Trump signs transition agreement with Biden White House after delay
By
Haisten Willis
November 26, 2024 5:08 pm
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President-elect Donald Trump has announced an agreement with the Biden administration that will allow his transition team to begin coordinating with federal agencies two months before he enters office.
“Trump is entering the next phase of his administration’s transition by executing a memorandum of understanding with President Joe Biden’s White House,” Susie Wiles, the incoming White House chief of staff, said in a statement. “This engagement allows our intended Cabinet nominees to begin critical preparations, including the deployment of landing teams to every department and agency, and complete the orderly transition of power.”
While President Joe Biden promised an orderly transition once it became clear that Trump had won the 2024 election, Trump’s team has been slow to sign a formal agreement to start the process. The deadline for the paperwork was Oct. 1, according to federal statute.
Trump had also refused the General Services Administration’s transition resources, including office space, equipment, administrative support, and other services as required under the Presidential Transition Act. The president-elect eschewed signing two separate memoranda of understanding with the GSA as well and has not signed a required ethics plan.
Some conservatives said Trump should fund the transition efforts instead to avoid disclosure policies required by the GSA. The costs would likely fall between $14 to $16 million.
A statement from Biden White House spokeswoman Saloni Sharma reiterated that there will be a smooth transition of power but expressed frustration with Trump’s refusal to sign the GSA paperwork.
“Since September, the White House and the GSA have repeatedly made the case to the Trump transition team to sign both the GSA and White House MOUs as both parties have done during previous transitions,” she said. Trump has only signed the memorandum.
“As part of the White House MOU, the Trump-Vance transition team has agreed to important safeguards to protect non-public information and prevent conflicts of interest, including who has access to the information and how the information is shared,” Sharma’s statement reads. “The MOU also outlines that the Trump transition team will publicly post their ethics plan to the GSA website.”
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/3243264/trump-transition-agreement-biden-white-house-delay/
