New: Trump pardons two former Republican members of Congress, Duncan Hunter and Chris Collins, and commutes the sentence of a third, Steve Stockman.
Trump pardons George Papadopoulos, with statement that in part reads “Today’s pardon helps correct the wrong that Mueller’s team inflicted on so many people.”
Trump has also pardoned Blackwater contractors Nicholas Slatten, Paul Slough, Evan Liberty and Dustin Heard, who convicted of killing civilians in Iraq.
Collins was the first member of the House to endorse Trump in 2016. Hunter was the second.
Biden’s introduction of his pick for education secretary, Miguel Cardona, begins with a lengthy discussion of supporting schools and families through the pandemic with the goal of reopening most schools by the end of his first 100 days in office.
Biden reiterates his support for canceling $10,000 in student debt amid the pandemic.
Biden says his administration will "combat campus sexual assault under Title IX, something he says the Trump administration and the current secretary of education "have only undermined."
NEW: Bruce Reed will be a deputy chief of staff in the Biden White House, transition says. A former Biden VP chief of staff, he spent much of the last two years staffing Biden on the campaign trail. Much of his recent policy work has focused on regulating big tech.
Some progressives have voiced concerns about Reed joining the administration, pointing to his long ties to the centrist Democratic Leadership Council and his record as a domestic policy adviser during the Clinton administration, including helping write the 1996 welfare law.
More Biden staff: @ryanmontoya will be director of scheduling and advance, @AnneFilipic will be dir of management and administration, @gauragDC will be dep dir of the Office of Presidential Personnel. Vinay Reddy will be dir of speechwriting & Elizabeth Wilkins sr adv to COS.
Biden names two deputy directors of the National Economic Council: @davidckamin and @BharatRamamurti, whose focus will be financial reform and consumer protection. Plus @joelle_gamble as a special assistant to the president for economic policy.
Ramamurti was Elizabeth Warren’s top economic adviser during her 2020 presidential campaign. Both he and Gamble have ties to the progressive @rooseveltinst.
Kamin and fellow NYU prof @lilybatch’s 2019 paper “Taxing the Rich: Issues and Options” was extensively cited in Biden’s tax plan. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
Louisiana Rep. Cedric Richmond, who will join the White House as a senior adviser and director of the Office of Public Engagement, has tested positive for Covid. His interactions with Biden were “open air, were masked and totaled less than 15 consecutive minutes,” @KBeds says.
“President-elect Biden underwent PCR testing for COVID-19 today and COVID-19 was not detected,” per @KBeds.
The Richmond covid case is the first confirmed case among Biden’s close advisers and family.
Biden says that 7 Senate Republicans, “mostly senior,” have called him tonight. He spoke to “one of the most senior members” who expressed a willingness to work on China and infrastructure. It’s going to take 6-8 months but GOP will work w him, “you’re going to be surprised.”
Biden recounted a call he had tonight w "one of the most senior members" of Senate GOP. "Joe, we've always been able to work together and there's a lot we can work on" was the msg from this lawmaker, who said he's willing to work w Biden on China, covid, health & infrastructure.
"I predict to you, and I may eat these words, I predict you as Donald Trump's shadow fades away, you're going to see an awful lot of change," Biden said as he reflected tonight on outreach from Senate Republicans.
Biden says the electoral college cast its votes for president and vice president today "in an act just as old as our nation itself."
The record turnout "should be celebrated not attacked," Biden says. "More than 81 million of those votes were cast for me and Vice President-elect Harris."
Trump called 306-232 a "landslide" four years ago when he was the winner, Biden says. "By his own standards these numbers represented a clear victory then and I respectfully suggest they do so now."