Here is how the transition is unfolding. All times Eastern.
Dec 28, 2020, 10:42 AM EST
Biden transition announces slate of staff for White House Office of Digital Strategy
The Biden-Harris transition team has announced 12 new members of their incoming staff for the Office of Digital Strategy -- which the transition says will be a “robust” team in the Biden White House.
All 12 staffers announced Monday morning previously worked on the Biden-Harris campaign, which relied heavily on digital engagement amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
President-elect Joe Biden listens to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris speak at The Queen in Wilmington, Del., Dec. 8, 2020.
Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images
"With much of our lives online, it is critical for this administration’s digital efforts to be inclusive and extensive,” said Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in a joint statement announcing the picks.
-ABC News Molly Nagle
Dec 28, 2020, 10:03 AM EST
Overview: Trump signs pandemic relief after unemployment aid lapses, $2000 checks go to House vote
After days of opposition and hours before the federal government was going to shut down, Trump signed a $2.3 trillion bill into law Sunday night to avert a government shutdown and extend $900 billion in coronavirus pandemic relief -- but millions of American will be impacted by his delay.
Trump’s Sunday night signature came after two critical unemployment programs lapsed over the weekend, leaving roughly 14 million Americans who have relied on the income without a week of benefits during the holiday season. While the current bill shells out $600 direct payments for most Americans, Trump is breaking from his party by continuing his push to bring that amount to $2,000.
President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in Washington, Nov. 5, 2020.
Evan Vucci/AP, FILE
In a Sunday night statement announcing he had signed the bill, Trump -- who has sat on the sidelines of negotiations for months -- also called on Congress to make more revisions to cut down excess spending, saying "wasteful items need to be removed" from the bill and that he would send back a “redlined” version.
The move is forcing Senate Republicans, many who did not support more direct payments, to say whether they stand with Trump on increasing payments and revisiting the bill’s language or by their previous positions.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday is bringing a vote on a stand-alone bill to increase economic impact payments to $2,000 to the House floor, and while it’s expected to pass the House, it’s unclear whether Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will take up the measure in the Senate.
FILE PHOTO: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-CA., speaks to reporters on an agreement of a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) aid package on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., December 20, 2020.
Ken Cedeno/Reuters
The president has no public events on his schedule as he continues his holiday from Mar-a-Lago, and threatens, via Twitter, a challenge to the counting of the Electoral College vote in Congress on Jan. 6.
Biden, meanwhile, is pressing forward with his transition with less than a month until his inauguration. The president-elect is slated to meet with members of his national security and foreign policy agency review teams on Monday and deliver afternoon remarks on their "findings and the key challenges his administration will inherit" from Wilmington, Delaware.
