President Trump and VP Pence

The transition from one president to another is not a formality, nor is it inconsequential. The 911 Commission found that the transition from President Clinton to President Bush contributed to the senior leadership missing the clues that al Qaeda planned to attack America.

In September, the co-chairmen of the 911 Commission wrote this: “To be truly effective and help protect our nation from national security threats during and soon after a presidential transition, our outgoing and incoming leaders must be cooperative, take these requirements and best practices seriously, and act in the best interests of the nation.” What does Sean O’Keefe, who served in two Republican administrations, think is occurring? Read on! The Editor

In the opening of his first inaugural address in 1981, Republican President Ronald Reagan observed that the peaceful and orderly transfer of national authority is a hallmark of our unique American Experiment with democracy. 

“The orderly transfer of authority as called for in the Constitution routinely takes place, as it has for almost two centuries, and few of us stop to think how unique we really are. In the eyes of many in the world, this every-4-year ceremony we accept as normal is nothing less than a miracle,” Reagan noted. Given the unprecedented theatrical events of the transition from Donald Trump, Reagan is probably rolling in his grave.

For the benefit of all American citizens and our national security, it is time to stop humoring President Trump and start preparations for a peaceful transition. As long as the incumbent president and many Republican legislators harbor the fantasy that Trump might remain president after January 20th, 2021, they are putting the American people at risk. 

As a Republican appointee who served in both Bush administrations, I have witnessed the transitions of power from one party to another twice. In 1992-93, when George H.W. Bush prepared to leave office, and when his son came to the White House in 2001, I was part of the machinery that kept our government and national security system running in the midst of turnover.

As part of the outgoing team for the 41st President, and later for the incoming team of the 43rd, it was clear that my responsibility was the same – to assure the continuity of our federal government. Both presidents reminded those of us appointed in their Administrations that we were entrusted to serve all the American people for whatever duration of time the public decided, and that none of us was entitled to anything. While every president has managed transitions a bit differently, the common theme has always been, for the good of the nation, power must change hands as smoothly and seamlessly as possible.

To most citizens, transitions may seem straightforward, almost run-of-the-mill. To those who have been part of one, they are anything but. A new administration needs to take responsibility for multi-billion dollar defense projects, careful diplomatic negotiations and sensitive intelligence operations — not to mention the day-to-day direction of our military and the myriad of domestic programs and services for our citizens.

This is not a time for on-the-job training after Inauguration Day. It is a daunting task that requires close collaboration, even if it is between bitter partisan rivals, all for the good of the country before the new president takes the oath of office. It requires the outgoing president and his administration to provide the incoming team access to the full scope of government activities and support.  Otherwise, a vacuum that exposes our vulnerabilities to our nation’s detractors, opponents and enemies is all too easily formed, one our adversaries would enjoy exploiting.

This isn’t just a grudge match among partisans. Sure, the incumbent President is entitled to tilt at this windmill in the faint hopes that the judiciary might overturn the decision of thousands of citizens in the multiple states he is contesting. It’s embarrassing and petulant, but it’s his choice. While he may have the right to file legal challenges, Trump has no right to weaponize the levers of the United States federal government to thwart the will of the electorate and deny the clear winner of the election his right to start preparing adequately to assume the responsibility to govern.

This is a right granted by the Congress in the Presidential Transition Act of 1963.  The law has been subsequently amended and enhanced several times, including recent revisions signed into law by the incumbent president and supported by many of the Congressional Republicans urging the stall narrative.

They ignore that the obstruction of these legal authorities is typical behavior of dictators and demagogues across the globe we often condemn as actions antithetical to the principles of responsible governance. Meantime, President-Elect Biden is unfazed and proceeding apace to prepare himself and his team for the daunting task before them without the full benefit of the authorities that would improve his chances to do so effectively.  

This isn’t a typical political debate over legal interpretations. I have seen firsthand what can happen when transitions are delayed. The shortest transition America has ever had, clocking in at five weeks, was in the year 2000. The incoming George W. Bush Administration had a lot to prepare for. In that first year, we confronted a more aggressive China, who provoked us in early April of 2001. We edged toward conflict with Iraq in February over violations of no-fly-zone restrictions. Most tragically, we did not have the benefit to connect the warning signs of 9/11 that began well before the inauguration earlier that year. The consequences of that event were far-reaching – over 3,000 dead and the entire trajectory of the country changed. 

For this transition, the stakes may be even higher. On January 20, President Biden will have to deal with the COVID-19 epidemic, a nuclear-armed and hostile North Korea, an Iran that is rapidly re-arming, and a powerful and threatening China – all while repairing our damaged alliances. He will have to quickly get up to speed on the threats posed by cyberattacks and terrorist groups against our homeland, as well as transnational criminal organizations threatening our prosperity at home. 

To take one specific example — right now we are negotiating the renewal of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty, an agreement with Russia that limits the size of each country’s nuclear arsenal. These negotiations, rightly, are not conducted in public. But if President Trump won’t permit his team to bring President-Elect Biden up to speed, it could mean we lose valuable time, triggering an arms race that could result in thousands more warheads and greater risk to the US. 

Most immediately, the new Biden Administration will have to deal with the virus, which continues to rampage across America, killing more than a thousand people each day. With vaccines nearing production, the new president’s priority must be focused on securing and distributing vaccines to protect Americans — in addition to the myriad of global threats.

By all accounts, the early stages of transition preparation are not going well. Trump officials refuse to give Biden classified briefings — breaking a tradition that goes back to the 1960s, including during the period of the contested 2000 election. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has refused to recognize that the American people voted against a second term and for a new person. President Trump is purging the Department of Defense, shearing it of several layers of leadership and installing his loyalists. Each day we tolerate President Trump’s behavior we aren’t just humoring an incumbent who refuses to accept the election results. We are putting American citizens at risk. 

The consequence of Trump’s anchor dragging will be to diminish the standing of the United States as a mature, stable and principled democracy with the resilience to responsibly govern the republic regardless of who occupies the office of the president.

Herculean challenges lay ahead to heal a deeply divided citizenry and reestablish our reputation as a nation that honors its commitments.  But Trump’s habit of nursing grudges and lashing out with irresponsible direction to stonewall all cooperative transition efforts only serves to deepen the wedge among us and stoke irrational bitterness. Worse, it constitutes an egregious violation of his oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies – and he’s building the case for a domestic enemy. 

Every previous president had a healthy dose of ego — a necessary trait to withstand the fierce headwinds every president must confront.  But each of his predecessors demonstrated that they knew they were temporary occupants with a duty to sustain the republic they inherited during their time and seamlessly turn responsibility to the care of a duly elected successor.

Trump has never accepted, or chooses not to understand, that our alliances, our trade partnerships, our technology, innovation and production prowess, our “strength” that he likes to extol, and our global moral standing all derive from our demonstrated, collective capacity as citizens to marshal our resolve and adhere to our principles when our common national interests are at stake. This is not about you, President Trump. This is about America. Your actions have frayed the core fabric of what truly makes us great. Your petulant and irresponsible direction may irrevocably damage us long after you are gone.  

Perhaps more Republicans will rise and speak against this dangerous behavior and put the needs of the nation above the bruised ego of one man. Those leaders capable of influencing him can make the case that preventing this orderly handover of responsibility puts Americans in danger. Otherwise, his failure to uphold the duty that every president before him has done makes America the thing he claims to hate most: weak.

Sean O’Keefe was Navy Secretary in 1992-93, a senior member of the White House staff at the White House in 2001, and is now a professor at the Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs.