Biden urges Americans to wear masks as attention turns to transition



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As Mr. Biden prepares to assume the presidency, his team is calling on the Trump administration, particularly the General Services Administration (GSA), to take official steps to initiate the transition process.

The GSA is a little-known federal agency that oversees offices, supplies, and other services for the government. Emily Murphy, appointed head of the GSA by Mr Trump in 2017, must first determine that Mr Biden is the apparent winner of the presidential election, which would unlock access to certain services and money from the federal government for its transition team.

But the GSA said in a statement that no findings had yet been made.

“The GSA and its administrator will continue to meet and fulfill all requirements of the law,” the agency said in a statement. The administrator has the discretion to make the decision under a 1963 law that governs the transition process.

A spokesperson for Biden’s transition team said he looked forward to Murphy “quickly checking” Mr. Biden and Harris as president-elect and vice-president-elect, respectively, when the Democratic ticket is expected. win the states necessary to obtain a majority. to the Electoral College.

“The national security and economic interests of the United States depend on the federal government making a clear and timely signal that the United States government will respect the will of the American people and engage in a harmonious and peaceful transfer of power,” said the spokesperson.

The bipartisan advisory board of the Center for Presidential Transition, meanwhile, urged the administration “to immediately begin the post-election transition process and the Biden team to make full use of the resources available under the 1963 Transition Act. presidential “.

“While there are legal disputes requiring judgment, the outcome is clear enough that the transition process must now begin,” the advisory board, which is made up of four former government officials who served in a statement, said in a statement. in the Republican and Democratic administrations.

The board members are: Josh Bolten, former White House chief of staff and director of the Office of Management and Budget; Michael Leavitt, former Secretary of Health and Human Services, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and Governor of Utah; Thomas McLarty, former White House chief of staff; and Penny Pritzker, former Secretary of Commerce.

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