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    • New law enables duel presidential transitions
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    New law enables duel presidential transitions

    Harry Posted on

    Will Weissert
    | Associated Press

    washington — There will be 77 days between Election Day and inauguration; There will be a period during which the next president can prepare to take over his administration from President Joe Biden.

    The presidential transition, long steeped in tradition and bipartisanship, became a political sticking point four years ago after then-President Donald Trump made false claims to contest his loss and his administration delayed starting the transition for weeks.

    This year, no matter who wins, a new law is planned to start the transition earlier. But if neither major party candidate concedes after Election Day, the updated rules allow both parties to receive additional government funding and logistical support to begin working toward a transition to power. This could lead to both Vice President Kamala Harris and Trump potentially dueling, with the governments waiting weeks.

    “Rules can only take you so far, and ultimately you have to make sure the players in the system are working toward a common goal,” said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit that works with candidates and incumbents on transitions. . “Everyone should have a common goal of ensuring that the transfer of power is smooth and effective. This requires cooperation that the law cannot implement alone.”

    Here’s a look at how changes intended to solve the problems of four years ago might not solve the problems to come this time around, and where the upcoming transition stands in the meantime:

    What happened in 2020?

    Trump lied about widespread voter fraud not occurring, delaying the start of the transition from one administration to the next in 2020 from Election Day on Nov. 3 to Nov. 23.

    Emily Murphy, the Trump-appointed head of the General Services Administration, consulted the 1963 transition law and determined that she had no legal authority to determine the winner and begin funding and cooperating with the transition to the Biden administration; because Trump is still challenging the results in court.

    GSA essentially acts as the federal government’s host, and Murphy has agreed to formally “identify a future president” and begin the transition process until Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the free and fair election collapse in key states. Trump also announced on social media that his administration would cooperate.

    What’s different this time?

    The Presidential Transition Enhancement Act, which went into effect in December 2022, now requires the transition process to begin five days after the election, even if more than one candidate is uncontested.

    This avoids lengthy delays and means “a ‘positive determination’ by GSA is no longer a prerequisite for receiving transition support services,” according to agency guidelines for the new rules.

    But the new law also effectively mandates federal support and cooperation for both candidates to begin the transition process. It states that such support should continue until “significant legal challenges” that could change election results are “substantially resolved” or until voters from each state meet to formally elect an Electoral College winner in December.

    That means the government could potentially provide enough support for both parties to be able to prepare an administration by mid-December, about a month before Inauguration Day on January 20.

    Derek Muller, a University of Notre Dame law professor and presidential transition expert who testified in favor of the legislation, said it potentially allows two candidates to gain support for transitions and one to eventually back out. This, he said, was preferable to a situation in which neither side was given transition support, which could lead to delays that would violate national security.

    “In the past, no candidate could receive funding. Now we have both,” Muller said.

    He noted the disputed 2000 election in which the GSA did not determine the winner until a recount fight in Florida concluded on December 13; This raised questions about national security gaps that may have contributed to the United States’ unpreparedness for the September 11 attacks. the following year.

    “It could last until mid-December. “There’s no question it’s a risk,” Muller said of possible duels over transition efforts after this year’s election. “But I think it’s a risk they want to take. And even mid-December there’s still a month left until the inauguration, so at least There is some certainty.”

    But even today, Trump continues to claim that he won in 2020 and says he will only accept this November’s results if they are fair; which makes it easy to imagine he would only do this if he wins, potentially signing the new law into law. test.

    How are both parties preparing?

    The expanding transition process begins with the filling of nearly 4,000 government positions with political appointees — people specifically selected for their jobs by the future president’s team. This usually starts with key Cabinet departments.

    Harris’ team has already reached an agreement with the Biden administration to use government office space and other resources in Washington and begin vetting potential key national security officials.

    Trump’s team did not sign any transition agreement; He missed deadlines to agree with GSA on logistics such as office space and technical support, and with the White House on access to institutions, including documents, employees and facilities.

    Stier, of the Partnership for Public Service, said the Trump administration’s disregard for the transition dates back to 2016, when the then-president-elect fired his transition coordinator, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who then spent months at the helm of his administration. We are trying to resolve basic personnel issues.

    Stier said the agreements made to prepare the transition were merely “a starting gun, not really a race.” He said the entire process “requires a deep understanding of our government and a willingness to appreciate the importance of the process.”

    What will the transition look like?

    Neither side will be starting completely from scratch. While Harris forms her own government, she may also benefit from some of the shares left over from the Biden administration, of which she was vice president. Trump will bring in a new team, but he installed an entirely new administration in 2017 and could do it again.

    Harris may also choose to keep Senate-confirmed Biden appointees as acting Cabinet secretaries in case it is difficult to get her nominees through a GOP-controlled Congress post-election. He promised to appoint a Republican to his cabinet; One early favorite was former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, once the third-ranking member of the House GOP and the daughter of a Republican vice president, who campaigned with Harris.

    Trump has said he could appoint former independent presidential candidate and anti-vaccine activist Robert Kennedy Jr. on health issues and make South African-born Elon Musk his federal “cost cutting” secretary.

    Either way, Biden’s national security spokesman, John Kirby, said the current administration is prepared for a proper transition “no matter how things turn out in the election.”

    Harry
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