President-elect Joe Biden and Vice president-elect Kamala Harris are expected to receive a security briefing on Tuesday (November 17), but not from government officials.
The incoming administration will be meeting with intelligence and defense experts and diplomats according to an official with the Biden transition team.
The official told NBC News that there won’t be any government officials participating in the briefing.
The current administration still hasn’t formally approved the transition, which prevents Biden and Harris from receiving the same briefings as President Trump.
The move by Biden and Harris to create and participate in their own briefings is being seen as a strategic way to pressure the General Services Administration (GSA) to begin the formal transition of power.
To begin the official transition, the head of the GSA, Emily W. Murphy, must first affirm the election results. The GSA has not done so in part because of Donald Trump’s refusal to concede the election.
According to a report by the Associated Press, Murphy has reached out to Dave Barram, who held her position during the contested 2000 presidential election. During that time, an official winner was not announced until mid-December.
With the surge in coronavirus cases, the Biden administration is anxious to get to work. President-elect Biden said during a news conference he worried about the lives that could be lost if a smooth transition did not occur soon.
Dr. Anthony Fauci echoed these sentiments on Monday (November 16), stating that the transition is necessary to plan for wide COVID-19 vaccine distribution.
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