"Right now, we are in an absolutely dangerous situation that we have to take with the utmost seriousness"

 

“Former official in the George W. Bush administration Matt Becker has a blunt message for General Services Administration (GSA) Administrator Emily Murphy today. She’s the person who has so far failed to sign the documents to begin the official transition process to a Biden-Harris administration. Becker writes this morning:

“When you serve in the executive branch, you are required to take an oath of office on your first day. Your oath is not to the president of the United States but to the Constitution and the American people. When Emily accepted this leadership role, she also accepted the responsibility to make the tough choices. This is one of those times.

“Make no mistake, I absolutely want the Trump campaign to expose fraud, if it is there. As a father, small business owner and lifelong Republican, I do not want a Joe Biden presidency. I simply do not agree with Joe Biden on how to move America forward. But, as an American, I know elections have consequences and my support of our Constitution outweighs my distress at who will be in the Oval Office.

“I take no pleasure in writing this. But short of a miracle, Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States. I know many Trump supporters may call me a RINO for this. Let me be clear, I do not care. I have served in the executive branch, I have seen the work involved, I know the importance of the transition, and I cannot be silent anymore” (The Guardian).

“The official count of Americans dead of coronavirus has topped a quarter of a million. 250,000 Americans, lost. Governors, including some Republicans previously opposed to ordering measures to stop the spread of the virus, are now issuing mandatory mask requirements. New York City has reached a 3% positivity rate; schools there have closed, and will go entirely on-line tomorrow. That rate is far below that of the regions worst hit these days. “‘Right now, we are in an absolutely dangerous situation that we have to take with the utmost seriousness,’ Assistant Secretary of Health at the Department of Health and Human Services Dr. Brett Giroir told MSNBC. ‘This is not crying wolf. This is the worst rate of rise in cases that we’ve seen in the pandemic in the United States and right now there’s no sign of flattening.’ The latest report from the White House coronavirus task force says we are facing ‘aggressive, unrelenting, expanding broad community spread across the country, reaching most counties, without evidence of improvement but rather, further deterioration.’ “And yet, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, maintains that no one in his department can coordinate with the incoming Joe Biden and Kamala Harris administration until the General Services Administration determines that Biden won the election. An administration official told CNN that department leadership had warned staffers not to communicate with Biden team, and to report any contact to the deputy surgeon general. Rick Bright, who was fired from the Trump administration for warnings about the dangers of coronavirus and who is now on the Biden team, told CNN: ‘We haven’t been able to sit down with the Trump administration at all, to be able to understand what plans are already in place, where the gaps are, where help is needed, and how we can make sure there's a smooth hand-off after January 20, where the bulk of these vaccines will be administered after that date.’ “Talking to frontline coronavirus workers, Biden said that Trump’s refusal to admit defeat is ‘the only slow down right now that we have.’ He pointed out that the lack of information means, for example, that his team has no idea how much personal protective equipment is stockpiled. ‘Soon we’re going to be behind by weeks and months being able to put together the whole initiative relating to the biggest promise we have with two drug companies coming along and finding 95% effectiveness, efficiency in the vaccines, which is enormous promise,’ he said. In a letter to the president, the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Nurses Association begged the administration to ‘work closely with the Biden transition team to share all critical information related to COVID-19.’ “Despite orders not to coordinate with the incoming Biden administration, a few Trump officials are quietly reaching out, according to CNN. As one put it: ‘Nothing that would get us in trouble…. Just an offer to be of help. They know what we mean, and what we can— and can-t— do or say.’ So far, nothing has come of these tentative offers. “Trump appears to be doing all he can to cripple Biden’s administration before it begins. Officials have told CNN that Trump is withdrawing troops worldwide in order to box Biden in before he takes office. A senior official told CNN that the goal is ‘to set so many fires that it will be hard for the Biden administration to put them all out…’” (Heather Cox Richardson).