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Donald Trump has not only failed to invite Joe Biden to a talk in the Oval Office as usual, but he is blocking the Democrat from access to facilities, funding and expertise that usually comes in a package ready to help the incoming leader. .
US President Donald Trump speaks in the White House meeting room on November 5, 2020 in Washington, DC. Image: AFP
WASHINGTON – A week after losing the U.S. election, President Donald Trump remained locked in the White House on Tuesday, pushing an alternate reality that he is about to win and blocking Democrat Joe Biden’s ability to prepare for the transition.
“WE WILL WIN!” the Republican president tweeted, adding: “WE ARE MAKING GREAT PROGRESS. RESULTS BEGIN TO COME IN NEXT WEEK. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
WE ARE MAKING GREAT PROGRESS. THE RESULTS BEGIN TO ARRIVE NEXT WEEK MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 10, 2020
BE OBSERVING THE MASSIVE ABUSE OF TICKET COUNTING AND, LIKE THE EARLY VACCINE, REMEMBER I TOLD YOU!
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 10, 2020
The message concerned Trump’s unprecedented decision to have an American president contest a lost election, refusing to give in to his opponent and mounting a series of flimsy court challenges in states where Biden won.
Several lawsuits have been dropped almost immediately, and the rest clearly have no chance of nullifying Biden’s rare but compelling victories in various states.
Trump’s attempt to cling to power has become all-consuming for the man who often publicly mocks his rivals as “losers.”
Since Election Day on November 3, he has made few public appearances and appears to have neglected normal presidential duties.
His only known activities outside the White House have been playing golf twice over the weekend, after the results came in.
Typically, routine presidential intelligence briefings have been off the daily schedule. He has not mentioned the dramatic spike in the COVID-19 pandemic across the country.
And his once almost daily press conferences, Fox News interviews, or impromptu question-and-answer sessions with White House reporters have all sold out.
Instead, Trump has spent much of his time tweeting, mostly about what he says is the stolen election.
He sometimes refers to the supportive comments of right-wing anchors on Fox News, tweeting quotes from shows on the network’s daily programming.
Trump’s only significant presidential action has been the abrupt firing of Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Monday, which he announced on Twitter.
TRANSITION LOCKED
Exactly four years ago on Tuesday, Trump had just won his surprise victory over Hillary Clinton and toured the White House for the first time as the guest of outgoing Democratic President Barack Obama.
That courtesy to presidents-elect is an old tradition, highlighting the nation’s almost sacred respect for the peaceful transfer of power.
Trump, who took office promising to change institutions and what he called “the deep state,” is now breaking another custom.
Not only has he failed to invite Biden to a talk in the Oval Office, but he is blocking the Democrat’s access to the facilities, funding and expertise that usually comes in a ready-made package to help the incoming leader.
The release of this transition aid is controlled by the Director of the General Services Administration, Emily Murphy, who was appointed by Trump.
Biden, who won with a record number of votes but acknowledges that nearly half of the electorate supported Trump, is apparently choosing to ignore the chaos.
He rarely even mentions Trump, Biden has established a coronavirus task force and delivered his latest political speech on Tuesday, this time on the fate of the Obamacare health care plan that Trump is asking the Supreme Court to dismantle.
REPUBLICANS BACK TO TRUMP
Washington is rife with speculation about who, if anyone, in Trump’s inner circle will ultimately persuade him to leave.
Former President George W. Bush, the only living Republican former president, congratulated Biden on his victory, but it is an outlier in a party dominated by the still very popular Trump.
On Monday, the Republican leader in Congress, Sen. Mitch McConnell, said Trump was “100% within his rights” to challenge the election in court.
It’s unclear how long that level of support will last, or even how long Trump will want to stick with the presidency.
None of the lawsuits appear to have the potential to change the outcome of the voting and even a planned recount in Georgia, or anywhere else, is unlikely to change fundamental mathematics.
But Trump added a potential new weapon to his crusade against the results on Monday when his attorney general, Bill Barr, agreed to authorize investigations into “specific allegations” of fraud.
Barr added a warning that “misleading, speculative, fanciful or implausible claims should not be a basis for initiating federal investigations.”
However, Barr’s unusual intervention in the dispute raised concerns that Trump will go even further in his efforts. The Justice Department’s top election crimes prosecutor, Richard Pilger, resigned in protest.
Biden’s inauguration is January 20, 71 days away.
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