The White House reportedly asked staff to prioritize “preparations for a smooth transition” on Thursday and to remain professional ahead of President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration next month, despite President Donald Trump’s ongoing efforts to undermine the results of the 2020 race and spread lies about his election loss.
Staff throughout the Trump administration, Vice President Mike Pence’s office, the National Security Council and the Council of Economic Advisers received emails from the White House chief of staff and White House counsel detailing transition protocol, CNN’s Vivian Salama reported.
While the message told aides to focus on Trump’s agenda for his final weeks in office, it added: “we must also prioritize preparations for a smooth transition.”
“Approach this project with the same professionalism and energy you have brought to all of your work in the past,” the email said. It also included details about record preservation and how to comply with legal measures during the transition period.
The White House did not respond to HuffPost’s request for comment on the email.
The messaging is in stark contrast to Trump’s ongoing efforts to undermine the election, which he lost to Biden by more than 7 million votes. The president has lost every legal challenge he has mounted in key battleground states to disenfranchise voters, but he still refuses to concede to Biden and continues to spread lies about rampant voter fraud (there is no evidence that it took place).
A cohort of 106 GOP House members signed an amicus brief this week in a last-ditch attempt to ask the Supreme Court to overturn Biden’s victory, just days before the Electoral College formalizes its final vote to name Biden the next president on Monday. The case, filed by the Republican attorney general in Texas, amounts to an unprecedented and meritless effort to install Trump in office against Americans’ will.
Democrats have derided the effort, and attorneys general around the nation have asked the Supreme Court to reject the suit.
Still, the Trump administration has signed off on the formal processes necessary to begin the Biden transition, which has been moving at a rapid clip. The president-elect has named many nominees for his potential Cabinet, unveiled a COVID-19 response plan for his first 100 days in office and vowed to undo Trump’s disastrous environmental policies.