Trump May Just Say Stuff

Playbook: “What’s clear as Donald Trump takes the White House is that he’s not only on a different page than most elected Republicans in Washington, but is reading from a completely different book. Two easy examples: he said he wants health insurance for everyone — sounding more Bernie Sanders than Paul Ryan — and then dumped all over the complex but key border adjustment provision in the GOP’s tax reform plan. But the message dissonance is in stark contrast to a flurry of behind-the-scenes meetings and nearly daily contact between congressional leaders and the president elect and his team. The basic message, according to Hill and Trump World sources: Don’t get too spun up about what Trump says and tweets on any given day.”

Said one key Republican: “Folks just need to calm down. We’re not flying blind here. The president-elect is going to express himself in all sorts of ways but you have to understand that he and his team are talking to Hill leaders about these issues every single day. And all of our conversations are moving us closer, not apart.”