US federal government finally recognises Biden as heir apparent
The US federal government has recognised Joe Bid en as the “apparent winner” of the November 3 presidential election, formally starting the transition of power after Donald Trump spent weeks testing the boundaries of American democracy.
And with Mr Biden finally being certified last night as the winner in Pennsylvania’s election, another nail was driven into Mr Trumps increasingly forlorn hopes of overturning the Democrat candidate’s election victory
But Mr Trump still refused to concede and vowed to continue to fight in court after General S er vices Administrator Emily Murphy gave the green light for Mr Bid en to co-ordinate with federal agencies ahead of his inauguration on January 20. But he did tweet that he was directing his team to co-operate on the transition.
President-elect Bid en yesterday introduced selections for his national security team, declaring “America is back”.
It was his first substantive offering of how he will shift from the Trump administration's “America First” policies by relying on foreign policy and national security experts from the Democratic estab - lishment to serve as some of his most important advisers.
Traders in New York reacted positively to the news that former chair of the Federal Reserve Janet Y ellen is set to be Treasury Secretary, the Dow Jones reaching a historic mark as it broke through 30,000 points for the first time in the index's 124-year history.
Mr Biden's Washington veterans all have ties to former president Ba rack Ob am a' s administration as the president-elect has sought to deliver a clear message about his desire to re-establish a more predictable engagement from the United States on the global stage.
“It's a team that reflects the fact that America is back, ready to lead the world, not retreat from it,” said Mr Biden, at an introductory event at which his selections stood on stage, at least six feet apart and masked.
The president- elect's team includes Anthony Blinken, a
veteran foreign policy hand well-regarded on Capitol Hill whose ties to Biden go back some 20 years, for secretary of state; lawyer Alejandro Mayorkas to be homeland security secretary; veteran diplomat Linda Thomas-greenfield to be US ambassador to the United Nations; and Obama White House alumnus Jake Sullivan as national security adviser.
And Avril Haines, a former deputy director of the CIA, was
picked to serve as director of national intelligence, the first woman to hold that post.
With the Senate's balance of power hinging on two run-off races in Georgia that will be decided in January, some Senate Republicans have already expressed antipathy to Mr Biden's choices as little more than Obama world retreads.
Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican and potential 2024 presidential hopeful,
derisively accused Mr Biden of surrounding himself with “panda huggers” who will go soft on China.
Marco Rubio, who sits on the Senate foreign relations committee that will consider Mr Blinken's nomination, tweeted: “Biden's cabinet picks went to Ivy League schools, have strong resumes, attend all the right conferences& will be polite & orderly caretakers of America's decline.”