WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump on Tuesday reached a deal that President Joe Biden’s White House wanted to allow his transition staff to negotiate with federal workers before he takes office on January 20.
A congressionally mandated agreement allows transition partners to work with government agencies and access non-public information and gives the green light to government employees to speak with the transition team.
But Mr. Trump has refused to sign a separate agreement with the General Services Administration that would have given his team the opportunity to secure government offices and email accounts, in part because it would have required the president-elect to limit donations to $5,000 and disclose who is giving. his revolutionary work.
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The White House deal was supposed to be signed by October 1, according to the Presidential Transition Act, and the Biden White House had made public and private requests for Trump’s team to sign it.
The agreement is an important step in ensuring an orderly transition of power at noon on Inauguration Day, and lays the groundwork for the White House and government agencies to begin sharing information about ongoing programs, operations and threats. It mitigates the risk that Trump’s team could find itself taking over the powers of the federal government without briefs and briefings from the outgoing administration.
As part of the deal with the White House, Trump’s team must publicly disclose its plan for reform and make a commitment to support it, the White House said. Transition partners must sign statements that they have no financial positions that could cause a conflict of interest before they receive non-public government information.
Biden himself raised the deal with Trump when they met in the Oval Office on November 13, according to the White House, and Trump indicated that his team was working to get it signed.
Trump’s chief of staff-elect Susie Wiles met with Biden’s chief of staff Jeff Zients at the White House on Nov. 19 and other officials in the division to discuss the remaining issues, while the lawyers of the two sides have spoken more than a dozen times. in recent days to finalize the agreement.
“As President Biden said to the American people from the Rose Garden and directly to President Trump, he is committed to making an orderly transition,” White House spokeswoman Saloni Sharma said. “President Trump and his team will be in office on January 12 at 12 p.m. – and they will be facing many domestic and international challenges, foreseeable and unforeseen. A smooth transition is essential to the safety and security of the American people who trust their leaders to be responsible and prepared.”
Without a signed agreement, Biden administration officials were restricted in what they could share with the incoming team. Trump’s national security adviser, Rep. Mike Waltz, met recently with Mr. Biden’s national security adviser, Mr. Jake Sullivan, but the outgoing team had little to discuss.
“We are doing everything we can to make a professional and orderly transition,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Monday. “And we continue to encourage the incoming team to take the necessary steps to bring this to an end.”
“This agreement allows those we want to be selected by the Cabinet to begin serious preparations, including the deployment of landing teams to all departments and agencies, and to complete an orderly transition of power,” Wiles said in a statement.
Trump’s transition team says it will identify public donors and will not accept foreign funding.
A separate deal with the Department of Justice to combine vetting background checks and security clearances is still in the works and could be signed as soon as the White House deal is signed. The agency has teams of investigators standing by to review the credentials of Trump’s aides and advisers if the document is signed.
This would clear the way for transition aides and future appointees and nominees to begin getting a different perspective before Trump takes office. Some Trump aides may hold clearances from their first term in office or other government jobs, but others will need new clearances to access classified data.
Trump’s team on Friday officially told the GSA that they will not be using government office space from the White House reserved for their use, or government email accounts, cell phones and computers during the transition.
The White House said it does not agree with Mr. Trump’s decision to withdraw support from the GSA, but is working on other ways for Mr. Trump to establish the information he needs without compromising national security. Federal agencies are accepting guidance on Tuesday about how to share sensitive information with the Trump team without compromising national security or non-public information.
For example, agencies may require in-person meetings and document reviews as Trump’s team refuses to move to mobile phones and computers. In order to access unclassified information, organizations can ask Trump’s transition staff to testify that they are taking special precautions, such as using two-factor authentication on their accounts.
“The signing of this agreement is good news, and a good step towards effective devolution,” said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service. it’s important that the incoming administration is ready to rule on Day One and it’s important that the transition is successful.”