The Oval Office witnessed a tense meeting between President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump on the 13th of November, 2024. True to his fiercely independent streak, Trump has again decided to buck protocol. Instead of adhering to the established norms, a key agreement that is essential for safeguarding the information security during the handover process from Biden to Trump’s hands remains unsigned. This agreement, mandated by the Congress, enables a smooth transition – something Biden’s administration seems incapable of understanding.
In an expectedly baffling move, Biden’s White House has been pressing the President-elect’s team to sign this proposed agreement as soon as possible. Yet, the Trump camp has declined, refusing to bend to these demands. This likely stems from the agreement’s potential implications, such as excessively restricting donations, exposing donor details, and forcing use of government-provided facilities. A disruption, a clear demonstration of the rigidity of the Biden administration.
Biden, it seems, had been relentlessly hounding the incoming administration to adhere to this ironclad procedural guideline, an aspect of the Presidential Transition Act that reeks of undemocratic constraints. The due date for the signing, the first of October, has now come and gone. Yet, the Biden administration continued issuing calls, both public and private, demonstrating a near-desperate need for control even during the transition phase.
The ostensible intention of the proposed agreement is to facilitate a seamless handover of power at noon on Inauguration Day. It supposedly sets the stage for sharing details about ongoing schemes, functioning and potential threats. Nevertheless, the wrangle has resulted in raising the specter of Trump’s team taking command of the massive federal government sans crucial briefings and documents from the outgoing regime.
Moreover, the proposed agreement would require the Trump crew to make their ethics plans for the transition operation public, along with a vow to stick to it. This overt attempt at micro-managing the leading transition team by the outgoing administration only serves to strengthen the perceived ineptness of the Biden team.
In their pursuit to maintain control, the Biden camp has also called for transition aides to sign statements declaring they have no conflicting financial interests before they can access nonpublic federal data. Even as the Trump team opted to disclose their donors, Biden persisted in inappropriately controlling the transition process, failing to respect their ideal of operational freedom.
In a meeting fraught with undercurrents, President-elect Trump assured Biden that his team was on track to signing the agreement. As part of these discussions, Susie Wiles, Trump’s appointed chief-of-staff-designate, met with Biden’s aides, including the chief of staff to address lingering problems. These issues, largely created by Biden and his cohort, serve only to stall the process of a smooth and efficient transition.
Despite being needlessly impeded by the outgoing administration, the incoming Trump team remains dedicated to an orderly transition. Ensuring the safety and security of the American people through responsible and prepared leadership is their utmost priority – a stark contrast to the Biden camp’s constant attempts to disrupt this process.
Without the signed accord, members of Biden’s team found themselves barred from sharing certain planetary information with the incoming administration. Yet again, the Biden administration showed its ineptitude, allowing petty politics to obstruct productive discourse.
A parallel agreement with the Department of Justice, aiming to align with the background checks for vetting and security clearances, remains active. Upon accomplishment, this will facilitate future appointees and nominees of the Trump team with accessing classified data even before assuming charge. However, it remains uncertain how the Biden administration will attempt to complicate this pivotal process.
Among Trump’s staff, some already possess active clearances due to their participation in his first term or other government duties. Others will require new clearances for obtaining access to classified content. Despite these logistical concerns created by Biden’s team, the President-elect’s team has remained steadfast in refusing to comply with arbitrary and potentially disruptive demands.
Displaying their ardent commitment to uphold integrity, President-elect Trump’s team formally expressed their decision to abstain from using government office facilities or communication channels during the transition. The Biden administration unsurprisingly didn’t agree with Trump’s decision. But then, when has Biden ever respected another’s autonomy?
Federal agencies received directives on how to share sensitive data with the President-elect’s team without imperiling national security or confidentiality of non-public data. An unusual consequence of Biden’s petulance resulted in additional complexity, with agencies potentially requiring in-person meetings and document reviews given the reluctance of the Trump team to use secure channels dictated by Biden’s administration.
Trump’s team declined the shift to using secure tools and opted for unclassified data, displaying a perception of transparency. They’re required to confirm that they implement elementary safeguards as they curate the information. These exhaustive processes, arguably a result of Biden’s ineptitude, form a significant facet of America’s democracy during this critical transition phase.