US President-elect Joe Biden affirmed his pride in the number of people of color in his administration and pledged to pay special attention to the talented.
While reports revealed new efforts by outgoing President Donald Trump to change the election results, it was leaked that those close to him began planning for their future outside the White House and that his deputy, Mike Pence, is looking for a home in the suburbs of Washington.
US President-elect Joe Biden said his government has more people of color than any other US government.
During a press conference announcing new appointments in his administration, Biden confirmed that his administration would open doors for talented people in the country.
Depp Haaland has been nominated for the position of Home Secretary.
If the Senate approves this designation, Haaland will be the first indigenous American to receive the portfolio of the Interior, the ministry responsible especially for the natural wealth of federal lands such as national reserves.
Biden introduced the main members of his assigned team, stressing that his administration will make the fight against global warming a basis in its efforts to rebuild the US economy affected by the "Covid-19" pandemic.
These people, Biden said, "will lead the ambitious plan of my administration to address the existential threat of our time, which is climate change."
He reiterated that he would return his country to the Paris climate agreement abandoned by President Donald Trump, and also restore a wide range of environmental laws that were approved during the era of former President Barack Obama and which Trump abandoned.
He said he chose Gina McCarthy, director of the Environmental Protection Agency in the Obama administration, to oversee climate policy coordination.
Biden, the environment secretary in North Carolina, has appointed Michael Reagan as head of the US Environmental Protection Agency, and Brenda Mallory, an environmental attorney and chair of the Environmental Quality Council.
It is noteworthy that Reagan and Mallory are African Americans.
The president-elect said that by choosing the characters announced on Saturday, his government will include 6 African Americans.
Trump insists on winning the election and pledges to continue the legal battle (Reuters)
Trump's fight
In another context, the "New York Times" newspaper quoted sources as saying that Trump had discussed appointing attorney Sydney Powell to the position of special investigator to investigate election fraud.
Most of Trump's advisers, including his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, have opposed the idea, the newspaper said.
Earlier, Trump denied resorting to customary laws to alter the election results, and described the news reports on the matter as fake news.
At the same time, he insisted that the elections were rigged and that he was the actual winner despite the passage of days after the electoral college had approved Biden's victory.
CNN said, "Trump discussed during a meeting with a number of his aides and allies the issue of declaring martial law, to change the election result that was won by his Democratic rival, Joe Biden."
Heated debate
The network quoted its sources as saying that the former chief of national security advisor, General Michael Flynn - who raised this idea a few days ago - was present at the meeting held yesterday, and that the discussion intensified when he accused the President’s aides, led by White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, of not doing what was necessary for defense On (President) Trump.
On the other hand, AXIOS website said that President Trump's lawyer called an official in the Department of Homeland Security to ask him about the possibility of the ministry confiscating voting machines.
The website added that the Homeland Security official responded to Trump's lawyer that she does not have the authority to confiscate the voting machines.
Trump had said Biden had not won the election, and that he had lost in swing states by a large margin before the fraud took place.
He added, in a tweet on Twitter, that they had canceled hundreds of thousands of votes in all of these states, saying "they were caught," referring to the Democrats.
The president said Republican politicians should fight a battle so that their victory is not stolen, and that they should not be foolish and weak, as he put it.
Pence is about to take a foreign tour to conclude his course as US Vice President (Reuters)
For his part, Anthony Scramucci, a former Trump administration communications director, said that the latter knows that he was defeated in the elections and will leave power next month.
In statements to the US television network, MSNBC, Scramucci added that Trump will face legal and financial challenges after leaving power, and media attention will divert from him.
To the suburbs
In a related development, the Washington Post said that the senior staff of the outgoing president's administration began planning their future, implicitly admitting the defeat in the elections.
The newspaper added that Mike Pence, Vice President, is looking for a house in the vicinity of Washington, and is planning a foreign farewell tour, which begins on the day when Congress prepares the electoral college votes on January 6.
It revealed that White House chief of staff Mark Meadows discussed with his allies and aides the establishment of a consulting firm, while economic advisor Larry Cadlow told his friends that he would return to his radio programs.
The Washington Post added that the atmosphere in the White House indicates the approaching end of the past era, while Trump is still sticking to his opinion on the election results.