[ cheers applause ] this is "nightline." tonight, transition of power. mr. trump goes to washington. >> mr. president, it was a great honor being with you. >> curtesy and respect on capitol hill as well, but will it last? how quickly could the president-elect and gop leaders undo president obama's signature achievemen achievements? plus, the law and order candidate, donald trump entering the presidency with dozens of pending lawsuits against him or his company including accusations of fraud. >> success, it's going to happen to you. >> abc's brian ross investigates. model first lady, melania trump sharing tea with the first lady

at the white house, about to become the second foreign born first lady in the white house. her journey to 1600 pennsylvania avenue. how her homeland is celebrating her fairy tale ending, but, first, the nightline 5. >> simulation initiated. >> number one, you said you wanted to feel better about your cereal. >> number one, general mills big g cereals hear you. that's why we say "yes" to whole grains as our first ingredient. and "no way" to high fructose corn syrup. ♪

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good evening, thank you for joining us. tonight, the peaceful transfer of power now underway. after months of hostility towards one another, donald trump and president obama met face-to-face at the white house today, and the encounter was awkward, yet surprisingly polite. >> reporter: a historic handshake, former adversaries, now members of the world's most exclusive club. together today in the oval office forging a path for america's future. >> my number one priority in the coming two months is to try to facilitate a transition that ensures our president-elect is successful. >> i very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future including counsel. explaining some of the difficulties, some of the high flying assets, and some of the

really great things that have been achieved. >> reporter: change has already come to washington. >> i think president obama has been the most ignorant president in our history. >> donald trump is uniquely unqualified to be our chief executive. >> reporter: john carl who was in the room, this was not a typical meet and greet. >> reporter: the day nobody, most people, ever thought would come. donald trump sitting down with barack obama in the oval office, an incoming president and outgoing president. >> reporter: for years, trump doubted obama was born in the country. >> why not show the birth certificate. >> donald trump is here tonight. >> reporter: obama acting like the very idea of a trump presidency was a joke. >> say what you will about mr. trump. he certainly would bring some change to the white house.

>> reporter: now it's trump who gets the last laugh. >> president-elect of the united states of america, donald trump. >> reporter: his agenda for the first hundred days includes undoing much of what obama accomplished. >> donald trump wants to repeal and replace obamacare starting on day one. his supporters expect it, but it is quite difficult to do. they need a plan to replace it, and they need to also figure out what they would do with all the people they need health insurance through obamacare. >> reporter: easier said than down. today was melania trump's first ever trip to the white house. first time meeting michelle obama too. first lady whose inspiring convention speech in 2008 -- >> because we want our children and our children in this nation to know -- >> because we want our children in this nation to know -- >> reporter: clearly inspired the next first lady's speech in 2016. >> that the only limit to the

height of your achievement is the reach of your dreams and willingness to work hard for them. >> that the only limit to your achievements is the strength of your dreams and your willingness to work for them. >> reporter: out on the campaign trail, michelle obama did not color punches about donald trump. >> i can't believe i'm saying that a candidate for president of the united states has brag about sexually assaulting women. >> reporter: so it must have been awkward for them too. we're told they had a tour, sat for tea, talked about what it's like to raise children in the white house, but this is not any ordinary meeting. >> reporter: maybe not, but trump was happy tweeting a fantastic day, really good meeting. great chemistry. melania liked mrs. o a lot. it was a good day starting with the presidential send off including a water cannon salute

as mr. trump made his way to washington. he had lunch with paul ryan and mike pence at the capitol hill club followed by a meeting in the speaker's capitol hill office. ryan pointed out the spot where president-elect trump will take the oath of office in two month's time. one of the first orders of business? forming a cabinet. trump transition team already launched a website, help wanted. >> we need donald trump as president of the united states. >> reporter: some of the jobs expected to go to his inner circle like rudy, newt gingrich, chris christie, and sarah palin. today rudy left open the possibility trump will make good on his campaign vow to seek criminal charges against hillary clinton. cnn, he did not chapter "lock her up," but didn't rule it out either. >> it's a tough one to be begin a lot of thought, not an off the cuff answer. the equal administration of

