Trump goes to Washington to drop the axe on TPP with Australia
Donald Trump is in the US capital on the eve of his swearing-in ceremony and cutting a major tie with Australia by scrapping the Trans-Pacific Partnership is top of his agenda.
Ready for his big moment, the president-elect traded in his beloved private plane for a military jet and swooped into Washington for three days of inaugural festivities.
As the president-elect left New York behind, the capital braced for an onslaught of inaugural crowds and demonstrators numbering in the hundreds of thousands.
Trump was already taking on more of the trappings of the presidency, giving a salute to the Air Force officer who welcomed him as he stepped off the military plane with wife Melania at Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington.
The former reality TV star will enter the Oval Office ready to act on a list of executive orders, including taking an axe to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
Scrapping the TPP is at the top of Trump's list, the billionaire declaring in the campaign he would only sign on to trade deals that benefited the US.
The TPP was a 12-nation trade deal that would include the US, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Canada, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei, Singapore, Peru, Mexico and Chile and was seen by many as a way of boxing-out China from the pan-Pacific economic community.
Trump was among the loudest critics of the deal that was negotiated in secret, with many claiming it put corporations and profits before labour rights, the environment and national sovereignty.
Trump's press secretary Sean Spicer said the president-elect's message has been clear on consistent on trade.
"He is going to make sure every deal he cuts, just like he did in business, puts American workers and American manufacturing, American services first," he said.
Earlier this week Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull slammed Opposition Leader Bill Shorten as a "shallow populist" and a protectionist for following Trump on trade and praising the likely dumping of the TPP.
"Bill Shorten is a shallow populist. He is a disgrace to the legacy of economic reform that his predecessors as leaders of the Labor Party demonstrated, (Bob) Hawke and (Paul) Keating in particular," Mr Turnbull said.
Appearing on Sunrise, former PM Kevin Rudd implored the Australian government to try its best to persuade Trump to settle growing tensions with China and keep the TPP.
"If he needs to re-brand this, or re-name it or re-constitute it because he's the president and he said he'd get rid of it then fine. But preserve as much of the substance as possible as it helps the economy," Rudd said.
Meanwhile, the White House was quickly emptying out. President Barack Obama's schedule was empty beyond his daily briefing and his final weekly lunch with Vice President Joe Biden,
Vice President-elect Mike Pence, in a tweet, called Inauguration Eve "a momentous day before a historic day," as security barricades and blockades went up around Washington in preparation for Friday's swearing-in ceremony.
"We are all ready to go to work," Pence said at a morning news conference.
"In fact, we can't wait to get to work for the American people to make it great again."
Trump's first scheduled stop in Washington: a leadership luncheon bringing together inaugural officials, top Republican leaders in Congress, his Cabinet picks and top members of his new White House team.
Outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said he'd be putting on his "favourite DHS jacket" and taking to the streets to inspect security preparations for the inaugural festivities.
Trump's public schedule for the inaugural celebration starts with an afternoon wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery. Next, a welcome concert on the steps of Lincoln Memorial ending with fireworks.
The two-hour concert, open to the public, is to feature country star Toby Keith, soul's Sam Moore, actor Jon Voight and The Piano Guys. Also performing: Lee Greenwood, DJ RaviDrums, 3 Doors Down, and The Frontmen of Country, featuring Tim Rushlow, Larry Stewart and Richie McDonald.
Before departing for Washington, Trump announced his final Cabinet choice: former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue for agriculture secretary.
Press spokesman Spicer said the president-elect was continuing to make "edits and additions" to the inaugural address he'll deliver at Friday's swearing-in.
