United States Presidential Transition
The presidential transition of the United States of America (English. United States presidential transition ) is organized in a multi-month political process change of government in the United States . It is the transfer of the official duties and executive rights of an incumbent but resigning president to the elected successor ( president-elect ) in the period between election and inauguration .
The Presidential Transitions Act of 1963 , which was amended several times, was essential for the formalization of the presidency change.
history
In the history of the United States , presidential handovers until Harry Truman's presidency (1945–1953) consisted mostly of a symbolic and ceremonial act of inauguration itself. Some of the changes of government took place without further incident, while other changes of government were chaotic, such as the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln (1861 ).
After the US presidential election in 1952 , it was the outgoing Truman himself who invited his successor, Dwight D. Eisenhower, to the White House after the election victory and instructed the federal authorities to work for the new Eisenhower administration before it took office. From 1960 to 1961, John F. Kennedy organized the change of power independently after his election victory; this comprised extensive planning of the takeover, which also concerned the further domestic and foreign policy procedure. Like many US presidents before, he did not meet his predecessor until the very day of his inauguration.
After the 2000 presidential election in the United States, it was not clear for a long time whether Al Gore or George W. Bush had won. It was therefore not until the court ruling on December 12, 2000 that the transition from Bill Clinton to George W. Bush could begin. The 9/11 Commission , which dealt with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, came to the conclusion that the delayed start of the transition from Clinton to Bush was partly due to the fact that the terrorist attacks could not be prevented.
In the 2020 US presidential election , Donald Trump did not recognize Joe Biden's election victory for a long time and therefore delayed the procedure for an orderly handover of official business until three weeks after election day.
Presidential Transition Act
With the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 Pub.L. 88-277, clear rules for the transfer of power were introduced for the first time in order to ensure good governance during the transition . This basis has been changed several times by the Presidential Transitions Effectiveness Act of 1998 Pub.L. 100-398 ("Effective Presidency Transitions Act of 1998"), the Presidential Transition Act of 2000 Pub.L. 106-293 (" Presidential Transitions Improvements Act of 2000") and by the Presidential Transitions Improvements Act of 2015 (" Presidential Transitions Improvements Act of 2015") Pub.L. 114-136 .
This law instructs the General Services Administration to use approximately $ 5 million in funding to implement the measures set out in the law, including providing administrative assistance to government agencies with government changes, supporting the transition teams established by the presidents, and training the new one Government personnel in their posts.
Process of change of government
Preparations begin even before the actual election during the presidential election campaigns. Plans for the takeover of government include the establishment of a cabinet
- putting together an organizational team for the period between election and inauguration,
- the distribution of responsibilities and the creation of a schedule for the transitional and actual term of office,
- recruiting additional staff for the positions that become vacant in the White House.
In addition, networks and relationships with members of the Congress are expanded and maintained, contacts are made with the outgoing government team, connections are established with the General Services Administration , the Office of Government Ethics , the FBI and the Office of Personnel Management in order, for example, to receive security clearances for new staff in good time.
The actual transition of government begins immediately after the election day of the presidential election. In the case of a second term of office, i.e. the successful re-election of an incumbent president - even if there are personnel changes in the government - no transfer of presidency will be carried out on the basis of the transitional law. In fact, there is no change of government.
During the 72 to 78 day transition, the outgoing President and the newly elected President meet regularly for consultations and discussions on political issues.
Sensitive security data is passed on to the successor, who is made familiar with the administrative requirements of the administration.
The end of the transition process and the actual beginning of a US presidency is connected with the inauguration and the oath of office contained therein . On the same day, the outgoing President leaves the White House and the newly elected President moves in.
List of United States Presidential Transitions
Political party | F1 | F2 | link |
---|---|---|---|
Rep | Rep. | ||
Dem | Dem. | ||
union | union | ||
Whig | Whig | ||
DmRp | DmRp | ||
Fed | Fed |
Web links
- Presidential Transition Directory of the General Services Administration (English).
Individual evidence
- ^ Presidential Transition Act of 1963. In: General Services Administration , March 7, 1964.
- ^ Notable presidential transitions. In: Chicago Tribune , December 2, 2008.
- ↑ Ready to Govern: Improving the Presidential Transition. ( Memento from January 10, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) In: Partnership for Public Service , January 2010, p. 1.
- ^ Former Bush chief of staff cites 9/11 Commission, warns about slow transition
- ↑ Tal Kopan: What is a transition? Presidential turnover explained. In: CNN.com , November 3, 2016.
- ↑ a b L. Elaine Halchin: Presidential Transitions: Issues Involving Outgoing and Incoming Administrations. In: Congressional Research Service , November 16, 2016.
- ↑ a b Presidential Transition Guide. In: Center For Presidential Transition , January 2016.
- ↑ Hannah Parry: White House staff reveal preparations for inauguration moving day. In: Daily Mail Online , January 2, 2017.