Harris concession opens agencies to Trump—if he opts in

Vice President Kamala Harris conceded the presidential race to former President Trump on Wednesday, which formally opened the door for the Biden administration to begin allowing the president-elect’s teams into agencies throughout government. 

There remains a significant hurdle to that process, however: Trump has still not signed an agreement with the Biden White House, nor the General Services Administration, the federal agency that manages the presidential transition, that would allow those landing teams to deploy. Under federal transition statute, Trump must have the memoranda of understanding in place and detail the individuals who will serve on the transition before sending them to agencies. 

Trump declined to sign the agreements throughout the election process, preventing his team from engaging in most of the formal pre-election transit process. 

Trump’s clear victory and Harris’ concession closed the door on the messiest situation for which federal agencies had prepared, namely the scenario in which neither candidate conceded and GSA would have to clear both transition teams to deploy into agencies simultaneously. 

Instead, only Trump is eligible, should he choose to take advantage of the opportunity. Federal agencies have prepared briefing materials to present to Trump’s landing teams and Congress has appropriated funding to support Trump’s transition efforts, though both require the MOU. 

“We have one president at a time,” said Valerie Smith Boyd, who has worked closely with with agencies and the transition teams as head of the Partnership for Public Service’s Center for Presidential Transition. “There is really no obligation or mechanism to meet with Trump’s team” absent the agreement. 

Engagement with agencies requires secure communication channels—typically through .gov email addresses—screenings before individuals can physically enter agencies and, in some cases, interim security clearances so team members can access classified information. Without an agreement in place that sets up those parameters, Boyd said, GSA would “advise federal agencies not to engage” with Trump’s staffers. 

Still, the Biden administration is offering to help Trump ensure continuity of government. The White House said on Wednesday Biden spoke to Trump and “expressed his commitment to ensuring a smooth transition.” Harris, in her concession speech Wednesday, similarly said she told Trump “that we will help him and his team with their transition, and that we will engage in a peaceful transfer of power.” 

GSA said in a statement Wednesday that it had notified Trump’s team that he is eligible to receive its post-election transition services. 

“GSA is prepared to work with President-elect Trump’s transition team to complete the required agreement to receive GSA administrative services and support,” the agency said. 

Trump’s MOU would also lay out non-disclosure agreements, protocols for accessing sensitive information and conditions to not use information shared for personal gain. Harris’ team had signed the MOUs and had an ethics plan in place well before the election. 

“In the absence of that agreement, the incumbent president is not expected or obligated to open up access to federal agencies,” Boyd said. 

If Trump signs such agreements, he would then transmit the names of his transition team members to GSA, which would in turn deliver those to agencies. Government Executive previously reported that Trump’s team members would likely face delays in accessing agencies and the information they prepared due to the necessary screening that must take place. Boyd noted that process could have begun as early as Sept. 1, when GSA offered its services to both campaigns. The Justice Department has not yet reached an agreement with the Trump campaign to advance those efforts.   

Trump has established a transition team, naming Howard Lutnick, who leads a financial services firm, and Linda McMahon, who headed the Small Business Administration under the former president, as his transition co-chairs. McMahon also chairs the America First Policy Institute, a group of former Trump administration officials that has worked to set up policies and personnel for Trump to tap into. 

“The selection of mcmahon of a transition co-chair allows the candidate to tap into the hard work that the America First Policy Institute has been doing for the last couple years,” Boyd said. “While they do keep a low public profile, they do show signs of a very vigorous planning effort.” 

Given that Trump can tap into his network of former officials who served under him only four years ago, he could opt to forgo the process entirely in the hope that they can hit the ground running even without reviewing the latest happenings at agencies or forging relationships with top career executives through agencies. 

Still, Max Stier, president of the Partnership for Public Service, said Trump must be ready to govern on day one and called on the president-elect to reach agreements with the White House, GSA, Justice and other entities. 

“Presidential transitions are complex and challenging under any circumstances, and trying to execute one without this support is like running a race with your shoes tied together,” Stier said. “Declining this support is a tremendous and unnecessary risk to national security and readiness.”

Trump’s post-election transition planning was also delayed in 2016 because he abandoned the efforts that former Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., had led, opting to essentially start from scratch after his victory.