Trump receives congratulations and an invitation to the White House as Biden nudges on transition

US President Joe Biden. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 07 November 2024
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Trump receives congratulations and an invitation to the White House as Biden nudges on transition

  • It was Biden’s first public comment in the aftermath of Trump’s victory
  • Former VP Pence also congratulates Trump after declining to endorse him
  • Pelosi says to ‘pray’ for America’s next chapter, doesn’t say Trump’s name

WASHINGTON: After Democratic party nominee and US Vice President Kamala Harris urged unity in a concession speech on Wednesday following her defeat to Republican Donald Trump, US President Joe Biden broke his silence and congratulated his former rival.

Biden invited the man he ousted from the White House four years ago to an Oval Office meeting to prepare to return the keys.

The White House announced that Biden had spoken to the president-elect and expressed his commitment to ensuring a smooth transition, while emphasizing the importance of working to bring the country together.

Biden’s chief of staff later Wednesday nudged the Trump team to sign the required federal agreements necessary to begin an orderly presidential transition, a White House official said.

Trump campaign communications director Steven Cheung confirmed the White House invitation.

“President Trump looks forward to the meeting, which will take place shortly, and very much appreciated the call,” he said.

Biden chief of staff Jeff Zients reached out to Trump transition co-chairs Howard Lutnick and Linda McMahon to reiterate the important role the agreements with the White House and the General Services Administration play in beginning a presidential transition. The White House official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive transition planning.

A delay could hold up the federal government’s ability to begin processing security clearances for potential Trump administration national security appointees, which could limit the number of his staff who could work on sensitive information by Inauguration Day. It also means they can’t yet access federal facilities, documents and personnel to prepare for taking office.

The agreements are required by the Presidential Transition Act, and require the president-elect’s team to agree to an ethics plan and to limit and disclose private donations. Congress, in the act, set a deadline of Sept. 1 for the GSA agreement and Oct. 1 for the White House agreement, in an effort to ensure that incoming administrations are prepared to govern when they enter office on Jan. 20.

Praises for Harris

Biden also called Harris to salute her for her campaign.  In a statement issued by the White House late on Wednesday, Biden also praised Harris as “a tremendous partner and public servant full of integrity, courage, and character.”

The president also noted that Harris entered the campaign under “extraordinary circumstances,” a nod to his dropping out of the race 108 days before Election Day amid growing pressure from within his party after his cataclysmic debate performance against Trump.

Biden added that Harris “stepped up and led a historic campaign that embodied what’s possible when guided by a strong moral compass and a clear vision for a nation that is more free, more just, and full of more opportunities for all Americans.”

According to Trump spokesman Steven Cheung, Trump and Harris spoke on a call where the president-elect “acknowledged Vice President Harris on her strength, professionalism, and tenacity throughout the campaign, and both leaders agreed on the importance of unifying the country.”

Democrats promise ‘peaceful’ transition of power

Shortly after Harris’ concession speech, a series of Democratic leaders and lawmakers issued their first statements in response to the election results and promised to ensure a “peaceful” transition for the incoming Republican administration.

Former President Barack Obama, along with former first lady Michelle Obama, said the election’s result “is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for” but noted that “living in a democracy is about recognizing that our point of view won’t always win out, and being willing to accept the peaceful transfer of power.”
Congratulating Trump and Vance, the Obamas expressed pride for Harris and Walz, for both of whom they campaigned, calling them “two extraordinary public servants who ran a remarkable campaign.”
The Obamas cast forward with hope for a divided America, saying that the nation’s problems are solvable “only if we listen to each other, and only if we abide by the core constitutional principles and democratic norms that made this country great.”
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement late Wednesday, saying that “we all pray for America’s success under the next administration,” but did not make mention of Trump by name.
Pelosi was seen as the architect of the Democratic party’s strategic shift from Joe Biden to Kamala Harris as top of their ticket over the summer. The California Democrat has been Trump’s biggest critic, saying previously that her goal is to ensure Trump never enters the White House again.
“The peaceful transfer of power is the cornerstone of our democracy,” Pelosi said. “After every election, we all have a responsibility to come together and find common ground.”

“As deeply, deeply disappointed as I am by the results of the election, make no mistake: my Democratic colleagues and I — unlike many Republicans after the 2020 election — will uphold the will of the American people, fulfill our constitutional duty and do our part to ensure a peaceful transfer of power,” Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois said in a statement.

