Newsletter: Essential Politics: Obama (carefully) weighs in on Trump

It’s a phrase you hear after every election, one used by winners, losers and observers: The people have spoken.

And so there’s no surprise that it’s now the one on which the man who must turn over the reins of power, President Obama, falls back as he tries to explain what happened.

Good morning from the state capital. I’m Sacramento Bureau Chief John Myers, and if there was one word that came to mind watching the president’s news conference about his successor, President-elect Donald Trump, it was probably this: cautious.

Maybe it was an event designed for Trump himself to watch, writes Michael A. Memoli. After all, the president went to lengths assuring everyone that his successor supports NATO — described as a “great interest in maintaining our core strategic relationships,” Obama said.

The president also suggested Trump is more pragmatic than ideological. Again, might this have been a way to get the new guy’s attention?

THE BANNON BLOWUP

The Obama comments came amid more anger over Trump’s selection of Stephen K. Bannon as his chief White House strategist. As Evan Halper writes, the biggest challenge may be that bipartisan condemnation of Bannon threatens to overshadow the president-elect’s attempt to seem more open-minded in the wake of the bitter election season.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) was more circumspect in his comments on Monday. “I’ve always believed in giving somebody a chance,” he said of Bannon.

THE DEPORTATION DEBATE

Any attempt by Trump to ratchet down the rhetoric also suffers from his televised comments over the weekend about deporting as many as 3 million people without legal U.S. residency.

His advisors plan to expand pressure on local police and jails to identify immigrants in the country illegally for deportation, in an effort to meet Trump’s goal of deporting criminals when he takes office. Trump apparently would expand the Obama approach to include not just those who have been convicted, but also people who have been arrested, suspected gang members, and people charged with immigration violations.

Meantime, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said Monday that he has no plans to change the LAPD’s stance on immigration enforcement, despite President-elect Trump’s pledge to toughen federal immigration laws and deport millions of people upon taking office.

FROM PUTIN TO PROTESTS

While the president-elect stayed out of the sight of cameras on Monday, he spent some time on the phone with someone who became part of the caustic campaign: Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The two men discussed a “range of issues,” per a statement from the president-elect’s communications team.

Closer to home, hundreds of Los Angeles-area students walked out of their classrooms hit the streets on Monday as a protest of Trump’s election, according to authorities. We’ve been covering that and other protests on our new and constantly updated news feed on protests across California.

Get the latest about the Trump transition on Trail Guide and follow @latimespolitics.

THE U.S. SENATE RACE IS OVER. WHAT’S NEXT?

Senator-elect Kamala Harris said she’s already been in contact with her West Coast colleagues about banding together in the Trump era.

Harris also expressed optimism that she can work with her Republican colleagues to deal with California’s water crisis and, perhaps, even climate change. Harris said that during the campaign she met with many conservative farmers and ranchers who acknowledged that the growing seasons were changing and the climate has been altered.

“Republicans and Democrats alike know we are experiencing this drought and also have an equal concern about more reliability about water,” Harris said.

The breadth of Harris’ landslide U.S. Senate victory over Loretta Sanchez is coming into full view. A USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times post-election poll found that Harris dominated, beating Sanchez among all major age groups, education levels and ethnicities — including among Latino voters.

JOIN US THURSDAY

The Los Angeles Times will look back this week at the election and look ahead to what the Trump administration might mean for California.

We’ve got a hot lineup of lawmakers, political consultants and several members of our political team, present company included. The symposium will be held in downtown Los Angeles. Buy tickets here.

TODAY’S ESSENTIALS

— There was one problem with the “news story” tweeted Sunday night by Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez (R-Lake Elsinore) about anti-Trump protesters fatally wounding a homeless veteran: It was a hoax.

— China warns its students in the U.S. to be on the lookout for “riots” and anti-Chinese sentiment in the wake of Trump’s victory.

— Rep. Steve Knight (R-Lancaster) did his best to avoid talking about Trump before election day, saying he wouldn’t support him but dodging when asked how he would vote. Knight stopped playing coy on election night, telling a reporter he voted for Trump.

— McCarthy suggested House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi should stay in leadership because it keeps Republicans in power.

LOGISTICS

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