his administration would do everything it could to ensure a smooth transition, a courtesy that Trump did not give to Biden four years ago as he fought the results of the 2020 election.
And this comes amid fresh announcements about who will lead key roles and posts in the new Trump administration. The President-elect has announced that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will lead what he called a new Department of Government Efficiency, but there are questions about how it will operate and how it will be funded. Ramaswamy is an entrepreneur who ran against Trump for the Republican nomination before then dropping out and endorsing Trump. Trump says that the department will dismantle bureaucracy and restructure federal agencies. The choice of tech billionaire Musk, though, raising potential questions and issues of conflict of interest.
Let's bring in CNN's Alayna Treene again in Washington. So, Alayna, talk to us about Elon Musk saying that this will send shock waves through the system. What do we know about what the role and the department really entails?
TREENE: Well, actually, we still don't know that much, Rahel. Then, this is something, of course, just remind you that Donald Trump had said that he wanted to do on the campaign trail months ago, shortly after Elon Musk had first endorsed Donald Trump and started to become more of a high-profile surrogate.
Remember, he had hosted Donald Trump on an X spaces, and that was when Musk himself was the one to bring up to Donald Trump that he thought that if he were elected, he should create some sort of government efficiency program aimed at tackling waste. Donald Trump told him he loved the idea, and then continued talking about it for the remainder of his time on the campaign trail. But now, obviously, now that he is President-elect and he has the power to do this, he is making it official, and so he is going to be naming Elon Musk and his former Republican primary challenger Vivek Ramaswamy to kind of oversee this.
Now, again, it is unclear exactly what this department is going to be doing. One thing that Donald Trump did say in this announcement, he said, quote, "that it would provide advice and guidance from outside of government", and that's really key here, that it's not going to be essentially within the executive branch or operating directly under Donald Trump. I know that in conversations in the past about what kind of role Elon Musk could take in a Trump administration, there were concerns about Musk not wanting to divest from his businesses and his different investment accounts and whatnot. And so, I think this is kind of solving for some of that.
But, we do have some sound of both Ramaswamy as well as Musk talking about some of this. I want you to take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VIVEK RAMASWAMY, FORMER REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Shut down the FBI. Shut down the ATF. Shut down the CDC. Shut down the U.S. Department of Education. Fire 75 percent of the federal bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.
[11:50:00]
ELON MUSK, TECH BILLIONAIRE: Your money is being wasted, and the Department of Government Efficiency is going to fix that. We're going to get the government off your back and out of your pocketbook.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TREENE: Now, Rahel, we've also heard Elon Musk say before that he believes he could cut $2 trillion from federal -- in federal spending. Unclear if that's actually something that he will be able to do.
But, one thing I also just want to say that, above all of this is that Elon Musk is clearly very influential right now. His influence with Donald Trump has grown immensely over the past several months, and I think that's been evident by him being at Mar-a-Lago essentially every single day since he won, as well as traveling with him today to Washington, D.C. for that meeting with House Republicans. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Yeah. There was even initially a question of whether he would be at the White House during that meeting, although that was ultimately not the case.
Alayna Treene live for us in Washington. Alayna, thank you.
And still ahead, First Lady, second time around, what has Melania Trump learned from her first term in Washington, and what makes you do differently this time. We'll take a look.
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SOLOMON: Incoming First Lady Melania Trump is expected to treat her husband's second term differently. Although there is a tradition for the President-elect's wife to meet the incumbent First Lady, Mrs. Trump is skipping that, and sources have told CNN that she is not expected to move into the White House full time in January. Now, during her husband's first term, Mrs. Trump kept a skeleton staff and split her time between Washington, Florida and New York. It's believed that this time around, she will go to Washington for special events.
Let's bring in CNN's Betsy Klein from Washington. Betsy, you've covered Melania Trump on and off since 2015. Talk to us about what you're hearing and how much of this reporting is a surprise to you.
BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE PRODUCER: Well, Rahel, I mean, anyone who watched Melania Trump for the first four years of the Trump terms saw that she showed a willingness to buck tradition, and she is laying an early marker that that is going to be no different this time around, as she skipped that customary meeting with outgoing First Lady Jill Biden, while their husbands met in the Oval Office today. Now, we did learn moments ago that First Lady Jill Biden did greet incoming President Donald Trump when he arrived at the White House, and she offered him a handwritten letter to give to his wife, expressing her hopes for a seamless transition in the East Wing. Now this is, as we're also learning, that Melania Trump is unlikely to
move to the White House full time when President-elect Trump takes office on January 20, and that is as she is expected to split her time between New York, where Barron Trump is in college, and Palm Beach, where Mar-a-Lago is and where she has developed her own community and circle of friends. Now, of course, those sources tell us that she will be around for key events, and she will have her own platform and priorities.
But, let's be clear, a First Lady declining to live at the White House full time is a significant break in precedent. But, as you mentioned, for those who have observed Melania Trump for a long time, this really shouldn't come as a surprise. She sort of telegraphed during this campaign that she was unlikely to be very active on the campaign trail. We saw her just once at the announcement event. We saw her at the Madison Square Garden rally, and then we saw her on stage with family on election night. That was it. Her preference sources tell us is really to not be involved, and that cannot be on the internal side.
Let's be very clear that she has former and future President Trump's ear.
[11:55:00]
She is a constant advisor to him and gives him advice. And I think there was this misconception during the first Trump term that there was some sort of secret resistance from Melania Trump. That could not be further from the truth. Melania Trump is very aligned with her husband on political and policy issues.
SOLOMON: OK. Betsy Klein, good to have that sort of inside look. Thank you.
And thank you for spending part of your day with me. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. Stick with CNN. One World is coming up next.
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