Biden transition argues agency review teams represent 'diversity of ideology and background'
The teams are supposed to bridge the outgoing and incoming administrations
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team is naming members to its agency review teams in an apparent effort to appeal to progressives – although they can't officially get to work until the General Services Administration under President Trump acknowledges the 2020 election results.
The teams are supposed to bridge the outgoing and incoming administrations in order to keep executive branch agencies running smoothly as their top-level leadership changes – and unofficially as a nod to progressive interests in the Democratic Party.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Agency review teams are an integral part of the transition process, responsible for evaluating the operations of federal agencies,” Biden’s transition team said Tuesday. “Our teams are composed of diverse experts with deep policy expertise, ready to ensure we're prepared to lead on Day One.”
First among the transition team’s core values are “diversity of ideology and background,” according to its website. Many of the members come from university faculties, nonprofits and the occasional law firm.
But the selections come amid tensions between progressive and moderate factions in the Democratic Party.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“The teams have been crafted to ensure they not only reflect the values and priorities of the incoming administration, but reflect the diversity of perspectives crucial for addressing America’s most urgent and complex challenges,” the transition team said in a statement announcing the review team rosters.
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The transition team also touted diversity among the ranks – noting that more than half of the agency review team members would be women and about 40 percent would “represent communities historically underrepresented in the federal government.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Those include minorities, people with disabilities and members of the LGBT community, the transition team said.
As for the president’s legal efforts, Biden’s camp has downplayed how impactful they may be.
“There's no question they can't overturn the outcome of this election, and Joe Biden will be inaugurated on Jan. 20,” Biden campaign aide Bob Bauer said during a Tuesday news briefing. “The Biden Harris transition is going forward. It's moving along very briskly. President Biden will take the oath of office on Jan 20, 2021. And that's going to be our answer to that.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Elections officials have also blasted the head of Trump’s General Services Administration for failing to have ascertained Biden’s status as the president-elect by now.
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The GSA has not yet made an "ascertainment" decision -- the formal declaration set up by the 1963 Presidential Transition Act. Until that step is complete, the Biden team cannot formally begin the transition process – and the delay is costing the Biden team access to millions in federal funding, security clearances and the ability to meet with officials at intelligence agencies.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Your delay is damaging the ability of President-elect Biden to fully address the pandemic head-on when he takes office,” FEC Commissioner Ellen Weintraub wrote in a letter to GSA Administrator Emily Murphy.
Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.