Transition talks have not yet begun in earnest, according to a person with knowledge of the Trump campaign. Instead, the president-elect was busy taking calls from leaders, domestic and international, donors and key supporters. Transition discussions are expected to ramp up later in the week, as attention turns to naming an inaugural committee and formal transition team. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Bernie Sanders calls for reckoning in Democratic Party

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders did not mince words in a scathing statement on Wednesday.
“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party which has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them,” Sanders, Vermont’s senior senator, said.
“First, it was the white working class, and now it is Latino and Black workers as well,” Sanders said.
Sanders won reelection to a fourth term on Tuesday. He singled out wealth inequality, a slipping standard of living in the US, a lack of full health care guarantees and support for Israel’s recent military campaigns as problems Democrats need to focus on. Sanders’s 2016 presidential run was a key factor in pushing the dialogue in the Democratic party to the left. Sanders has built his political career outside — and often criticizing — the Democratic Party, but he caucuses with Democrats in the Senate.


China says it respects America’s choice, congratulates Trump

Updated 8 sec ago
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China says it respects America’s choice, congratulates Trump

  • Official newspaper calls for pragmatic approach to bilateral differences
  • Trump’s win could revive trade war issues from his first presidency

BEIJING/HONG KONG: China expressed respect for the US election result and congratulated Donald Trump on his victory, and an official newspaper called for a “pragmatic” approach to bilateral differences as US tariff threats loomed.

Trump, a Republican who has promised to implement stiff tariffs, recaptured the White House with a sweeping victory over Democrat Kamala Harris in Tuesday’s election. He will take office in January.
“We respect the choice of the American people and congratulate Mr. Trump on his election as president,” a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said in a statement late on Wednesday.
China-US relations have been fraught for years, notably around trade and security including Taiwan and the South China Sea.
Trump’s win could revive issues from his 2017-2021 first presidency, when he started a trade war with the world’s second-largest economy and imposed tariffs.
Chinese state-run newspaper China Daily in an editorial on Wednesday portrayed Trump’s second presidency as a potential “new beginning in China-US relations if the chance that has been offered is not wasted.”
The Biden administration did not dismantle Trump’s trade policies and continued to target China’s state-driven industrial practices.
In September, it locked in steep tariff hikes on Chinese imports, including a 100 percent duty on electric vehicles, 50 percent on solar cells and 25 percent on steel, aluminum, EV batteries and key minerals, in a bid to protect strategic American industries. The next US administration can strengthen dialogue and communication with China to handle differences, China Daily said. But a threat by Trump to impose 60 percent tariffs on US imports of Chinese goods poses major growth risks for China.
Not only are the threatened tariffs much higher than the 7.5 percent-25 percent levied on China during Trump’s first term, the Chinese economy is also in a much more vulnerable position as it faces a steep property downturn, burdensome local government debt and weak domestic demand.
US policies and “misconceptions” toward China have posed significant challenges for relations, China Daily said.
“A pragmatic approach to bilateral relations is essential in navigating the complexities of global challenges.”
The proper handling of China-US relations, which the newspaper called the world’s most important bilateral relationship, “not only serves the common interests of both countries but also will inject greater certainty and stability into the world.”


Record drought in Amazon impacts 420,000 children: UNICEF

Updated 31 min 47 sec ago
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Record drought in Amazon impacts 420,000 children: UNICEF

RIO DE JANEIRO: More than 420,000 children in the Amazon basin are being badly affected by a drought parching much of South America that is impacting water supplies and river transport, UNICEF said Wednesday.
The record-breaking drought is taking a toll on Indigenous and other communities in Brazil, Colombia and Peru reliant on boat connections, the UN agency said.
“We are witnessing the devastation of an essential ecosystem that families rely on, leaving many children without access to adequate food, water, health care and schools,” UNICEF chief Catherine Russell said in a statement.
The resulting food insecurity increased the risk of child malnutrition, the agency said, while less access to drinking water could spur a rise in infectious diseases.
In Brazil’s Amazon region alone, more than 1,700 schools and more than 760 medical clinics had to close or became inaccessible because of low river levels.
In Colombia’s Amazon, lack of drinking water and food forced 130 schools to suspend classes. In Peru, more than 50 clinics were inaccessible.
UNICEF said it needs $10 million in coming months to help the stricken communities in those three countries, including by providing water and sending out health brigades.
Weather observation agencies such as NASA’s Earth Observatory and the EU’s Copernicus service say the drought across the Amazon basin since the latter half of last year was caused by the 2023-2024 El Nino climate phenomenon in the Pacific.
Brazilian experts said the climate crisis was also to blame.
The insufficient rain and shrinking of the vital rainforest’s rivers exacerbated forest fires, disrupted hydroelectric power generation and dried out crops in parts of Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela.


