Trump picks loyalist, Obamacare critic

Donald Trump has picked a former Goldman Sachs banker to steer economic policy and a fierce Obamacare critic to dismantle Barack Obama's healthcare program.

US President-elect Donald Trump has chosen a former Goldman Sachs banker and billionaire investor to steer economic policy in his administration and a fierce Obamacare critic to dismantle President Barack Obama's signature healthcare program.

Trump is expected to name Steven Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs partner and Hollywood financier, as his nominee for Treasury secretary, a source said, putting a Wall Street veteran in the top US economic Cabinet post.

Mnuchin, who spent 17 years at Goldman Sachs before leaving in 2002 to launch a hedge fund, served as Trump's campaign finance chairman.

Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross, known for his investments in distressed industries, is expected to be named commerce secretary, a source said.

The announcements could come as early as Wednesday.

The flurry of picks showed Trump, a real estate tycoon with no governing experience, rewarding loyalists and established Washington veterans as he rounds out his circle of top advisers.

Republican US Representative Tom Price, an orthopedic surgeon from Georgia, will be Trump's health and human services secretary. Seema Verma, the founder of a health policy consulting company, will lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is part of Health and Human Services and oversees government health programs for the poor and the elderly and insurance standards.

Trump also announced his choice of Elaine Chao, labor secretary under President George W Bush, to serve as secretary of transportation, saying in a statement that her expertise would be an asset "in our mission to rebuild our infrastructure."

While Trump made decisions on his economic team, he continued to mull over who should serve as his top diplomat.

He dined with former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, a one-time critic and the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, at a French restaurant in New York on Tuesday night.

Romney sharply criticised Trump during the presidential campaign but he offered praise after their dinner.

"He continues with a message of inclusion, of bringing people together," Romney told reporters. He said Trump's Cabinet choices so far and speech on Election Night were encouraging.


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Source: AAP



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