NEW: @JoeBiden's transition chiefs tell NBC News how they've prepared for this moment, and how they aim for a quick start to building out the Biden/Harris Administration nbcnews.com/politics/2020-…
Biden's transition team has already identified 4,300+ prospective appointees for the 4,000 federal jobs it must ultimately fill, putting a premium on those with responsibility for tackling the Covid-19 pandemic, and others that don’t require Senate confirmation
100 transition staff (and growing) will first begin reaching out to dozens of individuals already IDd as potential hires to begin taking working as part of “agency review teams” to take stock of what needs to be done agency-by-agency
Officials pointed to Obama transition for timeline of when most high-profile Cabinet announcements might come. For now, the focus will be on both West Wing jobs, as well as the roughly 2,800 administration posts that don’t require Senate confirmation.
After the Biden transition website launched Sunday, it received 3 million views within just 15 hours. The most visited page: Biden’s plan for COVID-19. nbcnews.com/politics/2020-…
. @YohannesAbraham: “We've gone agency by agency and analyzed from the ground up what appointments and nominations are most important for his future agenda. ... We've tried to put in place a framework to facilitate decisions” quickly nbcnews.com/politics/2020-…
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.@WhipClyburn, who helped launch @JoeBiden to the presidency, tells me he is not looking for an administration role. “My plan is to stay right in the Congress." But pressed, he said: "I would never say never" if Biden asked him to play a role
Clyburn says he wants Biden to focus on the pandemic, infrastructure, health care -- and also to create a commission "to fix what was wrong with the 1986, 1988 and 1994 crime bills."
Clyburn also said he expects @KamalaHarris to be given a very substantive role - and he wants to see @CedricRichmond in the West Wing, not the Cabinet.
“There is no place for hate in America,” @JoeBiden says in joint gaggle with @KamalaHarris. “The words of a president matter.”
Biden says he and Harris separately spoke to @gretchenwhitmer. Gives FBI a great deal of credit for taking down this plot
“The American people are sick and tired of it,” Biden says of Trump calling Harris a monster. “It’s obvious he has a great difficulty dealing with strong women.”
"We need to revive the spirit of bipartisanship in this country," @JoeBiden says in Gettysburg. "I'm running as a proud Democrat, but I will govern as an American president."
Biden: "There's something bigger going on in this nation than just our broken politics. Something darker and more dangerous. ... What we're experiencing today is neither good nor normal."
Biden in Gettysburg: "It cannot be that after all this country has been through, after all that America has accomplished ... that here and now in 2020 we will allow the government of the people, by the people and for the people to perish from this earth."
I can’t tell you how often crowds have gathered near the venues where @JoeBiden is speaking despite the fact that his events are open to press. Many have hoped Biden would greet them after, but most often he doesn’t. The reason? 1/
The Biden campaign has repeatedly said he’s doing everything he can to DISCOURAGE the kinds of crowd gatherings that in many states and localities are against COVID regulations. If it’s greeting these crowds became routine, it would encourage more elsewhere 2/
This in addition to all the steps they take to keep a COVID-free Biden COVID-free. But even a distant drive-by, let alone what a COVID-affected POTUS just did, has most often been opted against 3/
Winston-Salem native @CP3 speaking ahead of @JoeBiden in Charlotte today. Says he's glad to be home, since "as you know I was in the bubble"
Biden calls Paul, "Mr. President," noting he is president of the NBA Players Association
Biden focused on the economic vulnerability of the African American community. In a crisis, he says, they're the first ones who fall in a hole, and then the last ones out of it in a recovery.