President-elect Joe Biden speaks Monday, Nov. 9, 2020, at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Del. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
By Zeke Miller
The course of President-elect Joe Biden’s transition to power is dependent in part on an obscure declaration called “ascertainment.”
Here are some details on that process:
WHAT IS ASCERTAINMENT?
The formal presidential transition doesn’t begin until the administrator of the federal General Services Administration ascertains the “apparent successful candidate” in the general election. Neither the Presidential Transition Act nor federal regulations specify how that determination should be made. That decision green lights the entire federal government’s moves toward preparing for a handover of power.
WHY HASN'T IT HAPPENED YET?
Spokesperson Pamela Pennington said in a statement that “GSA and its Administrator will continue to abide by, and fulfill, all requirements under the law,” but the agency has not said why the decision to recognize Joe Biden as the president-elect has not been made. GSA is an executive branch agency. Its administrator, Emily Murphy, is a Trump appointee, but the ascertainment decision is supposed to be apolitical. The White House did not say whether there have been conversations on the matter between officials there and at GSA.
WHAT'S AT STAKE?
The determination clears the way for millions of federal dollars to flow to Biden’s transition team and opens the doors of the federal government to hundreds of Biden staffers, so they can begin assessing agency operations ahead of Inauguration Day on Jan. 20. A delay in recognizing Biden as the next president could slow federal resources to assist the Biden-Harris team in filling about 4,000 political appointments across the government — including critical national security and health postings.
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Slowing the pace of the transition could hamstring a new administration right out of the gate. The Trump administration, experts say, never fully recovered from the slow pace of hiring from its mismanaged 2016 transition after Trump tossed aside carefully prepared plans the day after his victory.
HAS THIS DELAY EVER HAPPENED BEFORE?
In 2000, the GSA determination was delayed until after the Florida recount fight was settled. The abbreviated transition process was identified by the 9/11 Commission Report as contributing to the nation’s unpreparedness for the crisis.
Christopher Wolfe, CIO at First Republic Private Wealth Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says he is surprised that the first quarter was the first down period in a long time, but adds that the second quarter could be difficult with a lot of volatility expected.
Jeffrey Small, President of Arbor Financial, joins Chedar News' Closing Bell, where he breaks down why stocks closed near session lows on Wednesday and tells viewers what to expect ahead of next earnings season.
Uber and Lyft drivers are cruising in Washington State, the first U.S. state to set an earnings standard for drivers for the ride-hailing companies. Governor Jay Inslee signed the new minimum pay standard into law Thursday, which also gives drivers access to perks like paid sick time and family medical leave. John Logan, Director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Jeremy Berke, senior reporter on the cannabis industry for Business Insider, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss developments in cannabis legalization at the federal level. He helps break down the bill and what legalization efforts might look like in the Senate.
Selene San Felice, Tampa Bay reporter for Axios Local, and Jennifer Levi, director of the Transgender Rights Project at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) join Cheddar Politics to discuss the impact of the new law targeting LGBTQ communities in Florida schools.
Ryan Barber, justice correspondent at Insider, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss the latest developments in the January 6 investigation, including texts between Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
Joel Rubin, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and president of the Washington Strategy Group, joins Cheddar Politics to discuss the latest developments in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The head of Russia’s space program says the future of the ISS hangs in the balance after the U.S., EU, and Canadian space agencies missed a deadline to meet Russian demands for lifting sanctions on Russian enterprises and hardware.
President Joe Biden called for a war crimes trial against Russian President Vladimir Putin and said he’d seek more sanctions after reported atrocities in Ukraine.
Catching you up on what you need to know on April 4, 2022, with reports of Russian war crimes in Ukraine, a weekend shooting in Sacramento killing six and injuring 12, Mexico ending its gas subsidization for U.S. drivers, and the University of South Carolina winning the women's NCAA basketball championship, and more.
