World

Finally, Trump Agrees to Biden Transition

Published

4 years ago

November 24, 2020

Eric

The General Services Administration acknowledged Democrat Joe Biden as the apparent winner of the presidential election on Monday, following weeks of inaction, and President Donald Trump called on his agencies to cooperate, Bloomberg reports.

“I am recommending that Emily and her team do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols, and have told my team to do the same,” Trump said of Emily Murphy, the General Services Administration chief who heads the government agency meant to ease Biden’s transition into the White House. The Republican, however, said he would continue to contest the outcome of the election.

The designation triggers a formal transition process, giving Biden and his team access to current agency officials, briefing books and other government resources, including some $6 million in funding.

The PUNCH had earlier reported that most western media had projected the Democrat candidate winner of the keenly contested election after Biden’s triumphant victory in the electoral college votes against incumbent Trump who had refused to concede defeat while alleging fraud in the election.

Monday’s letter was sent after nine Republican senators had called for the transition process to begin, and hours after Michigan’s Board of State Canvassers had voted to certify the election’s results, practically ensuring Biden’s victory in the key battleground state.

“Because of recent developments involving legal challenges and certifications of election results, I have determined that you may access the post-election resources and services described in Section 3 of the Act upon request,” Murphy said in a letter to Biden, citing the Presidential Transition Act of 1963.

The announcement is a “needed step” to “getting the pandemic under control and our economy back on track,” Yohannes Abraham, the executive director of the Biden-Harris transition, said in an emailed statement.

“In the days ahead, transition officials will begin meeting with federal officials to discuss the pandemic response, have a full accounting of our national security interests, and gain complete understanding of the Trump administration’s efforts to hollow out government agencies.”

For weeks, the Biden transition team has worked informally to establish a new administration, including assembling a coronavirus task force and consulting with public health officials outside of the federal government, mimicking the approach former Vice President Dick Cheney took during the disputed 2000 election.

Blocked from interacting with federal agencies, Biden’s staff instead sought out other experts from academia, state governments and Capitol Hill.

The biggest change now is that the transition team will be able to flood federal agencies with officials focused on preparing the way for his administration. They will have access to agency staff and briefing books assembled earlier this year, as well as details on what administrative issues must be addressed right away.

Transition aides also will get details about which positions are most critical, as the incoming administration seeks to fill more than 7,000 jobs across the federal government.

“Fortunately, federal career civil servants have done an outstanding job preparing for this year’s transition by producing fact-based information on critical agency issues and by designating acting officials who will lead agency operations until new political appointees are confirmed,” said David Marchick, director of the Center for Presidential Transition. “They now need space to do their jobs.”

USA

Double Tragedy As Earthquake Strikes California Amid Raging Wildfires

Published

2 days ago

January 11, 2025

Eric

A 3.7 magnitude earthquake has struck California, United States of America, adding to the State’s ongoing tough challenges with worsening wildfires.

This comes as Los Angeles continues to fight raging wildfires, which were allegedly started by an arsonist who has since been arrested.

Mail Online reported on Friday that the tremor was detected near the San Francisco Bay Area at 7:02 am PT, with its epicentre approximately five miles Southwest of the Golden Gate Bridge and two miles west of the Great Highway.

The quake was followed by a 2.2 magnitude aftershock four minutes later and a 2.5 magnitude tremor six minutes after the initial hit.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) reported that more than 5,000 people in the area felt the shake, and the number of reports continues to grow.

This seismic activity occurred about 350 miles away from the Los Angeles area, where wildfires have caused widespread destruction.

“I ordered city government into action immediately this morning, and our first responders have been out across the city ensuring the safety of our residents.

“We have also been sharing information and giving people the tools to protect themselves and their families in an event like this,” Mayor Daniel Lurie commented on the situation.

Despite the tremors, no injuries or damage have been reported from Friday’s earthquake.

The USGS had detected a 3.0 magnitude earthquake the day before, disrupting San Francisco’s Muni subway service.

Many reported that the quake lasted only a second.

USA

US Announces January 9 for Burial of Jimmy Carter

Published

2 weeks ago

January 2, 2025

Eric

A state funeral for Jimmy Carter, the former US President who died on Sunday at the age of 100, will be held at the Washington National Cathedral on January 9, according to the US Army.

US President, Joe Biden, who last year said that Carter had asked him to deliver the eulogy at his funeral, has directed that January 9 be a national day of mourning for Carter throughout the US

The official six-day state funeral for Carter begins on Saturday as his remains travel by motorcade through his hometown of Plains, Georgia, the Army said in a statement.

The motorcade carrying Carter will stop at the farm where he grew up. There, the National Park Service will ring the historic farm bell 39 times – Carter was the 39th US President.

Carter’s remains will then be carried to Atlanta, where he will lie in repose at the Carter Presidential Center until the morning of Jan. 7. His body will then be flown to Washington, D.C., where he will lie in state in the rotunda of the US Capitol until his national funeral ceremony.

The family will hold a private funeral and interment in Georgia later on Jan. 9, after the ceremony at the Washington National Cathedral.

Carter will be buried in a plot next to his wife, Rosalynn Carter, on the grounds of their longtime home in Plains.

Carter, a Democrat, became President in January 1977 after defeating incumbent Republican President Gerald Ford in the 1976 election. His one-term presidency was marked by the 1978 Camp David accords between Israel and Egypt, bringing some stability to the Middle East.

Carter spent his long post-Presidential career devoted to humanitarian work, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. World leaders and former US Presidents have paid tribute to a man they praised as compassionate, humble and committed to peace in the Middle East.

– Reuters –

USA

Former US President, Jimmy Carter, Dies at 100

Published

2 weeks ago

December 29, 2024

Eric

A former President of the United States, the 39th in the series, who was also a former peanut farmer, Jimmy Carter, has died at the age of 100.

According to FOX News, his death, which was announced by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Sunday, comes months after he entered hospice care in February 2023.

Carter’s passing follows that of his wife, Rosalynn, who died on 19 November 2023 at the age of 96.

The former president battled health challenges for years, including liver cancer diagnosed in 2015, which had spread throughout his body.

His survival defied expectations, despite a family history of cancer. His father, brother, and two sisters died from pancreatic cancer, while his mother’s breast cancer eventually spread to her pancreas.

Jason Carter, his grandson, revealed in May that the former president was nearing the end of his life’s journey, but Jimmy Carter continued to endure.