Thousands ordered to evacuate as powerful wind-fed wildfire burns homes in Southern California

Updated 38 min 28 sec ago
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Thousands ordered to evacuate as powerful wind-fed wildfire burns homes in Southern California

CAMARILLO, California: California was lashed by powerful winds Wednesday that fed a fast-moving wildfire, which destroyed dozens of homes and forced thousands of residents to flee as forecasters warned of the potential for “extreme and life-threatening” blazes.
Northwest of Los Angeles, the Mountain Fire exploded in size and prompted evacuation orders for more than 10,000 people as it threatened 3,500 structures in suburban communities, ranches and agricultural areas around Camarillo, according to a statement from Gov. Gavin Newsom. He said he has requested federal assistance for the area east of the Pacific coast city of Ventura.
The blaze was burning in a region that has seen some of California’s most destructive fires over the years. A thick plume of smoke rose hundreds of feet into the sky Wednesday, blanketing whole neighborhoods and limiting visibility for firefighters and evacuees. The fire grew from less than half of a square mile to 16 square miles (62 square kilometers) in little more than five hours.
Ventura County Fire Captain Trevor Johnson described crews racing with their engines to homes threatened by the flames to save lives.
“This is as intense as it gets. The hair on the back of the firefighters’ neck I’m sure was standing up,” he said during a news conference Wednesday afternoon.
At one spot, flames licked the burning remains of a home. Its roof was reduced to only a few charred shingles.
Two people suffered apparent smoke inhalation and were taken to hospitals, fire officials said. No firefighters reported significant injuries.
The erratic winds and limited visibility grounded fixed-wing aircraft, and gusts topped 61 mph (98 kph), said weather service meteorologist Bryan Lewis. Water-dropping helicopters were still flying.
First responders pleaded with residents to evacuate. Deputies made contact with 14,000 people to urge them to leave as embers spread up to 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) away and sparked new flames.
“This fire is moving dangerously fast,” Ventura County Fire Chief Dustin Gardner said.
Aerial footage from local television networks showed dozens of homes in flames across several neighborhoods as embers were whipped from home to home. Other footage captured horses trotting alongside evacuating vehicles.
Jade Katz, who said she is disabled and does not drive, waited for a friend to pick her up near her Camarillo Heights home with a suitcase full of medication and Bella, her Great Dane service dog. But the friend couldn’t reach her, so first responders sent a squad car to escort her to safety as she watched the neighborhood burn.
Officials said they were using all resources, including water-dropping helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft dropping fire retardant, but it was still burning out of control Wednesday afternoon. Andrew Dowd, a Ventura County fire spokesperson, said he did not have details of how many structures had been damaged.
Gus Garcia, who owns a ranch south of the fire, said he’s waiting to see whether conditions will change to decide if he should evacuate his horses and cattle. Around 12:30 p.m., his animals were still safe and he was trying to stay out of the way as others got their livestock out.
His ranch is surrounded by others with horses and alpaca, and Garcia said his neighbors in the canyon did not seem panicked.
“The horse community, they prepare for this because it’s always a possibility up here,” he said.
Meanwhile to the south, Los Angeles County Fire Department crews scrambled to contain a wildfire near Malibu’s Broad Beach as authorities briefly shut down the Pacific Coast Highway as flames burned near multimillion-dollar properties. Residents were urged to shelter in place while aircraft dropped water on the 50-acre (20-hectare) Broad Fire. It was 15 percent contained around 12:30 p.m. with forward progress stopped. Fire officials said two structures burned.
The National Weather Service office for the Los Angeles area amended its red flag warning for increased fire danger with a rare “particularly dangerous situation” label, and officials in several counties urged residents to be on watch for fast-spreading blazes, power outages and downed trees amid the latest round of notorious Santa Ana winds.
With predicted gusts between 50 mph (80 kph) and 100 mph (160 kph) and humidity levels as low as 8 percent, parts of Southern California could experience conditions ripe for “extreme and life-threatening” fire behavior into Thursday, the weather service said.
Forecasters also issued red flag warnings until Thursday from California’s central coast through the San Francisco Bay Area and into counties to the north, where strong winds were also expected.
Utilities in California began powering down equipment during high winds and extreme fire danger after a series of massive and deadly wildfires in recent years were sparked by electrical lines and other infrastructure. On Wednesday, more than 65,000 customers in Southern California were without power preventatively, and upwards of 20,000 in Northern California.
Wednesday’s fires were burning in the same areas of other recent destructive fires, including the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which killed three people and destroyed 1,600 homes near Los Angeles, and the the 2017 Thomas Fire, which destroyed more than a thousand homes and other structures in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Southern California Edison has paid tens of millions of dollars to settle claims after its equipment was blamed for both blazes.

