“Democrats are calling on a key government agency to sign off on President-elect Joe Biden’s victory and aid in the mammoth task of transitioning between presidents before Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration. The General Services Administration, headed by Trump appointee Emily Murphy, has resisted signing the paperwork that would give Biden and his team access to millions of dollars in transitions funds, as well as official access to government officials and equipment to prepare the incoming administration, according to The Washington Post. Until Murphy formally ascertains that Biden has won the election, the former vice president cannot access government funds or communicate with federal agencies. Biden’s team, 예를 들어, cannot receive the same intelligence briefings as Trump because of the GSA’s refusal to sign off on the election results. Acknowledging Biden’s victory would also grant his team access to $9.9 million for salaries and spending up to the inauguration. “We hope you will recognize that every hour between now and January 20, 2021 is critical for the transition team’s preparations for taking on the multiple, pressing challenges our nation faces,” Maryland Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen, who serve on committees overseeing the agency, wrote in a letter addressed to Murphy on Monday. “In the spirit of national unity and common purpose in addressing the needs of the American people, we request that you extend the necessary funding, resources, and assistance to the transition team upon their request and without delay,” the senators added. The letter cited the GSA’s obligation under the Presidential Transition Act of 1963, which promotes the orderly transfer of executive power between presidents. The standoff between the GSA and the Biden team is unlikely to end soon. Trump continues to refuse to concede the election to Biden by citing baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. Top Republicans ― including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) ― are standing with him. A spokesperson for the GSA told Politico on Monday that the agency’s position on the matter is unchanged. “An ascertainment has not yet been made,” the spokesperson said. Some GOP senators said on Monday that it was time to begin the transition process, even as they acknowledged Trump had a right to contest results in court, no matter how unlikely such an effort would prove at changing the result. “There’s a very likely prospect that there will be a change in administration and for the purposes of a smooth transition and national security, we have a national interest in the transition proceeding as rapidly as can be done,” Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who has congratulated Biden on his win, told HuffPost on Monday. But Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), the chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, which handles election matters, downplayed the impact of a delayed election certification by the federal government. “Until just a few years ago, there was no federal money for the transition. Twenty years ago, 조지 여. Bush didn’t have any money for the transition until almost January,” Blunt told HuffPost. “I don’t think the transition is as hinged on the federal government stepping up and saying ‘we’re going to start paying for everything today’ as it is on knowing what you’re doing.” Read Cardin and Van Hollen’s letter below.
Trump’s Twitter Tantrum, Safety Net Cuts And Biden Transition: Views From HuffPost Readers
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["HuffPost Illustration In a recent poll, one of HuffPost members’ top-requested features was a roundup of reader comments. Every week, HuffPost editors read your comments on our top stories and highlight those that c...
Murkowski Says It’s ‘Time’ To Begin Biden Transition, Blasts Trump For Election Attacks
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["그것의. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said Sunday that it’s time for President Donald Trump to begin the official transition process before President-elect Joe Biden assumes office in January, lambasting the Trump administ...
Head Of Government Agency Under Pressure To Let Biden Transition Proceed
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["워싱턴 (AP) — The head of an obscure federal agency that is holding up the presidential transition knew well before Election Day that she might soon have a messy situation on her hands. Before Nov. 3, Emily Murp...
Joe Biden Says ‘More People May Die’ If Trump Keeps Obstructing Transition
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["President-elect Joe Biden said Monday that the biggest threat posed by President Donald Trump’s refusal to cooperate with Biden’s transition team is that “more people may die” if he can’t access the outgoing adminis...
Presidential Transition And Fraud Allegations: Views from HuffPost Readers
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["HuffPost Illustration In a recent poll, one of HuffPost members’ top-requested features was a roundup of reader comments. Every week, HuffPost editors read your comments on our top stories and highlight those that c...
Obama’s New Book Reveals Genuine Praise For George W. Bush’s Transition Team
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["Former President Barack Obama shared his appreciation for how predecessor George W. Bush worked to help him begin the job as U.S. leader in his upcoming book “A Promised Land.” Obama, the 44th U.S. president, prais...
Presidential Election ‘Most Secure’ In History, Top Security Experts At DHS Say
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["NS 2020 presidential election was the “most secure in American history,” a group of top security and election officials at the Department of Homeland Security wrote Thursday, despite the White House’s ongoing lies ...
Trump’s Transition Chaos Is A National Security Nightmare
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["President Donald Trump remains commander in chief for only more 10 weeks, until President-elect Joe Biden takes office in January. But during that time, Trump is in a position to make destabilizing foreign policy ch...