Republican Donald Trump swept into Washington on Thursday for the first time as president-elect, mending fences publicly with President Obama at the White House and conferring with GOP leaders in Congress on a first-term agenda of border security, jobs, tax cuts and health care reform.
The president-elect met with House Speaker Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, who escorted Mr. Trump to the Speaker’s Balcony to enjoy an expansive view of the National Mall and the west steps of the Capitol, where Mr. Trump will be inaugurated on Jan. 20.
“I think we are going to do absolutely spectacular things for the American people, and I look forward to starting — truthfully, we can’t get started fast enough,” Mr. Trump said.
Earlier, at the White House, Mr. Trump met Mr. Obama for the first time as the two men tried to move beyond a history of personal animosity and a divisive campaign to focus on a smooth transition of power. Despite the White House saying Mr. Obama hasn’t changed his view that Mr. Trump is “unfit” to lead the nation, the president-elect had nothing but praise for Mr. Obama after their 90-minute meeting, calling the president “a very good man.”
“I have great respect,” Mr. Trump said in the Oval Office. “I very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future, including his counsel.”
Mr. Obama said they had an “excellent conversation” and stressed the importance of an efficient transition.
“We now are going to want to do everything we can to help you succeed — because if you succeed, then the country succeeds,” the president told Mr. Trump.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest called the meeting “a little less awkward than some might have expected.”
“The two men did not relitigate their differences,” he said.
The president-elect said their discussion, with no aides present, covered “a lot of different situations, some wonderful and some difficulties.”
“He explained some of the difficulties, some of the high-flying assets and some of the really great things that have been achieved,” Mr. Trump said of the president. The mention of “high-flying assets” may have been a reference to Air Force One — Mr. Obama often jokes about how much he’ll miss his own plane after he leaves office in January.
Mr. Trump flew into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on Thursday morning from New York City on his own plane emblazoned with his name on the fuselage. His arrival in the nation’s capital came a little more than 24 hours after he defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton in a campaign that bitterly divided the nation.
Protesters held anti-Trump demonstrations in at least 25 cities across the U.S. Wednesday night in opposition to his election. Some chanted “Not my president!”
Mr. Earnest said Mr. Obama believes the demonstrators’ right to free speech must be protected.
“It is a right that should be exercised without violence,” Mr. Earnest said. “There are people who are disappointed in the outcome, and … it’s not surprising that people are disappointed in the outcome. It’s important for us to remember a day or two after the election that we’re Democrats and Republicans, but we’re Americans and patriots first. And that’s the message that the president hopes that most people will hear.”
Mr. Obama seemed to refer to the demonstrations while addressing reporters with Mr. Trump in the Oval Office.
“It is important for all of us, regardless of party and regardless of political preferences, to now come together, work together, to deal with the many challenges that we face,” the president said.
One of Mr. Trump’s challenges will be boosting a weak economic recovery. Spurring job growth was a primary topic in his discussion with Mr. Ryan.
“We had a very good meeting, a very detailed meeting,” Mr. Trump said. “We’re going to lower taxes. We’re going to fix health care, make it more affordable and better. We’re going to do a real job for the public. That’s what we want to do, and that’s why we’re excited.”
The speaker said Mr. Trump “had one of the most impressive victories we have ever seen.”
“We’re going to turn that victory into progress for the American people,” he said. “We had a fantastic, productive meeting about getting to work, rolling up our sleeves and going to work for the American people.”
The president-elect also met at the Capitol with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Emerging from the hourlong meeting, Mr. Trump told reporters, “We have a lot to do.”
“We’re going to work very strongly on immigration, health care and we’re looking at jobs, big-league jobs,” said the president-elect, who campaigned on promises to repeal and replace Obamacare and build a wall along the border with Mexico.
Mr. Trump brought his wife, Melania, and a handful of aides with him to Washington on his private jet. As he met in the Oval Office with Mr. Obama, reporters spotted Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, walking in deep conversation with White House chief of staff Denis McDonough on the South Lawn.
Mrs. Trump received a tour of the private White House residence from first lady Michelle Obama, as well as a tour of the ceremonial first floor with curator William Allman. Mr. Earnest said Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Trump discussed the “unique” challenge of raising children at the White House, where the Trumps’ 10-year-old son Barron will live.
Mr. Trump flew back to New York at the end of the day rather than staying overnight in his Trump International Hotel a few blocks from the White House. More than 100 protesters held a sit-in outside the hotel Thursday, some holding signs saying “Love Trumps Hate,” a phrase Mrs. Clinton often used during the campaign.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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