That didn’t last long.
After US Senator Elizabeth Warren took a more conciliatory tone while talking about Donald Trump immediately following his election, she railed against the president-elect this week over his transition team.
The senator from Massachusetts said Tuesday that she has sent Trump a letter demanding that he remove “special interest lobbyists, Wall Street bankers, and industry insiders” from his transition team, according to a statement sent to the Globe.
“You made numerous promises to the American people in your election campaign, none bigger than the promise to ‘drain the swamp’ of Washington D.C. special interests rigged against the middle class,” Warren said she wrote to Trump. “The decisions you make with your transition team will shape the next four years of this nation. They will also reflect the strength of your character and your ability to truly lead — not just follow the marching orders of the special interests and Wall Street bankers you purportedly oppose.”
Warren said she has asked Trump to remove the lobbyists and Wall Street insiders from his team and turn instead to “advisors who will fight for the interests of the American people.”
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“Should you refuse, I will oppose you, every step of the way, for the next four years,” Warren said she wrote to Trump. “I will champion the millions of Americans you will fail to protect. I will track your every move, and I will remind Americans, every day, of the actions you take that fail them. And I will not be the only one watching. The millions of Americans who voted for you — and the millions who didn’t — will all be watching you.”
However, the Massachusetts Republican Party issued a statement that called Warren’s letter “hypocritical” and “silly.”
“This silly move is not only the height of hypocrisy, given the fact that Senator Warren takes thousands of dollars from Wall Street types, but it is downright reckless,” said MassGOP Chairman Kirsten Hughes in the statement. “Secretary Clinton and President Obama have joined President-elect Trump in calls for unity but Warren’s laughable letter is a weak attempt to score cheap points for herself while undermining efforts to unify the country.”
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The group also said Warren has “gladly taken campaign contributions” from Wall Street executives and lobbyists, and until she returns that money, her letter “is not worth the paper it was printed on.”
During a talk at the Wall Street Journal CEO Council on Tuesday, Warren also railed against the choice of appointing Stephen Bannon to a key White House role.
“This is a man who has white supremacist ties, I mean, that’s what he does; this is a man who told his ex-wife he didn’t want his children going to school with Jews. . . This is a man who says, by his very presence, that this is a White House that will embrace bigotry.
“Bigotry is bad for business,” Warren continued. “Bigotry is not what your employees expect. Bigotry is not what your customers expect. And if that’s the direction this administration goes, that creates a real problem for everybody.”
Warren also said that she didn’t think “it’s possible to stand on the sidelines and be quiet about this.”
Warren also sent out several tweets with her thoughts late Tuesday afternoon.
.@realDonaldTrump, you promised the American people you’d #draintheswamp of lobbyists & insiders rigging the system for the rich & powerful.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) November 15, 2016
You already broke your promise, @realDonaldTrump. You stacked your transition team with Wall Street elites, insiders & lobbyists.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) November 15, 2016
Keeping these lobbyists & insiders on your team sends a clear message, @realDonaldTrump: your campaign was a giant con.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) November 15, 2016
Today I told a room full of CEOs at the #WSJCEOCouncil: Nobody wants them to keep running the gov for themselves. https://t.co/PhyLkxE4dn
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) November 15, 2016
And I sent a letter to @realDonaldTrump raising my concerns about the insiders running his transition team: https://t.co/f9cRhIci8l
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) November 15, 2016
#draintheswamp on your team, @realDonaldTrump. The American people demanded changes, & we’re watching you every step of the way.
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) November 15, 2016
Last Thursday, Warren delivered a speech to the AFL-CIO in which she pledged to work with Trump to build an economy that works for everyone while vowing to fight him if the vitriol of his candidacy takes root in his presidency. She reiterated those points again on MSNBC Thursday night during an interview with Rachel Maddow.
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Warren’s sharp words aren’t just limited to Republicans. On Monday, Warren said Democrats didn’t go far enough with the Affordable Care Act and the 2009 economic stimulus package.
Here’s the full letter Warren said she sent to Trump: