Donald Trump Administration Officially Authorizes Joe Biden Transition, But Trump Isn't Happy

Nearly three weeks after Americans headed to the polls on Election Day, the General Services [...]

By Allison Schonter

Nearly three weeks after Americans headed to the polls on Election Day, the General Services Administration (GSA) informed President-elect Joe Biden Monday that the Trump administration is ready to begin the formal transition process. The transition, however, is not putting a halt to the Trump campaign's efforts to contest the results of the 2020 election.

Confirming Monday evening that he had directed the GSA to "do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols," the president promised that "our case STRONGLY continues" and that he and his team "will keep up the good fight." Just hours later, the president returned to Twitter, vowing that he will "never concede to fake ballots & 'Dominion.'" In the tweet, the president again blasted the election "as the most corrupt election in American political history," echoing his claims of widespread voter fraud, of which no evidence has been provided by his campaign. The majority of the president and his campaign's lawsuits have since been dismissed in court. Thursday morning, the president tweeted that "the GSA does not determine who the next President of the United States will be."

Despite the president's vows to continue fighting for a win, a formal transition to a new administration is now underway. After weeks of pressure, GSA Administrator Emily Murphy sent a letter to Biden, whom she referred to as "the apparent president-elect," Monday afternoon confirming that he will now have access to millions of dollars in federal funds and other resources to begin his transition to power.

"Please know that I came to my decision independently, based on the law and available facts," Murphy wrote in part. "I was never directly or indirectly pressured by any Executive Branch official -- including those who work at the White House or GSA -- with regard to the substance or timing of my decision. To be clear, I did not receive any direction to delay my determination."

Responding to the ascertainment, Yohannes Abraham, executive director of Biden's transition, said the start of the transition was a "needed step to begin tackling the challenges facing our nation, including getting the pandemic under control and our economy back on track." In a statement, CNN reports, Abraham added that "this final decision is a definitive administrative action to formally begin the transition process with federal agencies." Abraham confirmed that in the coming days, "transition officials will begin meeting with federal officials to discuss the pandemic response, have a full accounting of our national security interests and gain complete understanding of the Trump administration's efforts to hollow out government agencies."

The letter came more than two weeks after Biden was declared the projected winner of the 2020 election. The former vice president has secured a projected 306 electoral college votes to Trump's 232. Biden has also secure more than 6 million more popular votes than the president.

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