Here is how the transition is unfolding. All times Eastern.
Dec 07, 2020, 9:30 AM EST
Biden names 5 inaugural committee co-chairs
The Biden team has announced co-chairs for the Presidential Inaugural Committee with Democratic Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, whose endorsement helped put Biden on a path to victory, at the helm to guide the larger committee as they prepare for the event in 44 days.
"This inauguration will show the country and the world something I have always known: we know Joe, and Joe knows us," Clyburn said in a statement through the Biden transition team.
Rep. Jim Clyburn announces his endorsement of former Vice President Joe Biden, Feb. 26, 2020, at Trident Technical College in Charleston, S.C.
Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-La., Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del., Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will help lead Biden’s team as co-chairs, along with Clyburn who will serve as chair.
“These leaders reflect the strength, spirit, and diversity of America and have always held a steadfast commitment to restoring the soul of the nation, building back the middle class, and unifying the country,” Biden said in a statement Monday morning.
-ABC News Molly Nagle
Dec 07, 2020, 9:25 AM EST
Biden unveils health picks including HHS secretary
President-elect Joe Biden unveiled his health team early Monday morning, a slate of seven experts and officials that will lead his administration's response to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.
California Attorney General and former Rep. Xavier Beccera is nominated as Secretary of Health and Human Services. If confirmed, he would be the first Latino to lead the department.
Vivek Muthy has been nominated to be U.S. Surgeon General, a role he served in during the Obama administration.
In this Feb. 4, 2014, photo, then U.S. Surgeon General appointee Dr. Vivek Murthy appears on Capitol Hill in Washington. Murthy has been named as co-chair by President-elect Joe Biden to his COVID-19 advisory board.
Charles Dharapak/AP, File
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, a leading expert on virus testing, prevention, and treatment, is nominated to serve as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, one of the country’s foremost experts on health care disparities, will serve as the COVID-19 equity task force chair.
As Biden said last week, Dr. Anthony Fauci will stay on in his current role as as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and will take on the elevated role of Biden's chief medical adviser on the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jeff Zients will serve as coordinator of the COVID-19 response and counselor to the president, and Natalie Quillian will serve as deputy coordinator of the COVID-19 Response.
“This trusted and accomplished team of leaders will bring the highest level of integrity, scientific rigor, and crisis-management experience to one of the toughest challenges America has ever faced — getting the pandemic under control so that the American people can get back to work, back to their lives, and back to their loved ones," Biden said in a statement announcing the picks.
President-elect Joe Biden speaks about jobs at The Queen theater, Dec. 4, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Andrew Harnik/AP
-ABC News John Verhovek and Molly Nagle
Dec 07, 2020, 9:31 AM EST
Trump brings GOP along in dangerous final acts: Analysis
From the technical standpoint of a transition of power, the public opinion of congressional Republicans about whether Biden will take office Jan. 20 matters almost not at all.
From the broader standpoint of democracy and faith in elections, it could not hardly matter more at this moment.
The process that so many Republicans have been saying they want to play out is rather thoroughly exhausted already. The next seven days bring significant deadlines, with Tuesday's congressional "safe harbor" deadline for state election results and next Monday's Electoral College voting the most significant.
VALDOSTA, GEORGIA - DECEMBER 05: President Donald Trump and first lady Melania attend a rally in support of Sen. David Perdue (R-GA) and Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) on December 05, 2020 in Valdosta, Georgia. The rally with the senators comes ahead of a crucial runoff election for Perdue and Loeffler on January 5th which will decide who controls the United States senate.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
His tweets and the 101 minutes Trump spent airing grievances and falsehoods in Georgia Saturday night made clear he will pursue his dangerous fictions right through the end of his presidency. The good of the Republican Party -- and, of course, the good of the country -- are, at best, secondary considerations for the president at this point.
Some Republicans are trying to reframe questions about Biden's legitimacy as president-elect as though they are merely asking questions. Their suggestion is that democracy is threatened if people believe election irregularities have been ignored.
But far from being brushed aside, Trump's claims have been rejected in courthouses and state houses -- including by Republicans who have found themselves targeted by the president.
Ignoring that fact only sows more doubt in election integrity and legitimacy. And continuing to give Trump space to make wildly inaccurate and irresponsible claims will only solidify his hold on a party whose best interests have already begun to diverge from the president's.