Control of the US House hangs in the balance with enormous implications for Trump’s agenda

Updated 39 min 31 sec ago
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Control of the US House hangs in the balance with enormous implications for Trump’s agenda

  • A few individual seats, or even a single one, will determine the outcome and Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the House “remains very much in play”
  • If House Speaker Mike Johnson’s slim four-seat majority were to shrink any further, governing could come to a standstill

WASHINGTON: The US House majority hung in the balance Wednesday, teetering between Republican control that would usher in a new era of unified GOP governance in Washington or a flip to Democrats as a last line of resistance to a Trump second-term White House agenda.
A few individual seats, or even a single one, will determine the outcome. Final tallies will take a while, likely pushing the decision into next week — or beyond.
After Republicans swept into the majority in the US Senate by picking up seats in West Virginia, Ohio and Montana, House Speaker Mike Johnson predicted his chamber would fall in line next.
“Republicans are poised to have unified government in the White House, Senate and House,” Johnson said Wednesday.
President-elect Donald Trump, who won the Electoral College and the popular vote against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, has consolidated growing power around his MAGA movement, backing newcomers to Washington and setting the stage for his own return to the White House.
Johnson said Republicans in Congress are preparing an “ambitious” 100-day agenda with Trump, who he has said is “thinking big” about his legacy.
Tax cuts, securing the southern border and taking a ”blowtorch” to federal regulations are at the top of the agenda if the GOP sweeps the White House and Congress. Trump himself has promised mass deportations and retribution against his perceived enemies. And Republicans want to push federal agencies out of Washington and to restaff the government workforce with the help of outside think tanks, Johnson has said, to bring the federal government “to heel.”
But Johnson, after just a year on the job, has had difficulty governing the House, and the new Congress would be no different. Hard-liners led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Matt Gaetz and others have often confronted and upended their own GOP leadership in what has been one of the most chaotic sessions in modern times.
If Johnson’s slim four-seat majority were to shrink any further, governing could come to a standstill.
Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said the House “remains very much in play.”
With Democrats having defeated two House Republicans in Jeffries’ home state of New York, he said the path to the majority now runs through pickup opportunities in Arizona, Oregon, Iowa and California that are still too early to call.
“We must count every vote,” Jeffries said.
The House contests remained a tit-for-tat fight to the finish, with no dominant pathway to the majority for either party. Rarely, if ever have the two chambers of Congress flipped in opposite directions.
Each side is gaining and losing a few seats, including through the redistricting process, which is the routine redrawing of House seat boundary lines. The process reset seats in North Carolina, Louisiana and Alabama.
Much of the outcome hinges on the West, particularly in California, where a handful of House seats are being fiercely contested, and mail-in ballots arriving a week after the election will still be counted. Hard-fought races around the “blue dot” in Omaha, Nebraska and in far-flung Alaska are among those being watched.
Trump, speaking early Wednesday at his election night party in Florida, said the results delivered an “unprecedented and powerful mandate” for Republicans.
He called the Senate rout “incredible,” and he praised Johnson, saying he’s “doing a terrific job.”
From the US Capitol, Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, privately a harsh Trump critic, called it a “hell of a good day.”
Senate Republicans marched across the map alongside Trump, flipping the three Democratic-held seats and holding their own against Democratic challengers who failed to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz in Texas and Sen. Rick Scott in Florida.
In West Virginia, Jim Justice, the state’s wealthy governor, flipped the seat held by retiring Sen. Joe Manchin. Republicans toppled Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio with GOP luxury car dealer and blockchain entrepreneur Bernie Moreno. And Republican Tim Sheehy defeated Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in Montana.
Democrats avoided a total wipeout by salvaging seats in the “blue wall” states. Rep. Elissa Slotkin won an open Senate seat in Michigan, and Sen. Tammy Baldwin was reelected in Wisconsin. Pennsylvania’s race between Democratic Sen. Bob Casey and Republican challenger Dave McCormick was still undecided.
In other developments, Democrats made history by sending two Black women, Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland, to the Senate. Just three Black women, including Harris, have served in the Senate, but never two at the same time.
All told, Senate Republicans have the potential to achieve their most robust majority in years — a testament to McConnell, who made a career charting a path to power, this time aligned with Trump whom he has privately called “despicable” in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
During a news conference Wednesday, McConnell declined to answer questions about his past stark criticism of Trump and said he viewed the election results as a referendum on the Biden administration.
He told reporters at the Capitol that a Senate under Republican control would “control the guardrails” and prevent changes in Senate rules that would end the filibuster.
“People were just not happy with this administration and the Democratic nominee was a part of it,” McConnell said.
What’s still unclear is who will lead the new Republican Senate, as McConnell prepares to step down from the post.
South Dakota Sen. John Thune, the No. 2 Republican, and Texas Sen. John Cornyn, who previously held that post, are the front-runners to replace McConnell in a secret-ballot election scheduled for when senators arrive in Washington next week.
 


