The bane and perils of Twitter diplomacy from the White House

The transition from one American president to another is usually more complex - even chaotic - behind the scenes than what is apparent: a smooth transfer of power, with no down time, despite thousands of roles to fill in the administration.

Things get even more perplexing when the incoming president - like in the case of Donald Trump - is a political outsider with no experience in public policymaking and whose views on major domestic and foreign policy issues lack coherence, beyond their populist overtones and the slogan "America First" that they seem to advance.

 Adding to the confusion is the sense that Mr Trump's political and economic advisers and Cabinet nominees seem to be all over the place when it comes to major policy issues, like the future of the nation's military alliances or its commitment to take action on climate change. And making it even more difficult to deconstruct the long-term policy agenda of the new administration is the tendency by the new White House occupant to use his Twitter account to deliver what sometimes read as disjointed and snappy comments. Issues range from his distaste of the way that Arnold Schwarzenegger has been handling The Apprentice, the reality TV show, and the size of the crowds on the National Mall during his Inaugural Address (which no one really cares about) to the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) and Washington's geo-strategic and geo-economic relationship with Beijing (that everyone cares about).