Why Biden’s transition may be more difficult than those around him hoped
Reality is setting in among President-elect Joe Biden’s allies that the transition leading up to his Jan. 20 inauguration may be more difficult than many inside Biden-world had assumed, two officials said Monday, with a legal fight now a possibility.
Biden told his allies over the weekend that he wanted to give Republicans — and President Trump — a little time to accept the results of the election.
But the Trump-appointed General Services Administration administrator, Emily W. Murphy, whose job is to declare that there is a president-elect — a move that triggers the transition process — has not yet made that declaration. And the GSA issued a statement Monday inaccurately comparing Biden’s win to the George W. Bush vs. Al Gore election of 2000, in which the outcome at this stage was in doubt.
The statement triggered worry in Biden’s camp that it is facing a fight to get federal agencies to accept the legitimacy of the outcome of the 2020 election.
Biden allies will start escalating their rhetoric on the matter, making the case for the election’s legitimacy in television interviews and more, the officials said.
In a call with reporters Monday night, Biden transition officials would not rule out legal action against the GSA to try to force the beginning of the transition process, and said they have a “number of options.”
