Even as Trump surrendered, President-elect Joe Biden began to reveal what is turning out to be the most diverse and gender-balanced cabinet and quasi-cabinet in a country ruled by old white men.
Aside from vice president-elect Kamala Harris, Biden has appointed, or is expected to appoint, at least half a dozen women to key positions. Include Janet yellin as Secretary of the Treasury and Avril Haines as Director of National Intelligence who oversees the range of American ghosts. Additionally, Michele Flourney is expected to become Secretary of Defense.
It will be the first time that women head these portfolios. the Pentagon has seen 27 secretaries of defense, all white males, and the treasury department with a much longer history he has seen 77 Treasury secretaries, all white men. Established in 2004 after 9/11, the national intelligence directorate has had six white men at the helm for 16 years,
In addition, Biden will also appoint an African-American diplomat, Linda Thomas Greenfield as the US ambassador to the UN and Alejandro Mayorkas as the first Latino to lead the department of national security.
The appointments are seen as recognizing the growing diversity and changing demographics of the United States, and an implicit rebuke of the nativist sentiment that characterized the Trump presidency.
Meanwhile, despite the fighting words that he will still dispute the election results legally and will not budge, the defeated president of the United States is evidently preparing to leave for Florida on January 20, when the new administration will be inaugurated. formally. The Secret Service reports that it is asking President Trump’s agents in detail if they are interested in moving to Mar-a-Lago, indicating that the agency is preparing for Trump’s life after the White House.
But Trump’s public position remains that he won the election and will prove it in court, despite not having demonstrated electoral negligence in more than 30 lawsuits. His legal team has now become the butt of jokes, forcing the president to consider a scenario in which he will be president for a term, the first since George Bush Sr. in 1992.
Trump’s turnaround came minutes after an electoral board in Michigan certified results in favor of Biden after resisting pressure from Trump’s Republicans. A Republican member on the four-member state poll board joined two Democrats in giving Biden a 3-1 margin certification that he had won the popular vote of the state and its 20 constituents, pending some subsequent audits. to results that are not expected to make a difference. .
Soon after, Emily Murphy, the head of the General Services Administration who was in the throes of delaying the transition process, relented and wrote to “Mr. Biden” inviting him to “access post-election resources and services. , “including $ 16.3 million in financing.
While Murphy stated in her letter to Biden that she was “never directly or indirectly pressured by any executive branch official, including those working in the White House o GSA – regarding the substance or timing of my decision, “the defeated president left no doubt that he had made the decisions.
“She has been harassed, threatened and abused, and I do not want this to happen to her, to her family or to the GSA employees. Our case continues STRONG, we will continue the good … 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, “he tweeted. .
Initiating the transition process allows the Biden-Harris team access to current officials, intelligence briefings, office space, money, etc. to begin preparing to govern from noon on January 20, when Trump will have to resign from office.
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