THE US presidential transition was thrown into tumult on Monday, with Donald Trump blocking government co-operation with Joe Biden’s team and attorney general William Barr authorising the Justice Department to investigate allegations of electoral fraud.
Some Republicans, including Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, rallied behind Trump’s efforts to fight the election results.
Few in the party acknowledged Joe Biden’s victory, or condemned Trump’s other controversial move on Monday – his firing of defence secretary Mark Esper.
The developments cast doubt on whether the nation would witness the same kind of smooth transition of power that has long anchored its democracy.
The Electoral College is scheduled to formally confirm Biden’s victory on December 14 and the Democrat will be sworn into office in late January.
On Monday, Barr authorised the Justice Department to investigate “substantial” allegations of voter irregularities and election fraud, though no widespread instances of that type of trouble exist. In fact, election officials from both parties have publicly stated that voting went well. International observers also confirmed there were no serious irregularities.
Biden campaign lawyer Bob Bauer said Barr’s authorising investigations “will only fuel the ‘specious, speculative, fanciful or far-fetched claims’ he professes to guard against”.
Biden pressed forward with plans to build his administration, assembling a team of experts to face the surging pandemic. But the federal agency that needs to greenlight the beginnings of the transition of power held off. And the White House moved to crack down on those not deemed sufficiently loyal as Trump continued to refuse to concede the race.
Trump remained out of sight at the White House, with conversations ongoing about how the defeated president would spend the coming days and weeks as he challenged the people’s verdict.
The former reality TV star is not expected to formally concede but is likely to grudgingly vacate the White House at the end of his term, according to several people around him.
Also being discussed is the possibility of more campaign-style rallies as Trump tries to keep his supporters fired-up despite his defeat.
The removal of Esper, the Pentagon chief, was expected by some aides to be the first of several firings by Trump. Others believed to now be vulnerable include FBI director Christopher Wray, CIA head Gina Haspel and infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci.
Trump’s public schedule hasn’t included an intelligence briefing since October 1. The White House hasn’t provided a “readout” of any call between the president and a foreign leader in weeks. He has not met with members of the White House coronavirus task force in months.
He also offered no public comment on Tropical Storm Eta lashing the Florida Keys.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel