Pete Buttigieg: What Biden wants for US is what most Americans believe is right for nation

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Pete Buttigieg: What Biden wants for US is what most Americans believe is right for nation

Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, Pete Buttigieg joins Chris Wallace on ‘Fox News Sunday.’

This is a rush transcript from “Fox News Sunday" November 8, 2020. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

 CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: I'm Chris Wallace.

Joe Biden is elected the 46th president of the United States. Now, can he heal a divided nation?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: I pledge to be a president who seeks not to divide, but unify.

WALLACE: The president-elect declares victory and starts laying out his agenda.

BIDEN: Our work begins with getting COVID under control.

WALLACE: We'll discuss his plans for the presidency with Mayor Pete Buttigieg, a member of the Biden transition team.

Meanwhile, President Trump rejects the result and vows to mount legal challenges across the country, claiming the election is far from over.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a major fraud in our nation. We want the law to be used in the proper manner.

WALLACE: We'll talk with Republican Senator Mitt Romney, who says the president is inflaming dangerous passions.

Plus, congressional Democrats have a disappointing night, failing to mount a blue wave in the Senate and now holding a thin majority in the House.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: We did not win every battle in the House, but we did win the war.

WALLACE: We'll ask our Sunday panel about the new balance of power in Washington.

And our "Power Player of the Week" -- a fascinating look at the U.S. Army through the eyes of its heroes.

All, right now, on "FOX News Sunday".

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: And hello again from FOX News in Washington.

Here are the headlines this busy Sunday: Joe Biden is now projected to win at least 290 electoral votes, more than enough to become the nation's 46th president, in a tight race against Donald Trump, who is challenging the results and a broad legal offensive claiming fraud and voting irregularities. The president yet to concede, but the Biden transition team already hard at work.

In a moment, we'll speak with former Mayor Pete Buttigieg, a member of the Biden transition.

But we begin this hour with FOX team coverage. David Spunt is at the White House. But let's start with Jacqui Heinrich, who is covering the president- elect in Wilmington, Delaware -- Jacqui.

JACQUI HEINRICH, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Chris, Joe Biden promised throughout his campaign he will be a president for all Americans, and he dedicated a moment of his victory speech to reassuring Trump supporters that work on the issues will begin long before moving into the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)

HEINRICH: No days off after a hard-fought campaign delivered Joe Biden the office he's chased for decades and Kamala Harris, a seat at the table, opening doors for generations to come. The transition team is hard at work over three key goals -- getting a handle on the pandemic, repairing the economy, and beginning justice initiatives already promised by the campaign.

The only news will be who's leading each charge.

BIDEN: I will name a group of leading scientists and experts as transition advisors to help take the Biden-Harris COVID plan and convert it to an action blueprint.

HEINRICH: One face of the COVID front, former surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, who's been acting as an advisor to the Biden campaign. The incoming administration plans to spotlight messaging from public health experts, contrasting the posture of the Trump White House while also securing supply chains and working on a vaccine. Addressing the public health crisis will come ahead of many cabinet appointments, which may stretch across party lines with the understanding confirmations may go through a Republican- controlled Senate.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEINRICH: Biden sources are reluctant to go on the record, weary that President Trump may do everything in his power to stop an easy transition, Chris.

WALLACE: Jacqui Heinrich reporting from Wilmington, Delaware. Jacqui, thank you.

Now let's bring in David Spunt at the White House -- David.

DAVID SPUNT, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Chris, good morning.

The president appears to be having a hard time accepting defeat. Transition talks between team Biden and team Trump are well underway, but this current president is nowhere near conceding.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SPUNT: As thousands celebrated in the streets just outside the White House on Saturday, President Trump with a brief wave, returned from a day of golf at his northern Virginia club.

As the president hit the links, his legal team held a news conference in Philadelphia where votes are still being counted. The president's attorney, Rudy Giuliani, announced legal action related to alleged ballot irregularities.

RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S ATTORNEY: A friend of mine says, I don't believe in conspiracies, but I also don't believe in coincidences. Kind of funny that all Republicans were rejected here and all Republicans were rejected in Pittsburgh.

SPUNT: But Democrats and Republicans were allowed inside to monitor ballot counting operations and the president's surrogates have yet to prove fraud.

The president himself putting out a brief statement after Biden claimed victory. The simple fact is this election is far from over.

In his last week before Biden clinched the presidency, Twitter flagged multiple presidential tweets, including this, where the president claims he won the election by a lot.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SPUNT: Sources tell FOX News the president will ultimately commit to a peaceful transition of power, that is if his court battles end in a dead end -- Chris.

WALLACE: David Spunt reporting from the White House.

David, thank you.

Joining us now, former Mayor Pete Buttigieg, a member of the Biden transition team.

Mayor, congratulations and welcome back to "FOX News Sunday".

PETE BUTTIGIEG, BIDEN TRANSITION TEAM MEMBER: Thank you. Good to be back with you.

WALLACE: So, the president-elect claims that the American people gave him a, quote, mandate for action, but the fact is that there is still a likelihood that there is going to be a blue -- rather, a Republican Senate. There certainly was no blue wave in the Senate and House Democrats holding onto an even slimmer majority in the House.

So the question is, what mandate?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, I think he has a mandate to deliver on the winning campaign agenda that the Biden-Harris ticket offered the country. This not only earned the support of a majority of Americans who voted for him to be the next president, but also, we should remember that those who supported him and a remarkable number of President Trump supporters support the agenda that Joe Biden is going to lead our country forward with. In other words, the idea of getting serious on COVID and having a science-led approach, which is already underway on. The idea of raising wages and protecting workers, and making sure corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes, taking climate seriously, doing something about racial justice.

As we look forward, whether we have divided government or not, I know this, what Joe Biden wants for the country is what most Americans believe is right for the country, and that I think is where the real propulsion of his administration will be, just as it's been the propulsion of the campaign and led to this win.

WALLACE: Let's -- let's talk about some of his top priorities. The president-elect says that he will announce a new coronavirus task force on Monday, first announcement that he is going to make. Given that we are having a huge, serious spike in coronavirus cases around the country, over 100,000 a day -- I understand he is the president-elect, but he is the head of the Democratic Party.

Will Joe Biden work with Congress, the lame duck session, to try to do something about the coronavirus, or will he wait until he is formally sworn in as president in January?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, he will decide on the right course of action, but I think there's a sense of urgency throughout. We know that every day is bringing more loss, more pain, and more danger to the American people, and it's why he's not waiting until he's taking office to begin immediately assembling people who have the right kind of expertise and planning to actually listen to them.

And I think that will be guiding throughout this transition period, the decisions that he makes.

WALLACE: Well, let's talk about COVID relief. Millions of Americans, as you well know, are desperate for that, and the lame duck Congress is going to take that up. At this point, they are deadlocked.

Will the president-elect, as his new position, unofficial, and as the head of the Democratic Party, will he work with Congress to try to broker a deal, or is he going to wait ten weeks until January 20th?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, I think we all want to see something happen. And you know, he will have to make the decisions based on what he believes is right not only for the presidency that he will be building in January, but recognizing that he is now the president-elect and already a very important leadership position for the country. I think we all hope that the logjam in Washington comes to an end, and we will be eager to see what progress can be made before and going into the administration.

WALLACE: It looks likely -- not certain -- but likely that Republicans are going to hold onto the Senate. It's going to come down to two special elections in Georgia and Republicans will be favored in both.

If Republicans hold the Senate, if the majority leader is Mitch McConnell, isn't that really going to hurt some of the boldest parts of the Biden agenda? Things like a public option for health care or raising taxes by $4 trillion?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, again, first of all, Georgia has proven itself to be extraordinarily competitive, and so with the two fantastic candidates, Reverend Warnock and Jon Ossoff that we have running, I have every expectation that it will be a competitive race that we can very well take the majority in the Senate.

If that doesn't happen, at the end of the day, again, the thing we have going for us is that the American people are with us. We are not just talking to the House of Representatives and the White House, we're also talking about the strong majority of the American people and even stronger majority than the one that brought Joe Biden to office, when we talk about some of the things you just mentioned -- making sure the corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share, making sure that we expand access to health care.

And so, the McConnell caucus, the Republican caucus in the Senate will have to decide whether it wants to continue facing down the American people and standing in a way of what America wants, which I think would be a decision strategically to make the Republican Party a party of minority rule, or is their a willingness to reach across the island get something done?

Now, if we know one thing about President-elect Biden is that he is somebody who has that instinct, of getting things done, reaching across the aisle, especially in a place like the Senate, and I think that's going to be exactly the Senate attributes that will be so important to getting anything done at all.

WALLACE: But, as you well know, the Founders created checks and balances, divided or -- you know, a balanced government, three branches.

If you're Mitch McConnell, who just got elected, if you return -- I understand it's a thought experiment -- with a Republican majority, they are going to say, there was no agenda. There was no public mandate for a public option. There was no mandate for raising taxes $4 trillion. The country allowed us to retain the Senate.

BUTTIGIEG: Yeah, they structure the Senate as such, for better or for worse, that you can have a Senate majority that disagrees with the majority of the American people.

But then Mitch McConnell is going to have a decision. Is his purpose in Washington to defy the American people who, along with the president, and the House of Representatives, will believe in expanding, not taking away health care, ensuring that the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes instead of slashing their taxes no matter what, raising wages, greeting stomach treating climate change is real?

In other words, Mitch McConnell is going to have to decide whether he wants to help move this country forward and influence progress or whether he wants to stop progress. If he chooses to do that, I'm fearful not only that the Republican Party would pay a devastating price politically, but that the American people would pay a price that we can't afford to pay, because we need action.

WALLACE: Well, let's talk about a much more serious and more immediate conflict. President Trump, as you know, continues to say that this election is stolen, that there was rampant fraud and he intends to pursue legal challenges he says starting Monday in courts across the country.

Here is the president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Historic election interference from big media, big-money and big tech. As everybody saw, we won by historic numbers and the pollsters got it knowingly wrong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: How much harder will it be for President-elect Biden to keep his pledge to bring the country together if President Trump continues to say and to contest the legitimacy of this election?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BUTTIGIEG: Well, I think it's one of the reasons you see the president- elect already reaching out to those who didn't vote for him. And he didn't just say, "Give me a chance" or just say, "I'm going to give you a chance." He said, "Let's give each other a chance."

And that's an example of how he is beginning to work to heal the nation right away, not wasting any time to do it.

Look, even in these last days of his presidency, the president -- the current president has a chance to show leadership, to act as the person who loses every presidential election in our history has done, and do his part to help move this country forward and bring this country together. We have not seen that so far, and it's unfortunate.

(CROSSTALK)

WALLACE: And -- I was going to say, and if he doesn't, Mayor Buttigieg?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, then, it really comes down to his supporters. And look, this is a tough time. I've been on the losing side of many elections. And especially in a polarized country like this, I know that there are a lot of folks who supported the current president who, you know, maybe everyone, almost everyone in your neighborhood and your church and your Facebook circle of friends feel the same way, to where it's very hard to believe or accept that he's not popular in the same way that four years ago, I have a lot of liberal friends who couldn't believe -- literally couldn't believe - - that Donald Trump had the support of more than a quarter of the country, let alone almost half, as he proved to do.

But the simple reality is that President Trump has never had the support of a majority of the American people and this is the reality of where America is and where the election results are. You know, in terms of the popular vote, it wasn't even close. In terms of the Electoral College vote, the results are clear.

And the best thing we have going for us, no matter what this president says or does, whether in the last days of his presidency he rises to his responsibility or not, we know this much, which is there is a strong will among the American people, even those who voted the other way going into this election to make sure that we come together, tackle COVID, make the economy fair and ensure the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes, expand health care -- in other words, exactly agenda that got Joe Biden and Kamala Harris elected.

WALLACE: Finally, Mayor, I've got about a minute left, we're about to have the first woman in national office elected by all Americans, Vice President Kamala Harris. In a nation that breaks barriers, sometimes taking longer than I suspect some of us would like, how important is this?

BUTTIGIEG: It's extraordinary and, you know, it sent a message to women, two girls across the country, and I think across the world, that you can do anything. And her historic role also is the first black woman in this role, the first woman of South Asian dissent and somebody who really carried that weight of history throughout the campaign and did so, so well. I can't wait to see what her leadership is going to be like as a partner in change with Joe Biden and as vice president of the United States.

It is easy to overlook with all of the noise that's going on and the excitement around -- around this election. I hope we don't overlook just how extraordinary, how historic, and how affirming of progress in this country her historic victory is.

WALLACE: Mayor, thank you. Thanks for your time. You have been a good guest on this program during this long campaign and maybe we'll see you in Washington starting in January -- thank you, sir.

BUTTIGIEG: Thank you.

WALLACE: Up next, President Trump says Joe Biden has won nothing, that this election is being stolen from him. But a few members in the president's own party are pushing back. We'll speak with Republican Senator Mitt Romney, that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: President Trump is not only refusing to concede to Joe Biden, he says he will send lawyers to courts across the nation tomorrow, claiming Democrats are trying to steal this election with widespread fraud.

We're joined now by Republican Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, who says the president's rhetoric is dangerous.

Senator, welcome back to "FOX News Sunday".

SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): Thanks, Chris. Good to be with you.

WALLACE: I want to start with the president's comments about the election on Thursday night.

Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will not allow the corruption to steal such an important election or any election for that matter. And we can't allow silence -- anybody to silence our voters and manufacture results.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: You say the president has every right to pursue his legal remedies, which, of course, he does, but that his rhetoric there and in a number of tweets has gone far over the line. How?

ROMNEY: Well, I think it is appropriate for the president to make sure that the vote count has been done properly, to carry out recounts where it's a very close contest. If there are any irregularity's alleged, to pursue those and to -- and to follow every legal option he has. That's -- that's what you'd expect of a president in a setting like this.

At the same time, I think it's important to choose one's words carefully because the eyes of our children are upon us, the eyes of the world are upon us. Every nation in the world is watching with the president of the United States says. And there's a battle going on around the world between authoritarianism and freedom and it's important for the cause of democracy and freedom that we don't allege fraud and theft and so forth unless there's very clear evidence of that. And at this stage, that evidence hasn't been produced.

WALLACE: Here's part of a tweet that you wrote this week about President Trump and his rhetoric. I want to put it up on the screen. He, the president, is wrong to say that the election was rigged, corrupt, and stolen. Doing so damages the cause of freedom here and around the world, weakens the institutions that lie at the foundation of the republic, and recklessly inflames destructive and dangerous passions.

Senator, does what the president is saying, does it interfere with the peaceful transfer of power, not just among our leaders, but just among regular Americans?

ROMNEY: Well, I think there will be a peaceful transfer of power if there's a change in leadership. That happens in January. Until then, the transition team will be working with the Trump administration, and I think that will go smoothly.

But -- but I do believe that it's important for the American people to understand that we are a nation of laws, that we allow for recounts, that we investigate irregularities and that these things go to the courts and the courts make a fair and impartial decision. That's essential for -- for our nation to have confidence in our institutions and for people, as I've indicated, around the world to recognize that democracy works.

Saying something other than that would only be cheer for the Chinese and the Russians and those that want to bring down freedom and bring down democracy. So, pursue every legal avenue, and that's with the president will do. But I think it's important for all of us to hold our breath a bit, to calm down a bit and -- and not to use language that's so inflammatory that it will make people angry and people that are not watching carefully feel that somehow something has been rigged, and that's -- that's simply -- there's simply no evidence of that at this stage. And -- and we'll see whether there is down the road, but that's -- that's for time to tell.

WALLACE: A few -- a very few of your Republican colleagues have joined you in calling out the president's rhetoric.

Here's Pat Toomey from the hotly-contested state of Pennsylvania. Take a look.

SEN. PAT TOOMEY (R-PA): The president's speech last night was very disturbing to me because he made very, very serious allegations without any evidence to support it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: But the vast majority of your Republican colleagues in the Senate have either backed up, supported the president's unsubstantiated allegations of fraud, people like Ted Cruz of Texas, or they have remained silent.

Does that disappoint you?

ROMNEY: Well, I think everybody makes their own assessment as to what their responsibility might be. Frankly, the eyes of history are on us and - - and I believe I have a little bit of a different role, having been the nominee of our party in 2012, I -- I do feel a responsibility to express my views and to represent the small slice of the Republican Party, perhaps, that -- that still supports me in that regard. And -- and everybody makes that assessment.

Pat Toomey, of course, is the Republican senator from Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania is at the center of -- of controversy. So his remarks, I think, were -- we're -- we're well-suited to the moment. So everybody makes that assessment.

And I don't -- I don't have a point of view on what other senators do. I think we each have to make our own decision based upon where we are.

But, look, I remember Richard Burr, senator from North Carolina saying, you know, if I -- if I spoke out on everything that I disagree with that the president tweets or says, that's how I'd spend all my time. And I think there are some who feel silence at this stage, particularly with so much uncertainty, is the -- is the right way to go.

WALLACE: I -- I want to pick up on something that you just said, because you have been in the same situation back in 2012 that President Trump is in now. The networks called Barack Obama the winner in the 2012 election. You had a team of lawyers ready to fly out to various states. There are always irregularities in vote counting. You waited 90 minutes and then you called President Obama and conceded victory to him.

I guess two questions, one, why did you decide to go that course? And if you were in the situation now that Donald Trump is in with widening gaps in Pennsylvania and Nevada and Georgia, would you concede?

ROMNEY: Well, first of all, President Trump is a different person than I am. Every individual is different. I think one of the things people like about President Trump is that he is different than the typical politicians and people who have run for president before. He's going to keep on fighting. That's what you'd expect from President Trump. So he'll do what he's going to do.

My setting was different. We looked at the -- at the -- the vote totals. I met with my legal counsel. We talked about irregularities. It did not strike me that there was a realistic possibility of overturning the -- the result that had been called by the networks. And, frankly, there's something more important than myself, and whether I win or lose an election, and that is the cause of democracy and freedom. And at some point truth, freedom, and democracy have to accent and you step aside. And -- and I -- I'm convinced that that -- that that will happen in this case as well if and when the -- every avenue is exhausted for the president. But -- but time will tell in that regard.

But let me tell you this as well, I think the -- the assessment that somehow that -- that conservatism lost is -- is -- is not accurate. Republicans picked up statehouses, Republicans picked up seats in Congress. I think we're going to keep the Senate as well.

Conservative principles are still on the ascendancy in this country. I don't think America wants to sign up for the green new deal or getting rid of coal and oil and gas or Medicare for all or Medicare for many, many more. I think -- I think America is intent on pursuing policies that are more consistent with the Republicans that they overwhelmingly elected.

WALLACE: Well, I -- I want to pick up on that and I've got only a minute here, Senator, about that. It does look more likely than not that Republicans are going to maintain control of the Senate.

If they do, what is your attitude towards working with President Biden? How much deference do you feel that you will owe him in terms of his choosing the people in his cabinet and some of his policies, such as a public option for Obamacare or raising taxes or the environment?

ROMNEY: Well, I don't think the national election -- and I'll let the pundits make the final analysis in this, but I don't think it was so much a matter of signing up for a policy agenda as -- as a -- and I think it was much more of a personality matter, a character matter. And I don't think you expect elected officials to provide deference to others based upon their point of view because we all got elected. And we all have a responsibility.

But there are places we'll be able to work together. Look, health care is a mess right now. Prescription drugs are too extensive. Surprise billing shouldn't be going on. We can make some changes there.

Obamacare is not working. We're going to have to make some changes there.

If there are flaws in the tax code that let billionaires pay no taxes, I think we have to look at that as well.

The -- the -- President-elect Biden has spoken about increasing the child tax credit. That's something I've been fighting for with Senator Mike Bennett as well. So I -- I think you're going to see that there are a number of places that we have common ground. But -- but, look, conservatives like myself are going to continue to fight for conservative principles. And those things are not in the rearview mirror.

President-elect Biden has an agenda. We'll work with him on that agenda.

With regards to his cabinet, look, I believe that cabinet appointments -- the president ought to be able to appoint his own cabinet unless they're really out to lunch.

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Senator Romney -- well, we don't ever want people who are out to lunch. Thank you, Senator. Thanks for your time this week. And always good to talk with you, sir.

ROMNEY: Thanks so much, Chris. Good to be with you.

WALLACE: Up next we'll bring in our Sunday panel to discuss the Biden transition and what we can expect from President Trump in the days ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: Coming up, Democrats maintain control of the House, but lose seats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): As I've said, we've lost some battles, but we won the war. If we have the gavel. We have the gavel.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: We'll ask our Sunday panel whether the party's move to the left was the problem.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: President-elect Biden starting to lay out his agenda of the next four years in an address to the nation last night.

And it's time now for our Sunday group.

Dana Perino, anchor of "The Daily Briefing," Gerald Seib of "The Wall Street Journal," and Marie Harf of Serve America PAC.

Gerry, Joe Biden formed a transition team months ago. How do you expect him to move now in terms of both personnel and policy?

GERALD SEIB, EXECUTIVE WASHINGTON EDITOR, "THE WALL STREET JOURNAL": Well, you know, it's tricky because, you know, you and I both know the oldest cliche in Washington is that personnel is policy. So the first job is to figure out who staffs a Biden administration. And to do that he's going to have to both pick some people who will satisfy the progressive wing of his party, which thinks it'd have a lot to do with his victory, while keeping the Biden flag planted in the center of the ideological spectrum. And also maintaining some room to work with Republicans, who, as you've said, are likely to be in control of the Senate.

So I think you'll see a mix of people who -- a lot of traditional Democratic faces, a few surprises, and maybe a couple of Republicans to show that in this new, divided power in Washington, Joe Biden, President Biden realizes he's got to work in the center.

WALLACE: Marie, we hear that the Biden team is going to name White House staff before it names cabinet secretaries. We hear that when it comes to policy, not surprisingly, the top priorities, at least at first, are going to be dealing with the coronavirus pandemic and with the very fragile economy.

What can you add to that in terms of what you expect from the Biden team in the next weeks?

MARIE HARF, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SERVE AMERICA AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR AND FORMER STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: Absolutely. Well, we will get the Biden COVID plan laid out in much more detail, including some personnel on Monday. That is obvious the first priority.

I also expect that we will hear more about some of these ways that a Biden administration will almost immediately upon taking office start to roll back much of what they believe was so harmful of the Trump presidency. We've already seen reports about executive orders that will come very early on, doing things like getting the U.S. back in the Paris Climate Accord, repealing, getting rid of the ban on immigration for majority Muslim countries and -- and, of course, an executive order protecting dreamers. So I think step one is COVID and the economy. We'll hear more about that on Monday. And set two has to be rolling back what they feel like were some of the most extreme and harmful policies of the Trump administration.

WALLACE: Well, speaking of President Trump, Dana, there he is, and his continued resistance, rejection of a Biden victory. Here he is, the president, on election night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a fraud on the American public. This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Dana, what you expect from President Trump? Do you expect, at least in the short term, that he's going to continue to deny a Biden victory and continue with lawsuits, no concession or -- and if that is the case, do you think he'll ever come around to basically acknowledging that he has lost this election?

DANA PERINO, ANCHOR, "THE DAILY BRIEFING": So, I think that they are going to pursue every possible legal avenue that they can find because they do say that they have some problems, they are working on some lawsuits in several different states. They're looking at the recount in Georgia. They still believe that they will ultimately win in Arizona. And that's what the Trump team says. And so I think that, you know, patience is in order and if it -- if the shoe were on the other foot and Biden were wanting to pursue some legal challenges here, I think that America should have provided that as well.

So a little patience is warranted.

Chris, I did note, though, that aside from a couple of tweets yesterday, the president did not speak. And he held back. And I think that, you know, that -- that is something that you could say that is a positive for him, just to hold back, take a day, let his lawyers work on it and they were laying the groundwork for these legal challenges that begin tomorrow.

WALLACE: Gerry, what is your sense from talking to your sources of what's going on inside the president's inner circle, family, friends, inside advisors, outside advisors? There seems to be, from at least what we're hearing, a kind of struggle with some people suggesting the president needs to concede and -- and move on sooner rather than later, and other people, kind of bitter enders, saying, no, we ought to keep fighting. What -- what's your sense of how that's playing out inside the president's inner circle?

SEIB: Well, I think there's some division, as you would expect. I mean some people who want to fight longer than others. Some people who think -- and I think they're right about this, that the -- the president actually is a president of some consequence. He had achievements. He changed the Republican Party. He reflected a changed Republican Party. He brought it closer into touch with its working class roots. He changed the way Americans look at trade policy, for example. He changed the way Americans approached China. And you should not want, if you're a Trump supported, those kinds of achievements to be tarnished with a -- a sort of a bitter end fight here, if that's what we're looking at.

So I think some people are arguing that and others are arguing we need to fight on. We've laid out some principles and we need to stick with those.

It's very hard, as Dana suggested, it's hard to know exactly where the president is because there's actually been more silence from him and the Trump camp in the last 72 hours then there was earlier in the week. So I think this struggle is playing out and probably will for a few more days.

WALLACE: Dana, it would seem to me that Republicans on Capitol Hill have a role to play in this. Very few of them have said, look, you pursue your legal options, but, you know, damp down the rhetoric, like Mitt Romney, like Pat Toomey. There are a lot who are just silent and then there are some, I mentioned Ted Cruz, you know, who are like the Japanese soldiers who come out 30 years after the end of the -- of the war and -- out of the jungle and say, you know, is the fight still going on?

What do you expect the mood to be inside Senate Republicans, you know, as they begin to think perhaps their future is no longer so directly tied to Donald Trump?

PERINO: Well, also, remember, the Senate Republicans were counted out. It was expected that they would lose many of those competitive races, and they did not. And now there's two Georgia runoffs that basically that's going to be there line is the -- we're the last line of defense between a Joe Biden America and divided government. So they're going to try to fight for those seats very hard down there in Georgia.

And also a lot of these senators, someone like a Senator Ted Cruz, right, he might want to run in 2024. Does he want to get crosswise with the president right now? I mean he's -- you could be one tweet away from oblivion in the Republican Party right now if you decided to do that. And I think that the Republican of the hour at the moment on -- in the Senate is, of course, Mitch McConnell, and he is saying, let's just have some patients here and give him a few days and see how it turns out.

WALLACE: All right, panel, we have to take a break here. But when we return -- excuse me -- Democrats hang on to a narrow majority in the House and hold on to hope in the Senate, in a cliffhanger that will play out into the new year. We'll discuss that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): I'm going to be the majority leader or the minority leader. As I've told you, I've been both. Majority's better. And - - but we're -- we're awaiting the judgement of the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell waiting along with everyone else until January to see whether Republicans will hold onto control of the Senate.

And we're back now with the panel.

Gerry, it seems to me the tale of the Senate this year has been a big, bumpy roller coaster. Before the election, we were hearing a lot of talk about a blue wave sweeping a lot of new Democratic senators in on election night. It looked like Republicans were easily going to hold on to control of the Senate. And now, it turns out, we're going to have to wait for these two special elections on January 5th in Georgia.

So I guess my question is, did the Republicans in the Senate have a good night election night or not?

SEIB: They did. No, I think Republicans had a pretty good night overall. A good night in the House, a good night in the Senate elections, compared to expectations. And that's kind of been lost in the focus on President Trump.

But I also think it's worth noting here that this is an alignment that might look like it's a recipe for gridlock. You know, evenly divided power at a time of great polarization. But it can be also an alignment that works. When power is this closely divided between the two parties and even between the two houses, it tends to push everybody towards the center and it can empower moderates in the Senate because they have a lot of leverage in an evenly divided senate. So I'm thinking of people like Joe Manchin of West Virginia or the newly re-elected Susan Collins of Maine. If they find a way, and I believe it's possible for them to do that, they can exert a lot of leverage, not just over the Senate, but over Congress and even work with a President Biden, who, as we know, was the guy who went to Republicans in the Senate when there were problems in the Obama administration, getting things done. And the Mitch and Joe show is how things got accomplished.

WALLACE: Dana, where is the Republican Party going to be after Trump? How big a megaphone will he have from outside the White House and to what degree do you think congressional Republicans will continue to follow his marching orders as they did when he was in the Oval Office?

PERINO: It will be interesting to see. I mean I think that former presidents, you know, when they get into their life after the presidency, they have so much to -- at their fingertips, right? He has a platform. He's a wealthy man. He is loved by his family. And he did have a tremendous impact on the country with a record that a lot of people thought he couldn't do. He actually governed quite conservatively, which is why he was able to get that support of the whole Republican Party.

So the Republican Party is still going through its local realignment, but right now all of those Republicans are going to be focused on Georgia and probably President Trump will be focused there too because those two Senate runoffs are so important and yesterday Senator Chuck Schumer sounded a lot more like Don Quixote than General Sherman when he said, next we take Georgia and then we take America, as if he completely misread the election results, as Gerry was just saying, the Republicans actually did quite well.

They -- America does not want a radical left agenda and that is where I think the Republicans will focus for now as the rest of the post-Trump world kind of figures itself out.

WALLACE: Then there are House Democrats who, I think it's fair to say, had a disappointing election night. Instead of picking up a half-dozen seats, as most predicted, they ended up losing at least a half-dozen seats.

Having said that, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi continued to play it as a big victory. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): The most votes ever received by any presidential ticket in history. President-elect Biden has a strong mandate to lead and he'll have a strong Democratic House with him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Marie, will Nancy Pelosi be able to hold on to her speakership, and will she be able to control her much slimmer majority in the House given the fact that centrists and leftists in the House Democratic caucus really seem to be sharply split now?

HARF: Chris, I think the reason the Nancy Pelosi will remain speaker is actually because of that slimmer majority that you just mentioned. Nancy Pelosi has some critics on many issues, but one thing most people agree with is that she can keep the caucus together. She did it over the last four years when Donald Trump was president and there were these debates between progressives and moderates. And with an even slimmer majority, I do think the Democrats in the House will coalesce around her because they know that she can bring everyone together.

And, yes, I do think Democrats are disappointed they didn't pick up more seats, but an overwhelming majority of the moderates that won in 2018, the majority makers for the Democrats, won re-election in 2020, even with Donald Trump on the ballot, unlike in 2018. So it's a little bit of a mixed bag in the House right now. Certainly Democrats are disappointed in some ways, but happy with the majority and ready to help President Biden with his agenda.

WALLACE: Gerry, assuming that Republicans do win control of the Senate, and you've got Nancy Pelosi with a much slimmer majority in the House, what does this do to the more progressive elements of the Biden agenda, things like adding a public option to Obamacare, raising taxes, elements -- although he didn't support the whole -- the whole plan -- of the green new deal? Is that just up the window?

SEIB: Well, they're certainly going to be held in check. You know, I think in a way that helps a President Biden in some ways. I mean he doesn't have to keep the more progressive elements of his party, which have wanted to push him further left than he wants to go. He doesn't have to hold them in check. He can say, look, the Republicans in the Senate, I've got to deal with them. They're the people who are holding us back from fulfilling your progressive agenda. That's actually beneficial for Joe Biden. It gives him some running room, as I said before, towards the center.

So I think the political realities are going to assert themselves and some of the progressive agenda that Joe Biden will push will have a chance, but some of it's going to be left to the side. And I think that that's just a reality that he doesn't have to assert, that will assert itself in this new alignment.

WALLACE: Real quickly, Marie, about 30 seconds, do you think Joe Biden will welcome having a Republican Senate as a check on the far left, the AOCs of the world, or do you think he's going to have to grit his teeth?

HARF: Well, I'm not sure I'd go so far as welcome it, but if there's any democrat who can work with a Republican Senate, its Joe Biden. And last night you heard that message in his speech, I will be president of all Americans. I will -- I will work across the aisle. I will reach out to them. That's how Democrats are feeling today, Chris.

WALLACE: Yes, and he also said, let's give each other a chance. And I certainly agree with that.

Let's give each other a chance, panel.

HARF: Yes.

PERINO: Yes.

WALLACE: Thank you. See you next Sunday.

PERINO: Bye.

WALLACE: Up next, our "Power Player of the Week," a museum about the nation's history through the eyes of the men and women who helped defendants.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALLACE: For 245 years, the U.S. Army has defended our nation. This week, a museum honoring its history of bravery and sacrifice will open just outside Washington. And it's our "Power Player of the Week."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEN. JAMES C. MCCONVILLE, U.S. ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF: We stand on the shoulders of heroes that have gone before us and -- and really what we strive to do is live up to their legacy.

WALLACE: General James McConville, chief of staff of the U.S. Army, on the long line of soldiers who have served this country. This week you'll be able to see their stories with the opening of the National Museum of the Army.

MCCONVILLE: What we tried to do is capture significant events all throughout history. We want the American people to come to the museum to see the accomplishments, the sacrifices, and the commitments of our soldiers.

WALLACE: Visitor (INAUDIBLE) on the path of remembrance, eight thousand bricks etched with tributes to soldiers and their families. Inside, displays showcase soldier stories in every campaign the Army has waged.

MCCONVILLE: It's just very, very special and very inspirational for the American people to see that and also for the soldiers that have participated in those campaigns.

WALLACE: In the museum's 11 galleries, visitors travel back through the Army's proud history, highlighted by almost 1,400 artifacts, including the flag carried by Civil War trailblazers whose story was told in the movie "Glory."

MCCONVILLE: The 54th Massachusetts was one of the first African-American regiments. And during the Civil War, in a pinch battle, our Sergeant Kearney (ph) grabbed that flag and heroically led his fellow soldiers to a key place in the battle and he was one of the first African-Americans awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some of the landing barges are stopped by concrete obstacles.

WALLACE: In another gallery, one of fewer than a dozen surviving Higgins (ph) boats, the landing craft used to hit the beaches at Normandy.

WALLACE (on camera): You have one of the actual landing crafts from D-Day.

MCCONVILLE: To visualize, you know, thousands of young soldiers heroically storming those beaches and those Higgins boats allowed them to get to that beach and, quite frankly, that's what allowed us to -- to win the war.

WALLACE (voice over): While some items mark victories, others, such as these P.O.W. pajamas, worn by Medal of Honor winner John Caviante (ph) in a North Vietnamese prison, speak to soldiers' resilience and fighting spirit.

MCCONVILLE: People like Sgt. Caviante, they never broke. They were heroic. And what they did before they were taken prisoner, and even during that time frame.

WALLACE (on camera): How emotional is it for you to go through these galleries and see what you're a part of, the tradition that you are a part of?

MCCONVILLE: Well, it just -- just makes me very, very proud to be a member of the United States Army.

WALLACE (voice over): McConville has served our country for almost four decades. Last year he was named the Army Chief of Staff.

MCCONVILLE: I was inspired to serve by my dad. Once I got in the Army, I just met some incredible people, inspired by the soldiers that I served with and decided to make a career out of it.

WALLACE: Stories like McConville's and those of generations of Army men and women will now be preserved at the national museum.

WALLACE (on camera): What does the Army hope to get across to visitors?

MCCONVILLE: The Army's history is their history. We exist to protect the nation. That's our job. That's what we work hard to do every single day and we're very proud to serve the American people.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALLACE: The museum of the Army opens to the public Wednesday, which is Veterans Day.

And that's it for today. Have a great week and we'll see you next FOX NEWS SUNDAY.

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