Rep. Jamie Raskin, of Maryland, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, warned that Trump’s failure to enter into agreements with the Biden administration on a presidential transition could endanger the peaceful transfer of power.
WASHINGTON — The top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin, is sounding the alarm over former President Donald Trump’s failure to enter into key agreements with the Biden administration for the presidential transition process, warning that it could endanger the peaceful transfer of power and threaten U.S. national security.
In a letter sent Wednesday to Trump and his vice presidential nominee, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, obtained exclusively by NBC News, Raskin warned that they are “breaking the precedent set by every other presidential candidate since 2010” by not accepting resources provided by the federal government for a smooth transition.
“Your actions depart from well-established norms of the federal government and demonstrate a spectacular disregard for the successful continuation of the essential institutions of American democratic government,” Raskin wrote.
The Maryland Democrat said it appears Trump could be trying to flout fundraising reporting requirements and rules designed to prevent conflicts of interest in the incoming administration.
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The Trump campaign has missed the deadlines, while Harris’ campaign entered into the agreements in September, Raskin said. A GSA spokesperson confirmed the agreement with the Harris campaign to NBC News on Wednesday and said the agency is “actively working with the Trump transition team to complete” a separate agreement. A White House spokesperson also confirmed that to NBC News and said the federal transition coordinator “is actively working with the Trump transition team to complete a MOU.”
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“It appears your decision may be at least partially driven by your intent to circumvent fundraising rules that put limits on private contributions on the transition effort and require public reporting,” Raskin wrote. “You may also be acting out of a more general aversion to ethics rules designed to prevent conflicts of interest in the incoming administration.”
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In the letter, the congressman also said Trump’s recent comments in which he wouldn’t commit to a peaceful transfer of power, in conjunction with his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, are exacerbating his concerns.
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Orange of Specious