• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Trump Pledges To Be President For 'All Americans,' Clinton Concedes Defeat

RFE/RL November 09, 2016

WASHINGTON -- Donald Trump has urged Americans to "come together as one united people" after winning a historic U.S. presidential election over Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who conceded defeat and said the nation should give Trump a "chance to lead."

Billionaire Republican nominee Trump said in his victory speech to supporters at his headquarters in a Manhattan hotel ballroom in the early hours of November 9 that he would be a president "for all Americans" and would "not let you down."

Trump said he had spoken by phone to Clinton, who had conceded the election. Clinton did not address her supporters on election night but delivered a concession speech to her campaign staff and backers in New York shortly before noon on November 9.

In the speech, her first public remarks since her stunning loss, the Democratic candidate said she spoke to Trump following the November 8 election and "offered to work with him on behalf of our country."

"We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead," Clinton said, adding that the peaceful transition of power is critical to U.S. democracy.

"We have seen that our nation is more deeply divided than we thought," she said. "But I still believe in America, and I always will. And if you do, then we must accept this result and then look to the future."

Most opinion polls ahead of the election showed the former U.S. first lady, senator, and secretary of state likely to defeat Trump, a billionaire real estate mogul and former reality TV star who has never held elected office.

U.S. President Barack Obama delivered his first public remarks on the election following Clinton's address, saying in Washington that he called Trump early on November 9 to congratulate and invited him to come to the White House the next day to discuss the transition.

Obama said he had instructed his staff to work as hard as possible to ensure a smooth and successful transition of power when Trump is inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States on January 20.

"The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy and over the next few months, we are going to show that to the world," he said, speaking outside the White House.

Trump issued a tweet of appreciation early on November 9, saying: "Such a beautiful and important evening! The forgotten man and woman will never be forgotten again. We will all come together as never before."

The president-elect praised his rival, with whom the New York native was locked in a bitter campaign, for her many years of service to her country.

Trump sealed his victory when he was declared the winner in Wisconsin, giving him 276 electoral votes and taking him past the 270 needed to win the election.

Trump fell behind slightly in the popular vote with 92 percent of the national tally completed on November 9, with a difference of fewer than 140,000 votes putting Clinton at 47.6 percent to 47.5 percent for Trump.

It is rare but not unprecedented for a candidate to win the required number of Electoral College votes (270) but lose the popular vote, last occurring when Republican George W. Bush beat Democrat Al Gore in 2000.

"This is painful and it will be for a long time," Clinton said of the loss. "But I want you to remember this: Our campaign was never about one person or even one election. It was about the country we love and about building an America that's hopeful, inclusive, and big-hearted."

In Congress, Republicans retained control of the 435-member House of Representatives and the Senate, the upper house, where 34 seats were being contested.

The rancorous campaign between the two candidates has exposed deep fault lines in the U.S. political landscape.

Clinton, 69, and Trump, 70, had savaged one another throughout the campaign, which some historians say have featured a level of mudslinging and overheated rhetoric unprecedented in modern U.S. history.

Exit surveys conducted around the country on Election Day by the AP and the main U.S. TV networks showed more than half of voters cast their ballots with reservations about their candidate or because they disliked the others running.

The exit surveys also showed about four out of 10 voters believed trade among countries creates jobs, while another four out of 10 say it takes jobs from Americans.

Trump has said Clinton would be jailed under his presidency over her controversial handling of e-mails during her tenure as secretary of state.

He captured the Republican nomination with controversial proposals like "extreme vetting" of Muslims who want to enter the country and building a wall on the southern border to keep out immigrants from Central America.

He had also vowed to upend politics-as-usual in Washington if he was elected.

Throughout her campaign, Clinton vowed to build on the legacy of outgoing President Obama and touted her decades of public service as qualifying her to lead the nation. She was seeking to become the first female U.S. president.

In her concession speech, Clinton acknowledged that she had not "shattered that highest and hardest glass ceiling" and told "all the little girls" watching, "Never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every opportunity in the world and chance to pursue your dreams."

With reporting by AP, NBC, The New York Times, AFP, and Reuters

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/us-trump- pledges-president-all-americans- clinton-concedes/28106721.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.