Transition Roundup: Top Economic and Communications Officials Named; Biden Receives First Presidential Daily Briefing

During an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes that aired on Sunday night, Chris Krebs, recently fired director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, reiterated his assertion that there was no fraud in the 2020 election. “I’m not a public servant anymore, but I feel I’ve still got some public service left in me,” he said. “If I can reinforce or confirm for one person that the vote was secure, that the election was secure, then I feel like I’ve done my job.” Here are some of the other recent headlines from the holiday weekend and today that you might have missed. 

President-elect Biden will receive his first presidential daily briefing on Monday, according to the daily transition schedule. 

Biden will nominate Neera Tanden, head of the center-left think tank Center for American Progress, to be Office of Management and Budget director, the transition team announced on Monday morning. 

Other announcements for top economic posts were: Janet Yellen for Treasury secretary; Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo, former senior international economic adviser during the Obama administration, for deputy Treasury secretary; Cecilia Rouse, Princeton University labor economist, for chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers; and campaign economic advisers Jared Bernstein and Heather Boushey for members of the Council of Economic Advisers. 

Brian Deese, investment executive and former senior official during the Obama administration, will be picked for director of the National Economic Council, according to Politico. 

On Sunday night, the transition team named the senior White House communications team, which is all female. “They are a very cohesive group, with great strengths and diverse viewpoints,” Anita Dunn, a top Biden campaign aide, told The Washington Post. “The odds are very high that if it's a story about the Biden administration, any aspect of it, at least one quote in the story will be from a woman.” 

The transition team publicized new members to its coronavirus advisory board on Saturday. They are: Dr. Jill Jim, member of the Navajo Nation and the executive director at Navajo Nation Department of Health; Jane Hopkins, trained as a nurse in England who specializes in mental health; and Dr. David Michaels, epidemiologist at The George Washington University and former head of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 

Politico profiled Jake Sullivan, Biden’s pick for national security adviser, who at 43 years old will be the youngest person to serve in the role in about 60 years. 

After speaking with troops on Thanksgiving, President Trump told reporters he would leave the White House on January 20 if the Electoral College votes for Biden. “It's going to be a very hard thing to concede because we know there was massive fraud,” he added, CNN reported. 

Trump gave his first interview since the election to Fox News on Sunday during which he continued to put forth his claims about voter fraud. “My mind will not change in six months,” he said. “There was tremendous cheating here.”

Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., chairman of the Joint Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, said on CNN on Sunday he hopes Trump will attend the event in January when it is “likely” that Biden will be sworn in. He hasn’t tried to persuade him to come, “but I have certainly encouraged his staff to look at the transition now, look at the opportunity in Georgia to help us win these Senate seats, look at what the president can do, if the president is leaving the White House, as he says he will do if he loses the Electoral College vote, to help us win back the House in 2022,” he said. “I think there is a big role for President Trump. And I hope he embraces that.”

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai said on Monday he will step down from his post on January 20, which is Inauguration Day. “It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve at the Federal Communications Commission, including as chairman of the FCC over the past four years,” he said in a statement. “I am grateful to President Trump for giving me the opportunity to lead the agency in 2017, to President Obama for appointing me as a Commissioner in 2012, and to Senate Majority Leader McConnell and the Senate for twice confirming me.” FCC commissioners and chairpersons serve five-year terms, unless they’re filling in for an unexpired term. 

Today’s GovExec Daily podcast episode looks at how Biden can rebuild the federal bureaucracy. 

Help us understand the situation better. Are you a federal employee, contractor or military member with information, concerns, etc. about how your agency is handling the transition? Email us at newstips@govexec.com.