The transitional period paving the way for the departure of an American president - who lost the presidential elections - and his administration, and the arrival and administration of a new elected president, is one of the most important pillars of American democracy, as it includes a thorny stage in the transfer of all the powers and powers enjoyed by the president, his ministers, and senior officials of various government agencies to the former rival and his team.
Since the era of President Harry Truman, the departing president began inviting the new president to a meeting at the White House, and Dwight Eisenhower was the first of these to visit the White House before his inauguration as president in 1952.
Truman also invited the federal agencies to facilitate the task of the team supporting the new president and to provide him with what he needed to start his presidential duties on the first day of office.
Nearly 70 days before the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, the transfer of powers had yet to begin due to President Donald Trump's failure to recognize the 2020 election result.
Al-Jazeera Net presents the details of this critical stage in a question and answer:
What are the laws governing the transition phase?
The 20th Amendment to the Constitution stipulated the end of the US President’s term of office at midday on January 20 after the presidential elections.
The 1963 "Transfer of Presidential Power" Act detailed this important process.
How is spending on the president-elect's transitional team financed?
Congress has appropriated $ 9.62 million for transitional activities for each eligible campaign in the 2020 elections.
The federal government allocates nearly $ 10 million to the winning candidate’s team, in order to spend on the staff’s salaries, and to allow the establishment of tax-exempt organizations to collect donations.
According to the "Public Service Law", they are allowed to accept a maximum of $ 5,000 in donations from individuals or institutions on the condition that the donation statements are announced before mid-February.
When does the transition start?
Many believe that the transition phase begins after the elections are held and the results are announced, but in reality it begins much earlier.
Candidates from both parties begin an informal transition process early in the run-up to elections, and the winning candidate's team plans to prepare for any emergency scenario, particularly regarding national security and key economic issues.
What are the most important tasks of the transition team?
President-elect Joe Biden has formed task forces in various fields that will:
Developing Candidate Biden's pledges to federal policies, legislation, and presidential executive orders as soon as he becomes president.
Forming work teams that simulate federal ministries and agencies, and during this stage reviewing executive presidential orders and the most important laws taken by the previous administration to see what can be changed in the first 100 days of the new president’s rule.
After the inauguration of the President, he must present a public speech on the issue of the State of the Union, then submit the first federal budget, and from here the transition team works early to prepare for this event.
Political appointments: The president has the authority to nominate or appoint at least 4,000 government positions, 1,200 of which require Senate approval, and the transition team tends to scrutinize selected figures at the level of ministers, senior officials in various government agencies, and key personnel in the White House.
Technical and logistical support: The president-elect's official transitional team provides technical and logistical support to the new president, and works as a team assisting the president to provide for any needs related to any of the issues he talks about during the transitional period.
Who is involved in the presidential transition?
Under normal circumstances, 3 parties work closely to facilitate the transfer of power:
First: members of the presidential transition team aide to Joe Biden.
The current presidential administration, as according to the 1963 Presidential Transition Act, the Trump administration should assist in the transition process.
Federal departments and agencies, as senior government employees begin to meet with members of Biden's team and inform them of the details of what they are doing, and the nature of the issues that they will deal with and inherit from these agencies, including policies, programs, budgets and appointments.
What does history tell us about moving between different departments?
The case of the transition from the administration of Republican President George W. Bush to Democratic President Barack Obama is a great example of how two presidents from different parties are preparing to face all issues from day one, but President Trump is not expected to facilitate a smooth transition of power to President-elect Biden.
Can President Trump disable the transition process?
So far, the Trump administration has not signed a major document required to formally start the transition process, and all eyes are on Mrs. Emily Murphy, Director of the Government Services Authority - appointed by President Trump - to sign important documents allowing the release of federal funds for the transition team of President-elect Biden.
The signing of these documents would represent an official acknowledgment by the Trump administration that Biden had actually won the election, and that would open the door for Joe Biden's presidential transition team to begin practical steps to prepare for taking power in the middle of the 20th of next January. .
A spokesperson for the Government Services Authority refused to provide a specific timetable for when the official documents would be signed, a clear indication that the agency would not precede the president.
Pamela Bennington, a spokeswoman for the commission, told CNN, "The director of the commission does not choose the winner in the presidential election, and according to the 1963 Presidential Transition Law, as amended, the director of the commission checks the apparent successful candidate once the winner is clear based on the The process stipulated in the constitution. "
Wasn't there prior coordination between the representatives of President Trump and the Biden representatives?
Yes, in early September the Trump administration signed 3 Memoranda of Understanding with the Biden transition team as stipulated in the Presidential Transition Act, and they were signed by the Government Services Authority, the Department of Justice, and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
At that time, $ 9.62 million had been earmarked for Biden's transition team for pre-election services, and indeed had it.
What is the position of the American community organizations concerned with the process of rotating power?
The Presidential Transition Center - an independent, non-partisan organization - issued a statement on Sunday evening, calling on the Trump administration to begin transferring power procedures and recognizing the election results.
"Now the real challenge begins. We are urging the Trump administration to immediately start the transition process, allowing the Biden team to make full use of the resources available under the Presidential Transition Act," the center said in its statement.
Is the process of transferring power different in the case of two administrations from two different parties from one administration to another of the same party?
Yes, the presidential transition process differs radically in this case when the two presidents are not from the same party, as it is expected that in addition to the change of persons, a wide change in internal and external public policies will take place.
While the transition would be a lot easier if the outgoing and incoming presidents were from the same party, as was the case in 1988 when George HW Bush elected departing Vice President Ronald Reagan.
Many experts and non-governmental organizations are calling for a simplification of the transition process to ensure a smooth transfer of power, and this is not only important to ensure continuity in the basic jobs and services that are implemented for the American people, but also to show that the United States is stable and able to deal with frequent successions in the head. Authority.
Does the president-elect receive intelligence statements during the transitional period?
The Presidential Transition Law of 1963 referred to the necessary mechanisms to facilitate the orderly and peaceful transfer of power, and under federal law and political custom, presidential candidates are entitled to receive a confidential briefing on national security issues after the end of the party's national conference, which ended last September.
Associated with this is the start of the new team assisting the president-elect in the process of issuing the necessary security clearances for the characters expected to occupy positions of a nature that allow them to access government secrets.
Why is giving intelligence briefings to presidential candidates important?
It is very important for the president-elect to inform and his team of the latest security threats to the United States, in addition to the secret operations carried out by the various intelligence services, and the president-elect can accompany his senior aides to attend these briefings.