North Carolina's outgoing Republican Gov. Pat McCrory was briefly spotted in Trump Tower in New York City on Wednesday morning, but he gave no public indication about his meeting with President-elect Donald Trump.
The meeting _ which was announced Tuesday by Trump's transition team _ came just two days after McCrory conceded to Democrat Roy Cooper, North Carolina's attorney general, in the state's gubernatorial race. McClatchy has made several unsuccessful attempts to reach McCrory's office since the meeting with Trump was announced.
By visiting Trump on Wednesday, McCrory became the latest politician at the center of speculation over whether he'll land a job in the new administration. In total, Trump's transition team says, the president-elect has already met with more than 80 people at Trump Tower since Nov. 8.
McCrory entered Trump Tower just after 10 a.m. Wednesday. The night before, he'd attended a rally and spent time with Trump in Fayetteville, N.C., during a stop on the president-elect's nationwide "Thank You" tour.
Just before McCrory's arrival, Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Treasury, Steve Mnuchin, entered the building. Also at Trump Tower around the same time were Eric Trump and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, a Democrat and President Barack Obama's former chief of staff.
As McCrory and Trump were sitting down to talk Wednesday, transition team officials told reporters in a conference call that the 60-year-old, one-term governor's track record on education and regulatory reforms had caught Trump's attention. Transition officials said McCrory had succeeded in North Carolina in eliminating burdensome regulations to promote economic growth and job creation.
They also pointed to McCrory's background on energy issues, mentioning he had opened North Carolina up to fracking through the Energy Modernization Act in 2014. McCrory's private-sector experience includes a long career at Duke Energy. He also served on the Charlotte City Council and as the city's mayor for 14 years.
"There is a very good rapport between the president-elect and Governor McCrory," Trump spokesman Jason Miller told reporters Wednesday morning. "Governor McCrory is someone who the president-elect had the chance to get to know pretty well on the campaign trail this year."
Miller called McCrory "someone who's viewed as a reformer" and "a very solutions-oriented leader."
"Obviously (he is) someone who has a number of good ideas on how we should form this administration, and who is talented in his own right as well," Miller said.
Some of Trump's recent meetings have been with allies and potential Cabinet picks to give the president-elect advice or to meet for job interviews. In the month since the presidential election, Trump has been meeting with a steady stream of lawmakers, business leaders, military leaders and media figures in his 58th-floor triplex in Trump Tower.
(c)2016 McClatchy Washington Bureau
