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Trump’s White House: attention turns to cabinet and transition, as reality of triumph sinks in

Will Trump’s key campaign aides - including daughter Ivanka, Rudy Giuliani and Chris Christie - find a place among President-elect’s White House?

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This file photo taken on September 11, 2016 shows former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (left), Republican President-elect Donald Trump (centre) and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (right)as they stand together during a memorial service in New York. Photo: AFP

The true test now begins for Donald Trump.

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The Republican president-elect paid little attention to transition planning leading up to his stunning victory. With 72 days before he takes control of the executive branch, Trump and his senior team on Wednesday immediately began the herculean task of picking a Cabinet and tapping hundreds of appointees to senior roles in key departments — State, Defence, Homeland Security, Commerce and Treasury among them — many requiring multiple security reviews or Senate confirmation.

Throughout his campaign, he turned to a tight-knit group that included his children and family members - will they now find a place in a Trump White House, and perhaps the cabinet?

“They have a long way to go,” said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, an outside group that was working with both campaigns on transition planning since the summer. “It’s imperative to have the right people brought in fast and they’re prepared.”
Republican president-elect Donald Trump kisses his daughter Ivanka Trump after his acceptance speech at the New York Hilton Midtown in the early morning hours of Wednesday. Photo: AFP
Republican president-elect Donald Trump kisses his daughter Ivanka Trump after his acceptance speech at the New York Hilton Midtown in the early morning hours of Wednesday. Photo: AFP
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Stier described the transition as “a point of maximum vulnerability” for the nation.

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