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November 23, 2020 – 06:57 pm
Newsroom of El País – AFP
Although he has not officially recognized the defeat, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, took the first step towards the transition process between his administration and the incoming one, of Joe Biden.
Just when Biden moved with the announcements of key positions for his government, which begins on January 20, the outgoing president agreed to start the transition process, which involves access to documents for the new administration.
“I want to thank Emily Murphy, from the GSA -General Services Administration-, for her steadfast dedication and loyalty to our country. She has been harassed, threatened and abused, and I do not want this to happen to her, her family or employees of GSA, “wrote the current president this Monday on his Twitter account.
Then, he stressed that the case that his lawyers are advancing for an alleged electoral fraud “continues with FORCE, we will continue with the battle and I believe that we are going to win. However, in the best interest of our country, I recommend that Emily and her team do whatever it takes with regards to initial protocols, and I’ve told my team to do the same. “
The foregoing confirms information revealed on Monday by CNN, in which it assured that the GSA had sent a letter to Biden’s team in which it informed that it was ready to begin the formal transition process.
This is the first step taken by the Trump administration in the process of acknowledging defeat in the past elections, although the current US president continues his fight in court, arguing that there was fraud in the electoral process.
Trump’s allegations, however, have so far not borne fruit. In fact, this Monday his aspirations suffered a severe setback after the state of Michigan certified the victory in that state for Joe Biden and reduced the margin of action for the current president.
… fight, and I believe we will prevail! However, in the best interest of our country, I recommend that Emily and her team do whatever it takes regarding the initial protocols, and I have told my team to do the same.
– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 23, 2020
Biden advances in the conformation of his Cabinet
Biden celebrated the step taken, describing it as crucial to a “peaceful transfer of power” after weeks of unprecedented tension in the United States.
The veteran Democratic politician announced on Monday his appointments to diplomacy and national security, a team made up mostly of veterans of the Barack Obama administration who signal a return to traditional US foreign policy.
The experienced diplomat Antony Blinken was appointed as secretary of state and the former head of diplomacy John Kerry was appointed special delegate for climate. Linda Thomas-Greenfield was elected as Ambassador to the UN, Avril Haines as Director of National Intelligence and Jake Sullivan will serve as National Security Advisor.
In a sign of renewal, Biden chose Alejandro Mayorkas as head of the Department of Homeland Security, DHS.
Mayorkas – who was born in Havana – will be the first Latino to lead this portfolio that deals with immigration, among other issues.
Also read: The United States hopes to start vaccination against covid-19 in early December
The first appointments are aimed at moving away from the Trump-sponsored “America First” policy to take a more multilateral approach.
“We have no time to waste when it comes to our national security and our foreign policy,” Biden said in a statement that was issued in English and Spanish.
Biden stressed that the members of his cabinet are “experienced”, as they have proven their qualities “in crisis situations.” The president-elect emphasized that his team will be dedicated to the task of “rebuilding” the institutions and renewing and reformulating the “American leadership.”
Kerry’s appointment points in particular to Biden’s promise to return to the Paris Climate Agreement to fight global warming.
Also this Monday it was known that Janet Yellen will be the Secretary of the Treasury, with which she will make history as the first woman to lead this portfolio, if she is confirmed in office by the Senate.
The 74-year-old economist was the chairman of the Federal Reserve during part of the Obama administration and was replaced by Trump four years later.
Many of the appointments that the Democratic government plans will have to pass through the Senate where until now the Republicans have a narrow majority, which they could lose depending on the result of the extraordinary election of the two seats for the upper house that is held in Georgia on 5 January.
Fading options
With the certification of the results in Michigan on Monday, the Republican president’s hopes were almost completely dashed, especially since his team lost an ongoing legal battle in Pennsylvania, which is also preparing to make its results official.
The president has avoided the press, marking a sharp contrast to his strategy during his government, and has reduced his public agenda to a minimum.
While the results show that Biden obtained a comfortable majority, Trump’s tactics aim to disrupt the certification processes of the different states ahead of the formal Electoral College vote on December 14.
Trump has been losing support in recent days and little by little cracks appear among Republicans: former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie – who was a close confidant of the president – marked distance and referred to Trump’s legal team as a “national shame. “.
Pennsylvania Senator Patrick Toomey said after the court decision that Trump had exhausted “all plausible legal options.”
The latest heavyweight to step down and pressure Trump to accept the results was Stephen Schwarzman, a banker who runs the private fund Blackstone and was very close to the president.
“The country should turn the page,” he told Axios on Monday.
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