Germany heads for early elections as Scholz coalition collapses

Updated 07 November 2024
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Germany heads for early elections as Scholz coalition collapses

  • Scholz said he would seek a vote of confidence by January 15 so that MPs “can decide whether to clear the way for early elections” earlier than scheduled
  • The Social Democrat leader spoke after firing his rebellious Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the Free Democrats in a dramatic night session of what was a three-party coalition

BERLIN: Germany entered a major political crisis on Wednesday with the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s ruling coalition likely paving the way for early elections next year.
The turmoil hits Europe’s biggest economy as it grapples with a sustained downturn and as Berlin worries about the impact Donald Trump’s return to the White House will have on trade and security ties.
Scholz said he would seek a vote of confidence by January 15 so that MPs “can decide whether to clear the way for early elections” which could be held by late March — six months earlier than scheduled.
The Social Democrat leader spoke after firing his rebellious Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the Free Democrats in a dramatic night session of what was a three-party coalition, declaring there was no longer any “basis of trust” with Lindner.
The embattled chancellor also said he would seek talks with the conservative Christian Democratic Union’s leader Friedrich Merz with the offer to “work together constructively on issues that are crucial for our country.”
Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck signalled that his Greens party, the third alliance partner, would stay on in a minority government and “continue to fulfil our obligations.”
The Greens’ Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said the political chaos in Berlin at such a globally volatile time meant that “this is not a good day for Germany and not a good day for Europe.”

Disparate parties

Scholz fired Lindner during a crunch meeting of senior figures from all three ideologically disparate parties, which have rowed for months over economic and budget issues.
Lindner had proposed sweeping reforms to jumpstart the troubled German economy that the other two parties opposed.
He had long flirted with bolting the unhappy coalition and repeatedly warned of “an autumn of decisions” as difficult budget talks loomed.
Scholz, after sacking Linder — who took three other FDP cabinet ministers with him — bitterly attacked the minister for his “petty political tactics” and accused him of a level of egoism that is “completely incomprehensible.”
Scholz cited the re-election of Trump, Germany’s economic woes and the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East as reasons for why Europe’s top economy now needs political certainty.
“We now need clarity on how we can soundly finance our security and defense in the coming years without jeopardizing the cohesion of the country,” he said. “With a view to the election in America, this is perhaps more urgent than ever.”
With the German economy expected to shrink for the second year in a row, Lindner has demanded corporate tax cuts, eased climate regulations and a reduction of social benefits.
Many of those ideas are anathema to Scholz’s SPD, Germany’s traditional workers’ party and the left-leaning Greens.
The bitter dispute has seen Scholz, Lindner and Habeck present contradictory economic plans and hold rival meetings with business leaders, deepening the sense of dysfunction and weakening Scholz’s authority.

Scholz said he had offered Lindner a plan with steps to bring down energy costs and boost investment for companies, secure auto industry jobs and keep up support for Ukraine.
But Linder — a fiscal hawk and strong opponent of raising new debt — had shown “no willingness” to accept it, Scholz said, adding that “I no longer want to subject our country to such behavior.”
Scholz and his mutinous coalition partners have drawn withering fire from Merz, who has long demanded early elections in which polls suggest he would be the frontrunner.
“We cannot afford to argue for another year,” CDU lawmaker Norbert Roettgen said after Trump’s victory. “Germany is important in Europe, and if the government can’t live up to that, then it must make way now.”
Late Wednesday, the head of the CDU’s Bavarian sister party CSU, Markus Soeder, demanded an immediate vote of confidence, warning that “there must be no tactical delays.”
Alice Weidel of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, now polling in second place, made the same demand, calling the end of the coalition a long-overdue “liberation for our country.”