The election campaign of the outgoing US President Donald Trump welcomed the decision of the state of Georgia to recount the votes, and the news from those surrounding the president conflicted between continuing to contest the election results and accepting them, at a time when President-elect Joe Biden prepares to form his administration.
A Trump campaign spokesman said the Georgia state decision marked an important step toward ensuring fair elections and counting all votes.
Georgia State Secretary Brad Ravensberger said that the state authorities will conduct a comprehensive recount of the votes of the electorate, and it is expected that the process will not end before the 20th of this month.
Ravensberger explained the decision by narrowing the difference between the two candidates, Joe Biden and Donald Trump, which is about 14,000 votes, adding, "There is no room for us to approximate or estimate, but we need to calculate carefully. We will continue the process with our awareness of its importance not only for the state of Georgia, but for all of America."
Meanwhile, Trump's team went to federal court to try to prevent Michigan state from certifying election results, as Trump lags behind by about 148,000 votes in an unofficial count of the state's total vote, but state official Jake Rolo said in a statement that the Trump campaign was promoting false allegations to undermine Public confidence in the elections.
Election integrity
Trump said in a tweet on Twitter that the Republican Election Commissioner in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Al Schmidt is being used by media outlets described as largely fraudulent to explain that the elections in Philadelphia were conducted in a fair manner.
Trump said that Schmidt was associated with Republicans by name only, and accused him of ignoring a mountain of corruption and deceit, as he put it.
Schmidt had said in an interview with CNN that the elections are the most transparent and secure in the city's history, adding that no fraud or widespread fraud has been detected, and the counting of votes is still continuing.
A Trump lawyer has also been quoted as admitting that there is no fraud or influence on voters in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
On the other hand, the OAS observers mission, which attended the elections at the invitation of the State Department, said that it did not notice any violations or fraud that might affect the announced election results.
Observers added, in a preliminary report, that they did not stop violations, stressing that they spread on polling days in states, including Georgia, Michigan, Iowa and Maryland.
They also confirmed Trump's right to go to court to demand scrutiny of the results, but they cautioned against the rumors.
Accept or reject?
For its part, NBC quoted Trump advisers as saying that the president may accept the election results, but he will not admit the loss.
As for CNN, it quoted an informed source as saying that Trump met Tuesday with his political and advisers at the White House to discuss the next steps in his legal strategy.
The network added that Trump appeared skeptical of his legal team's efforts but intended to continue the appeals, although some of his advisers privately say there is no opportunity.
The network indicated that one of the Republicans close to the White House expected that the legal efforts would reach a conclusion by next week.
Once that is done, pressure will increase on the president to accept that Biden will be the next president.
In turn, said Republican Senator from Pennsylvania Pat Tommy, "I think it will be better to start the process of transfer of power and I expect that soon. It seems that things are heading to confirm soon that Biden win the presidency."
Media reports said former bipartisan ministers urged the Trump administration to allow the Biden transfer of power to begin.
Axios also reported, citing 3 informed sources, that Trump's decision to expel Defense Secretary Mark Esper and appoint a charge d'affaires is an indication of the Trump administration's intention to expedite the withdrawal of forces from the Middle East and Afghanistan before the end of his presidency next January.
A senior official indicated that the wave of dismissals in the Pentagon came in the context of Trump settling his personal accounts.
However, other senior White House officials said the administration had directed them to speak publicly about withdrawing from Afghanistan before the end of the year.
Biden preparations
On the other hand, Biden is preparing to announce the name of the White House chief of staff this week.
Biden enlisted the help of financial, commercial and banking experts on his transition team, whose members range from fellow Democrats to progressive activists.
The two men competed to appear on Veterans Day, as Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery near Washington and placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, around the same time Biden participated in a memorial service for the victims of the Korean War in Philadelphia.
And they declined to make statements during the two occasions, but Biden said on Twitter, "I will be a commander in chief who respects your sacrifice, understands your service and will never betray the principles that you fought so courageously to defend them," while the White House published a statement mentioning the gains made to veterans under Trump's rule. .