Press Releases

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), who led the Obama Administration’s transition at the Commerce Department in 2008, issued the following statement today on General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Emily Murphy’s refusal to ascertain that President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are the “successful candidates” in the 2020 presidential election:

“Administrator Murphy’s refusal to ascertain President-elect Biden’s victory in the 2020 election puts American lives at risk.

“The refusal to initiate a transition denies the Biden-Harris team access to agency officials, including those responsible for managing the pandemic. The proliferation of infections across the country is out of control, and this situation can only be made worse by the absence of a strong, coordinated government response.

“The beachheads are being denied the workspace and resources needed to begin working on problems like the nation’s economic crisis. Job losses continue to pile up, and American families are suffering.

“The transition team is being denied access to intelligence and secure facilities it needs to map out defense strategies after the President-elect is sworn in as Commander in Chief. Donald Trump’s firing of national security officials adds to this leadership vacuum, and our adversaries are watching.

“The GSA Administrator must put the national interest above politics and initiate the transition. This should have happened days ago. Lives are at stake, and lasting damage will be done every hour that this is not made right.”

The nonpartisan Presidential Advisory Board, currently led by Republican Josh Bolten, who served as White House Chief of Staff under President George W. Bush, issued a statement Sunday calling upon “the Trump administration to immediately begin the post-election transition process and the Biden team to take full advantage of the resources available under the Presidential Transition Act.”

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has clarified that it will not provide any information or resources to President-elect Biden’s team until the GSA Administrator ascertains his electoral victory, which has been universally acknowledged by American news organizations and the leaders of most foreign nations since Saturday.