Trump-Biden transition: Attorney Sidney Powell back at White House

Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, joined with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his Republican Intelligence Committee counterpart, Sen. Marco Rubio, on "This Week" Sunday in placing the blame for the government cyberattack on Russia, despite President Trump's downplaying of the country's involvement Saturday.

"I would echo what Secretary Pompeo has said and Marco Rubio has said. All indications point to Russia," Warner said. "This is extraordinarily serious, and when the president of the United States tries to deflect or is not willing to call out the adversary as we make that attribution, he is not making our country safer," he further said.

The senator also told George that the intrusion "may be ongoing" and that, despite current indications that only "non-classified networks" were breached, the attackers nevertheless got away with a "big, big haul" and that it could be some time before the government is able to fix the underlying vulnerabilities.

Read the full story here

- Adam Kelsey

Wrapping up Saturday's event announcing members of the incoming administration's climate and energy team, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris emphasized how forceful Biden's plan is in fighting climate change.

"Part of the reason I was so proud to join Joe Biden as his running mate was because he was proposing one of the most ambitious climate plans in history, a plan to secure carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035, a plan to achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050, a plan to invest in a clean energy future and create millions of good-paying union jobs along the way," she said.

"And the team that President-elect Biden and I are announcing today will help make that plan a reality," Harris added.

The vice president-elect said the appointees and nominees announced Saturday represented some of the country's "most seasoned public servants and climate experts" and reflected the "very best of America."

"They are compassionate leaders who understand that, ultimately, addressing climate change is about building safer communities and healthier communities and thriving communities for all Americans," Harris said.

Former E.P.A. chief Gina McCarthy accepted her nomination as the first-ever national climate advisor to head the new White House Office of Domestic Climate Policy.

"I'm here today because climate change is not only a threat to the planet. It is a threat to our health and our well-being," McCarthy said. "It's a threat to people everywhere and the precious natural resources that we depend on." 

Defeating this threat, she went on, "will require engagement of every community, every sector in our nation and every country in the world." 

In the role, she said she will work directly with communities and harness "the force of science and the values of environmental justice."

Biden referred to McCarthy, who currently serves as president and CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council, as a "policy wonk and a people person, problem solver and coalition builder." 

While E.P.A. head under the Obama-Biden administration, she led the effort of lowering carbon emissions from power plants and conserving critical water sources, he said.

McCarthy will work closely with former Secretary of State John Kerry in the new role, Biden said.

Southern Environmental Law Center Regulatory Policy Director Brenda Mallory told Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris she was "honored and humbled" by her appointment to be chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.

Mallory highlighted her upbringing in Waterbury, Connecticut, for shaping her commitment to fighting the injustices brought on by climate change.

"I know the faces of the marginalized, and I appreciate the challenges of urban pollution. While the words 'climate change' and 'environmental injustice' were not part of the vernacular back then, the evidence of their impact was all around," she said.

Mallory promised to revitalize the Council on Environmental Quality, saying "CEQ will work with a broad range of partners on a broad range of issues, tackle the full breadth of climate change, preserve the natural treasures of our nation, center environmental justice and help more communities overcome legacy environmental impacts.