justice is one of the most important principles. >> reporter: as trump gets to know washington, we're getting to know a bit more about the voters who sent him there. among them, many of the folks at chica chick's diner in scranton, pennsylvania. working class voters. >> did you vote for or against? >> four. i have four granddaughters, i want them to be in a good world. >> reporter: this blue collar crowd came through for bill clinton all those years ago. they helped hillary, too, when she ran against barack obama, but now they turned on her for a variety of reasons. >> i think one big reason was the fact she was a woman, and i think the office of the presidency should be in a man. >> reporter: really? >> the woman shouldn't be president. >> i'm not sure about that either. even though i am a woman. >> reporter: what? in 2016, you feel that way? >> i feel that way. >> reporter: even though hillary clinton has roots in scranton,

her dad born her, her grandfather worked at the old lace factory, one the biggest employer, a plant abruptly shuddered in 2002. most of the textile jobs shipped overseas. trump courted these voters, including a huge rally the night before the election. >> they say we're tied in pennsylvania. i don't think so. >> reporter: last time hillary clinton was in scranton was mid-august, more than two months ago. >> she comes every four years, when she's she's running for something. that's the only time she comes here. you know, her father's buried over in that cemetery, there's not a flower on the grave. >> reporter: it's not just white voters. especially white men who clenched it for trump. he also got support from places you might not expect. >> i cast my ballot where my conscious took me. >> reporter: author and co-founder of the muslim reform movement writing an opt-ed in the washington post about

silently voting for trump. >> he, like so many of us, speaks what he believes, and sometimes it's alarming. sometimes it's very inappropriate. >> reporter: this mom from northern virginia had concerns about affordable health care and isis. >> the issue i care about is islamic extremism was going to be better decided with donald trump's approach. >> reporter: today as that awkward oval office visit wound down -- >> i very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future including counsel. >> reporter: the piece of advice? don't feel it's absolutely necessary to indulge the hungry media crowds. >> this is good rule. don't answer the questions. >> it's always the last one. >> reporter: understandable, really. >> come on, guys. let's go. >> very good man. very good man. >> thank you, appreciate it. >> reporter: everyone's more

than a little skeptical how long the spirit will last. i'm david wright for "nightline" in pennsylvania. up next, donald trump still caught in a tangled web of lawsuits and business deals. abc's brian ross invest gaits. i struggle with bipolar depression, and it's tough. it leaves me feeling sad and empty. it makes it hard to be there for the people i love. so i talked to my doctor and she prescribed latuda. there are many forms of depression. latuda is fda approved to treat bipolar depression which is different from other types of depression. in clinical studies, once-a-day latuda was proven effective for many people with bipolar depression. latuda is not for everyone. call your doctor about unusual mood changes, behaviors, or suicidal thoughts. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. elderly dementia patients on latuda have an

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you know, there's always a cost to doing business when electing a businessman for president, for example. in addition to conflict of interest issues, there's dozens of pending lawsuits against

trump or trump enterprises meaning our president could find himself under oath in a courtroom. brian ross investigates. >> reporter: even after he takes the oath of office to become president, donald trump could find himself under oath in dozens of lawsuits. he or his company are being sued in cases involving among other things, fraud, sexual harassment, and failure to pay his bills. >> there's no immunity from suit of things that happened before. >> reporter: among the most serious and pressing of the cases are three lawsuits over trump university. >> success, it's going to happen to you. >> reporter: students who paid the $35,000 fee claim he committed fraud when he said he'd help make them rich and personally selected the faculty. >> these are all people hand picked by me. >> reporter: the instructors went further according to students. >> they promised me i would be one of the insiders, and that

whenever trump put up a ko condominium, we had first crack of getting into it. >> reporter: he just got a picture of himself next to a life size poster of the billionaire. >> he took my self-respect and embarrassed me. >> reporter: the actual trial is set to begin at the end of the month, and today, while mr. trump was at the white house, his lawyers were at the federal courthouse with the hearing with the presiding judge, the same judge trump accused of bias in the campaign because he's a mexican heritage. >> he's a hater. his name is gonzalegonzalez, an not doing the right thing. >> reporter: and during the campaign, the famous candidate promised lawsuits against the women who claim he had sexually assaulted them. >> i stood up, and he came to me and started kissing me over the

mouth as he was pulling me towards him. >> reporte >> all of these liars will be sued after the election is over. >> reporter: their lawyer says bring it on. >> whether the president of the united states decides that he wants to spend his time in lawsuits or serving the american people as president of the united states is a question that only mr. trump can answer. if, in fact, he carries out his threat and sues them, then i will be recommend to my clients that they file a lawsuit, a cross complaint against mr. trump alleging defamation. >> reporter: lawyers who dealt with trump over the years say he's never. shy about going to court. >> he comes out of new york real estate. that's a rough elbow, sharp elbows walk of life when people sue and get sued all the time. he is not hesitant about going

to the courts and about standing up for what he thinks is due legal protection, but he's not running businesses anymore. he's going to be president of the united states. >> reporter: but trump's business interests may create conflict for the soon-to-be president. in the midst of the campaign, he took time off to promote his brand with a trip to the golf course in scotland and later opening a new hotel in washington, but nothing raises more questions than his ties to russian investors. with this beauty pageant and buildings, trump has been promoting himself to russians for years traveling to moscow and other former soviet states with his children. daughter ivanka posted this on social media pushing the brand. >> i'm here. >>. >> reporter: yet, as can downtown, we minimized business connections to russia.

as in this interview. >> will i sell condos to russians on occasion? probably, but i have no relationship to russia. >> reporter: the head of a russian-american chamber of congress who says he worked on trump licensed projects told abc news there were extensive connections. >> the level of business in moscow, hundreds of millions of dollars that he received as a result of interaction with russian businessmen. >> hundreds of millions of dollars from russian businesses? >> correct. >> reporter: trump made millions, selling moscow rights for the miss universe pageant. with a man the fbi considers a top russian mafia figure invited into the vip section. the developer of a license hotel project in trap toe is a russian billionaire. and russian language promotional videos attracted hundreds of wealthy russians to buy condos in trump licensed projects in florida until u.s. sanctions cut off the flow.

during the campaign, trump said he was open to lifting those sanctions. >> we'll look at that, yeah. go ahead. >> so he likes russia because there's money to be made there? >> he likes russia because he like beautiful russian ladies and talking to them of course, and that e he likes to be able to make lots of money with russia, yes, correct. >> reporter: during the campaign, trump said there was no conflict in dealing with russia because his children would run his business in a blind trust. >> he is still going to know what the businesses are? >> we're not going to discuss this. it doesn't matter. trust me. >> reporter: a leading republican ethics lawyer says that does not solve the problem at all. >> well, i don't see how you have a blind trust when you know what's in the blind trust. the appearance is that a foreign government or foreign organization has influence over the president of the united states. >> reporter: for trump now, the return to new york tonight from the visit of the white house, it's a question of priorities, dealing with international investors versus dealing with

international leaders. time consuming lawsuits versus time running the country. for nightline, brian ross, abc news, new york. when we come back, melania trump revealing what kind of first lady she'll be. abc news "nightline" brougts to you by macy's. with another new flavor you never saw coming... grilled, glazed korean bbq shrimp.

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and finally tonight, if things had gone a little differently, bill clinton would have been first gentleman, but instead, we have an unexpected first lady with an unlikely background. with a new president comes a new first lady. >> an incredible woman, melania trump. >> sitting down with mrs. obama for tea and a tour of the white house. on january 20th, michelle passes the torch to the former model, the first foreign born first lady seance john adams' wife. raised in this town, locals celebrated by raising american

flags. ♪ t she was not your ordinary girl. her alleged former girlfriend -- >> she was not a typical girl. very, very classy. >> reporter: asked in 1999 when trump considered a run for official, what kind of first lady she would be, replying, i would be traditional like betty ford or kennedy. despite the foreshadowing, she's taken a backseat in the campaign only seen a few times. >> isn't he the best? >> reporter: saying she's busy being a mother. >> i support my husband 100%, but we have a 9-year-old son together, and i'm raising him. >> reporter: just last week, finally giving the world a glimpse of what her future cause as first lady may be. >> we have to find a better way to talk to each other.

>> cyber bullying. >> it's bad out there, and children get hurt. >> a modern cause for any mom, first and foremost. thank you for watching, and as always woour online at abcnews.com and our nightline facebook page. good night, america.

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