AFP - Donald Trump plunged
his quest for America's next top diplomat back into the spotlight by confirming
that one frontrunner, outspoken former New York mayor Rudy
Giuliani, will not
join his cabinet.
Giuliani had made no
secret of his desire for the job, but came under media scrutiny over business
dealings that could pose conflicts of interest.
He was one of
Trump's most ardent supporters in the bitterly divisive election but others
were alarmed about the prospect of the 72-year-old known for abrasive rhetoric
heading up the largest diplomatic mission in the world.
Observers in the
United States and around the world have been on tenterhooks over who the
incoming Republican will pick as they wait to see whether Trump will make good
on threats to rip up treaties and free trade agreements.
With the decision
expected next week, the president-elect announced Friday that Giuliani had
removed his name from contention as far back as November 29.
"Rudy would
have been an outstanding member of the cabinet in several roles, but I fully
respect and understand his reasons for remaining in the private sector,"
Trump said in a statement.
Giuliani, a former
federal prosecutor, earned the moniker "America's Mayor" for his
leadership of New York in the wake of the September 11 attacks.
"This is not
about me; it is about what is best for the country and the new
administration," he said in a statement released by Trump's team,
confirming that he would continue to work in his law and consulting firms.
The New York Times reported
that Rex Tillerson, chief executive of Exxon Mobil, was now the leading
candidate to become secretary of state. Tillerson met Trump in New York on
Tuesday.
- New picks next
week -
Former Republican
presidential nominee Mitt Romney, a fierce critic of Trump during the campaign,
is thought to remain in the running.
But the Times said
Trump had "indicated to several people" that the former Massachusetts
governor was now unlikely to be named.
In an interview with
Fox News, Giuliani followed other ardent Trump loyalists in counseling against
Romney, complaining that he "went just a little too far" in savaging
Trump during the campaign season.
"You can make
friends and make up, but I would not see him as a candidate for the
cabinet," Giuliani told Fox.
Trump's appointments
so far include four billionaires and three generals in a super-rich,
conservative and largely white inner circle set to run the United States from
January 20
Many incoming
cabinet members have railed against the worker protections and environmental
and corporate regulations enacted by President Barack Obama.
Trump told a victory
rally in Michigan that "phenomenal" new names would be announced next
week, but declined to give specifics.
The stop in Grand
Rapids was the fifth campaign-style event since the November 8 election as he
soaks up adulation from supporters in key states that helped secure his
electoral win over Democrat Hillary Clinton.
The president-elect
defends his picks as "some of the most successful people in the
world" but when his choice for education secretary, billionaire Betsy
DeVos, took the stage in Michigan, she was heckled by some protesters.
A number of
protesters were forcibly removed from the floor at different points during the
evening. "Where do these people come from? Unbelievable," said Trump
as the crowd responded with chants of "U-S-A! U-S-A!"
- Oil refineries -
He used the rally to
name Michigan resident and Australian-born Dow Chemical executive Andrew
Liveris as head of a national manufacturing council.
Liveris said his
company was going to invest in a new research and development center in
Michigan that would create hundreds of jobs -- with job creation one of Trump's
key promises.
The president-elect
also rehashed his complaints about a Boeing contract to build two new Air Force
One jets, which he claims has escalated to $4 billion.
"I'm not paying
$4 billion for an airplane," he told the crowd.
At a rally in
Louisiana earlier on Friday, the president-elect said he wanted to see more oil
refineries built in the United States, and pledged to do away with
"job-killing restrictions" suppressing the energy sector.
He also delivered a
veiled warning to America's rivals around the world, stating he would be
prepared to boost US military production to keep pace with countries like
China, which is rapidly modernizing its armed forces.
"We're going to
have the strongest military in the world, the most updated military in the
world. And there has rarely been a time where we have needed it like
this," he told the crowd in Michigan.
AFP
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