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| Biden cannot begin the transition of power because President Trump refuses to admit defeat |
WASHINGTON - Newly elected President Joe Biden solidified his election victory by winning 16 electoral votes in Georgia, and earlier in Arizona. But the transition of power is still blocked due to the refusal of President Donald Trump to admit defeat. Trump is the projected winner in North Carolina.
At the White House event on Friday, where he spoke about the corona virus vaccine, Trump hinted for the first time that he could still leave the White House in January, with the message "that time will tell".
"Ideally, we should not go into quarantine. I will not do that, this administration will not do that. I hope - whatever happens in the future - who knows what the administration will be? I guess time will tell," Trump said.
Biden's victory in Arizona and Trump's victory in North Carolina were projected after more than a week of counting the votes after the November 3 elections. Biden is only the second Democratic presidential candidate to win the traditional Republican stronghold of the past seven decades.
Biden with Georgia has 306 electoral votes, and Trump 232. Biden was declared the winner of the election at the end of last week after he won the necessary 270 electoral votes. Although the votes will be counted manually again in Georgia, it is unlikely that the outcome of the election will be changed.
At the national level, Biden leads ahead of Trump with more than 5.3 million votes or 3.4 percent.
Trump refuses to admit defeat and claims without proof that he was robbed due to widespread election irregularities, but the courts rejected numerous lawsuits filed by his election headquarters, while election officials said that there were no major irregularities during the voting.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence told young Republican supporters on Friday that Trump is still determined to take legal action in the hope that he will reverse the result.
"We will fight for the outcome of the election, which will give us another four years," Pence said.
In Michigan, which Biden won by 2.6 percent or more than 148,000 votes, two Republican state senators asked election officials to check the results before certifying them. They cited, among other things, a "malfunction" in the counting software, improper handling of ballots and obstacles faced by observers.
However, the Michigan state court on Friday rejected the request of Trump supporters to block the certification of votes in Detroit, where the majority of voters voted for Biden.
Federal officials in charge of election security said they found no evidence that any electoral system erased, lost or altered votes or that it was "threatened in any way."
States have until December 8 to certify the elections and elect electors for the Electoral College, which will officially elect a new president on December 14.
Due to Trump's refusal to admit defeat, the process of transition to the new administration is stalled. The General Affairs Directorate, which approves funding for the newly elected president, has not yet acknowledged Biden's victory.
Biden's team, however, continues to prepare for the transfer of power to the new administration. Biden's transition team official Jen Psaki said on Friday that national security experts would brief the newly elected president next week.
Psaki also stated that Biden talked with his associates about the candidates for the new cabinet and that he will continue to talk with the members of the Congress, including the Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, about the new aid package due to the pandemic.
Ron Klein, who was chosen as Biden's future chief of staff, told the MSNBC cable network on Thursday that the key is to start the transition process now, given that the Biden administration will inherit the coronavirus vaccination campaign as soon as the newly elected president is inaugurated on January 20.
"The sooner our transition experts can meet with people planning vaccinations, the easier it will be to transition from Trump to the Biden administration," Klein said, announcing that "despite obstacles," Biden will sign decrees and pass on priorities. legislative proposals to Congress on the first day of taking office.
"He will be very busy on the first day," Klein said, adding that the return to the Paris Climate Agreement, the strengthening of Obamacare and the protection of the environment are issues that Biden will resolve on January 20.
Republicans divided
Republican officials, such as the governors of Ohio and New Hampshire and Carl Rove, chief adviser to former President George W. Bush, said Biden should be treated as the newly elected president.
The newly elected president usually receives daily intelligence reports to ensure that national security is not compromised during the transition.
However, Republican leader in the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy opposed that, suggesting that Trump could still be the winner.
