WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden's administration on Friday formally began planning for a potential presidential transition aimed at ensuring continuity of government regardless of the outcome of November's general election.
Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, sent a memo to all executive departments and agencies directing them to appoint a central figure for transition planning by May 3. This is the customary first step in preparing for the presidential transition mandated by Congress.
Next week, White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, who is also the chairman of Biden's 2020 transition effort, will announce a White House transition committee consisting of senior White House policy, national security, and administration officials at the administration's request. He will lead the first meeting of the Coordination Council. Presidential Transition Act.
This legislation provides federal assistance to candidates from major political parties to prepare to govern so they have the talent to take action on their first day in office. After the Sept. 11 attacks, making sure presidential candidates were ready to lead the federal government became a priority, and the law has been updated several times since then to ensure candidates are prepared to lead the federal government. It provided additional resources to incumbent legislators and required them to plan for the transition of power. Greater strength.
Young's letter is almost identical to that letter. Sent for 4 years Previously, Trump administration acting Secretary of State Russell Vought praised the orderly transition process. derailed When then-President Donald Trump refused to concede defeat to Biden. It took until November 23, two weeks after the election was announced, for the Trump administration's General Services Administration to name Biden as the “apparent winner” of the 2020 presidential election, beginning the transition. This was a necessary step.
The law requires presidential candidates and the General Services Administration to sign a memorandum of understanding by Sept. 1 that covers everything from the provision of federal office space to access to classified documents. Often agreements are reached quickly. Candidates must first formally secure their party's nomination at a party convention before signing a memorandum of understanding.
The transition team will begin vetting candidates for future administration jobs, including initiating the lengthy security process for appointees who must be ready to take up their posts on Inauguration Day.
Biden in February launched Days after the investigation by the Justice Department's special counsel, a separate task force was formed aimed at addressing “systemic” problems of mishandling of classified information during the presidential transition. A highly critical report said he and his aides did just that when he resigned as vice president in 2016.
