A.G. Gancarski
Some may wonder if the President’s recalcitrance about election results is just a posture or not, but former heads of Homeland Security take it very seriously and say it threatens America’s position in the world.
In a joint statement, a bipartisan group of former Secretaries of Homeland Security urge President Donald Trump to commit to a “peaceful transfer of power,” a “complicated” transition to President-elect Joe Biden‘s administration that must “start now.”
Tom Ridge and Michael Chertoff, Republican George W. Bush White House appointees, signed off on the letter. So too did Barack Obama lieutenants Janet Napolitano and Jeh C. Johnson.
“Our country is in the middle of twin crises: a global pandemic and a severe economic downturn. The pandemic will make any transition more complicated. At this period of heightened risk for our nation, we do not have a single day to spare to begin the transition. For the good of the nation, we must start now,” the quartet contends.
“Leaders must protect our historic democratic processes. We will use every resource at our disposal to support our republic’s cherished, peaceful and orderly transition of power between administrations,” the former heads of Homeland Security hold.
They take rhetorical care not to invalidate the President’s right to question election results, though they clearly don’t see much merit.
“Voting in the 2020 presidential election is over and the American people have made their voices heard. By all credible accounts, state election officials have been diligent in conducting a fair, legal, and accurate count—county by county, state by state,” they contend.
“President Trump is assured the benefit of a fair process and the right to file legal challenges and request recounts in certain states, but his legal claims cannot and must not prevent the transition process from beginning. The Presidential Transition Act requires a transition to run concurrently with any election challenges and is intended to ensure the incoming administration is prepared to handle any challenge on Day 1.”
National security, they add, depends on it.
“A peaceful transfer of power was defined as essential to national security by the 9/11 Commission. It was critical following the 2008 election, when the country was confronted with active terror threats during the transition and what was then the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. It was essential in 2016 when America was working to defeat ISIS. And it is essential now.”
The gap between Republicans of the George W. Bush White House and those of the current vintage is pronounced on this issue, and it extends to the top.
While most elected Republicans, including most everyone with a statewide profile in Florida, have offered support for the President’s claims of election fraud, the former President has joined his brother Jeb Bush and has already congratulated Joe Biden.
The President, meanwhile, continues to claim that any losses in close states are a function of illegal ballots going against him, and various legal challenges have been mounted in those jurisdictions, thus far to no real effect. There is no evidence to back up Trump’s claims of significant voter fraud.
Nonetheless, the President is undaunted, tweeting Tuesday that “we will win” the election challenges looming in the days and weeks ahead.
