Biden praises Trump administration’s ‘sincere’ outreach after GSA finding



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“Immediately we were sensitized by the National Security Store at all levels,” Biden told NBC News’ Lester Holt in his first interview as president-elect.

“And they are already working on my ability to get daily presidential briefings, we are already working on meeting the Covid team at the White House and how to not only distribute but also get a vaccine distributed to a person able to get vaccinated. “

“So I think we won’t be as far behind the curve as we thought we might be in the past,” he added.

Biden’s comments come a day after the GSA informed him that the Trump administration was ready to begin the formal transition process. Its transition team is now speaking to all federal agencies, a transition official told CNN. Dr Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease physician, said on Tuesday he had had preliminary conversations with members of Biden’s team and looked forward to more in-depth discussions in the future. .

The GSA letter was the administration’s first step in acknowledging the defeat of President Donald Trump and marked a significant turning point against its attempt to reverse his loss.
Still, Biden’s team hadn’t waited for the formal transition process to begin preparing for the presidency, as Biden announced a wave of Cabinet picks on Monday.

Looking ahead to his administration on Tuesday, Biden pledged his term would not be “Obama’s third term.”

“We are facing a whole different world from the one we faced under the Obama-Biden administration,” he said. “President Trump has changed the landscape.”

He continued, “It became America first. It is America alone. We find ourselves in a position where our alliances are unraveling. It’s totally – that’s why I’ve found people joining the administration and retaining points that represent the specter of the American people as well as the specter of the Democratic Party. ”

When asked on Tuesday if he supported the investigations into Trump after he stepped down, as some Democrats demanded, Biden vowed “not to do what this president is doing and to use the ministry to Justice as my vehicle to insist that something happen “.

“There are a number of surveys that I’ve read about that are at the state level. I can’t or can’t do anything about it at all. But I’m focusing on public feedback. American in a place where he has some certainty, some assurance, some knowledge that they can get there, ”he said.

“The people of the middle class and the working class are being crushed. This is my goal.”

And asked if he had spoken with Sen. Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren about Cabinet positions, Biden said: “We already have significant representation among progressives in our administration, but there is nothing really off the table. ”

He added, however, that “removing someone from the Senate, removing someone from the chamber, especially an important person, is really a difficult decision that will have to be made.”

Biden told NBC he would consider nominating Republicans who voted for Trump into his cabinet.

“I want this country to be united. The purpose of our administration is to unite again. We cannot keep this fierce political dialogue going. It must end,” Biden said.

Biden said tackling the coronavirus pandemic will be his top priority when he takes office, but added that he will also take immigration and climate action in his first 100 days.

“There are a number of things going to happen at the same time,” Biden said. “But the most important thing, I think, is to focus on these people, who are always, when the crisis strikes, are the first to be hit and the recovery is lasting.”

This story has been updated with further remarks from Biden’s interview.

CNN’s Sarah Mucha, Kristen Holmes and Jeremy Herb contributed to this report.

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