WASHINGTON — For a man who loves the spotlight, Donald Trump has been noticeably out of sight since his triumph in last week’s presidential election.

There were no rallies, no press conferences, no speeches. Instead, Trump has spent most of his first week as president-elect behind closed doors at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida, where he works the phones, reconnects with foreign leaders and builds his new administration.

Trump is hardly in isolation. He is surrounded by advisors, friends and paying members of his club, who give him advice when selecting people for the highest positions in government. Elon Muskthe world’s richest man, whose companies have billions of dollars in federal contracts, has been a constant presence. Some see Musk as the second most influential figure in Trump’s immediate orbit after his campaign manager turned chief of staff, Susie Wiles.

“Very productive day at work by the transition team,” Musk posted on X, his social media company, Monday evening.

Trump is expected to return to the public on Wednesday, when he’s going to the White House meet the president Joe Biden and visits the Capitol to consult with House Speaker Mike Johnson. Overall, Trump is setting the stage for his second presidency at a much faster pace than his first.

This is not to say that the private process is without the cutthroat atmosphere that Trump has long fostered within his orbit. A former White House official, still close to Trump, compared the situation at Mar-a-Lago to the drama series Game of Thrones, and another former Trump official also described a chaotic race for jobs. Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal dynamics.

Eight years ago, when Trump won a resounding victory over Hillary Clinton, he didn’t stay out of sight for long. He visited President Barack Obama at the White House two days after the election, then met with Republican leaders at the Capitol.

“We are going to act very strongly on immigration,” he said at the time. “We will act very strongly on health care. And we are looking for jobs. Jobs in the big leagues.

At the time in New York, Trump Tower was being transformed into the set for a new political reality show. The media camped out in the lobby of Trump’s namesake skyscraper to see who was coming and going. Sometimes Trump would take the elevator to give an update or show off a guest.

In one notable moment in December, the rapper then known as Kanye West appeared with Trump, who said the two had been “friends for a long time.” When asked what they discussed, Trump replied: “Life. We talked about life.” Trump later has been the subject of strong criticism in 2022 for having dinner with Ye and a white nationalist Holocaust denier.

Eight years ago, Trump also held transition meetings in New Jersey, at his Bedminster golf course, where the media gathered for several days for a parade of candidates in front of the assembled cameras.

Some, like future Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, found themselves with job offers. Others, like Mitt Romney, have not. After Romney’s meeting, the two men walked out together and shook hands next to an American flag. Trump gave a quick thumbs up and said “everything went well.”

The current situation is very different. There is no public access to Mar-a-Lago, which appears to be under even tighter security than in the aftermath of the two assassination attempts on Trump.

The traffic circle in front of the property’s entrance is completely barricaded and vehicles from the Beach County Sheriff’s Office and Secret Service have been seen standing guard, along with unmarked police cars, black vans and a golf cart. golf course on a recent afternoon.

Instead, Trump announced his choices in statements and posts on his Truth Social site, while his whereabouts were captured on social media by club members and their guests, who, as always, almost unlimited access.

In one video, he is seen dancing to “YMCA” on the club’s crowded terrace. In another, he and his wife, Melania, are cheered as they arrive for dinner. They were also spotted sitting together at a table with Musk.

Trump is known to have only left Mar-a-Lago once since the election, to visit another of his properties. On Sunday he returned to his neighboring golf course – the same course where an eagle-eyed Secret Service agent spotted the barrel of a gun pointed through the property fence, foiling a possible shootout – to play with his teenage granddaughter, Kai.

“Sundays with Grandpa,” she posted on Instagram. Other photos from that day show Trump in a golf cart, wearing a white golf shirt, then sitting in a burgundy leather chair in the club’s restaurant next to Kai while someone leans in for a conversation.