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Obama Likely to Field Questions on Russia, Syria and Donald Trump
| Wall Street Journal | - |
WASHINGTON—President
Barack Obama is expected to face a barrage of questions about Russian
cyberattacks allegedly aimed at influencing the November election,
President-elect Donald Trump, and the continued bloodshed in Syria on
Friday at his ...
Obama Likely to Field Questions on Russia, Syria and Donald Trump
Cyberattacks, bloodshed in Aleppo and the president-elect are expected to dominate year-end news conference
ENLARGE
U.S. President Barack Obama, shown on Wednesday, is scheduled to give his year-end news conference Friday afternoon.
Photo:
yuri gripas/Reuters
Mr. Obama is also likely to be asked about China’s capture of an American vessel’s underwater survey drones in the South China Sea. According to a U.S. defense official, a Chinese navy vessel that was shadowing a U.S. oceanographic survey ship left the area with the drone, a move that could increase tensions between the two countries in and around the South China Sea.
Just hours before Mr. Obama was scheduled to take questions from reporters, an agreement to evacuate civilians from the last rebel-held neighborhoods in the Syrian city of Aleppo broke down.
The scenes coming out of Aleppo, where civilians have been under near-constant siege, have become graphic symbols of Mr. Obama’s failure to resolve the conflict in Syria. His administration has accused the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, as well as Iran and Russia of committing war crimes against Syrians, but the president has been unable to reach a lasting cease-fire or political resolution with Moscow, which has allied with the Assad regime, to end the six-year civil war.
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Donald Trump has begun toning down his rhetoric at rallies since the election as he looks to resolve tensions in his new administration.
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As a candidate Donald Trump backed the use of ethanol and other biofuels in gasoline, but his EPA pick opposes those federal rules, setting up high-stakes jockeying across several industries.
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The nomination of pro-settlement lawyer David Friedman as the Trump’s administration’s new envoy to Israel is winning praise from some in Israel but concern advocates of a two-state solution.
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Incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus this week said Republicans would “have a small tax reform package, and then a bigger tax reform package at the end of April.” That’s an exceptionally aggressive schedule. Here’s why the first major rewrite of the U.S. tax system since 1986 won’t be on the fast track.
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President-elect Donald Trump struck a conciliatory tone while meeting with prominent tech executives at Trump Tower, telling the Silicon Valley leaders that his goal is 'to help you folks do well.'
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President-elect Donald Trump struck a conciliatory tone while meeting with prominent tech executives at Trump Tower, telling the Silicon Valley leaders that his goal is 'to help you folks do well.'
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As experts push Trump to divorce himself from his businesses, his heavy hand in his children’s careers show that will be problematic.
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As experts push Trump to divorce himself from his businesses, his heavy hand in his children’s careers show that will be problematic.
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Donald Trump has rapidly assembled a dozen picks for his cabinet, but there are signs some choices haven’t been rigorously vetted and might face tough questions during Senate confirmation hearings.
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Donald Trump has rapidly assembled a dozen picks for his cabinet, but there are signs some choices haven’t been rigorously vetted and might face tough questions during Senate confirmation hearings.
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Trump’s top personnel picks stand to delay paying tens of millions of dollars in personal taxes on investment gains when they take their posts, according to WSJ analysis.
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Trump’s top personnel picks stand to delay paying tens of millions of dollars in personal taxes on investment gains when they take their posts, according to WSJ analysis.
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House Democrats say an assessment by a federal agency shows that the president-elect would need to divest his financial interest in his recently opened hotel in Washington.
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House Democrats say an assessment by a federal agency shows that the president-elect would need to divest his financial interest in his recently opened hotel in Washington.
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Donald Trump has picked Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, choosing a harsh critic of the agency to take its helm.
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Donald Trump has picked Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, choosing a harsh critic of the agency to take its helm.
THE TRUMP TRANSITION
Russia is occupying a central role in the final weeks of Mr. Obama’s presidency, not only over the crisis in Syria but also over allegations of cyberattacks aimed at influencing the election.
Mr. Obama, who has ordered the completion of a review of cyberattacks allegedly aimed at U.S. elections before he leaves office on Jan. 20, is likely to face questions about why his administration didn’t act earlier on evidence of Russian intrusions.
Mr. Obama vowed Thursday to retaliate, telling National Public Radio: “I think there is no doubt that when any foreign government tries to impact the integrity of our elections that we need to take action, and we will at a time and a place of our own choosing.”
He said some parts of the U.S. response may be public and explicit while others may not. “But Mr. Putin is well aware of my feelings about this, because I spoke to him directly about it,” Mr. Obama said.
The conclusion by the Central Intelligence Agency that Russian hackers who work for that country’s government stole emails from Democrats to harm Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and help Mr. Trump’s has opened a new rift between the White House and the president-elect.
Messrs. Obama and Trump have taken much softer tones with each other since the election and the White House largely has avoided criticizing the president-elect. But the two sides have shown a public rift in recent days after Mr. Trump called the U.S. intelligence assessment about Russian cyberattacks “ridiculous” and questioned whether it could be believed.
Mr. Obama’s news conference caps a year where he saw some of his top goals falter, including a new trade pact with Asia and Mrs. Clinton’s election to succeed him.
He could face questions about the transition to a Trump administration, his successor’s confrontational approach to China, the vulnerability of his legacy, and some of the goals he hasn’t achieved, such as closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Afterward, Mr. Obama departs for Hawaii for a two-week family vacation over the holidays.
Write to Carol E. Lee at carol.lee@wsj.com and Peter Nicholas at peter.nicholas@wsj.com
