Trump officials push back as Biden team accuses them of not cooperating in transition
Members of President Donald Trump’s administration and President-elect Joe Biden’s team remain at odds over the transition process with only weeks until Biden takes office on Jan. 20, 2021.
Biden and members of his team have recently expressed frustration with what they say is a lack of cooperation from the Trump administration, specifically the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Defense, in the transfer of power — claims current administration officials have pushed back on.
During remarks Monday in Wilmington, Delaware, Biden said his team has “encountered roadblocks” from leadership at the Defense Department and OMB.
“Right now we just aren’t getting all the information that we need from the outgoing administration in key national security areas,” he said. “It’s nothing short, in my view, of irresponsibility.”
Members of his team have echoed those concerns.
Yohannes Abraham, executive director of Biden’s transition team, told reporters Wednesday that agency review teams have dealt with “obstruction from political leadership” at the Pentagon and OMB.
“Make no mistake, this lack of cooperation has real world consequences, most concerningly as it relates to national security,” Abraham said, according to The Hill. “This intentionally generated paucity makes it harder for our government to protect the American people moving forward.
Jake Sullivan, incoming national security adviser, told NPR on Tuesday the outgoing administration hasn’t provided the information Biden’s team needs to seamlessly take over. He said dozens of written requests for information have gone unaddressed and that the Defense Department hasn’t met with Biden’s team since Dec. 18.
He told NPR the team has a “lack of visibility” into a “number of critical issues relating to military operations because of DoD’s obstruction and roadblocks.”
“That will mean that we are going to have to take time at the beginning of the administration after Jan. 20 to take a hard look at how we’re postured, and what threats we’re up against, and what continuing the drawdowns look like in the way of risk to force and other considerations,” Sullivan said, according to NPR.
Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller said in a statement Monday that the agency has conducted more than 160 interviews and provided more than 5,000 pages of documents to the Biden transition team.
“Our DOD political and career officials have been working with the utmost professionalism to support transition activities in a compressed time schedule and they will continue to do so in a transparent and collegial manner that upholds the finest traditions of the Department,” the statement said.
Another statement released Dec. 18 said the transition team had agreed to a “holiday pause” starting Dec. 19.
Abraham, however, told reporters that wasn’t true.
“Let me be clear: There was no mutually agreed-upon holiday break,” the Biden official said, according to CNBC.
Russell Vought, head of the OMB, also pushed back against the Biden team’s comments in a Thursday letter, saying the agency has “fully participated in appropriate transition efforts” and apportioned $9.9 million in funding for the transition.
“Since ascertainment, OMB has provided significant briefing materials on its operations and has provided factual information about ongoing programs to the BTT upon request,” the letter says. “We have taken more than 45 meetings with your staff to discuss specific issues, operational questions and more.”
The tensions are the latest in an already rocky transition process.
The process was delayed out of the gate when the General Services Administration refused to formally recognize Biden as the winner for the 2020 presidential election for weeks after The Associated Press and other media outlets projected him as the winner on Nov. 7.
Without that formal recognition, called ascertainment, the transition team did not have access to government funding or office space or critical information needed for a smooth transfer of power, which is usually made available to presidents-elect.
Experts have warned that a smooth transition is critical for national security purposes and as the country continues to fight the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
This story was originally published December 31, 2020 at 5:00 PM with the headline "Trump officials push back as Biden team accuses them of not cooperating in transition."
