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Ballotpedia's Weekly Transition Tracker - December 4, 2020
December 4, 2020
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This week's developments on the Presidential transition process.  Welcome to the weekly Transition TrackerDecember 4, 2020Former Vice President Joe Biden (D) is the projected winner of the 2020 presidential election. The Electoral College will meet on December 14, 2020, to vote for the next president of the United States. In 2016, there were 1,714 government positions subject to presidential appointment: 1,242 positions required Senate confirmation and 472 did not. Every week, Ballotpedia is tracking potential Cabinet nominees, appointments, and news related to the Biden presidential transition. 
Joe Biden's Cabinet Appointments and NominationsBiden announced his appointees for top economic roles on Monday, including the secretary of the Treasury and the Cabinet-rank positions of director of the Office of Management and Budget and chair of the Council of Economic Advisers. Janet Yellen, secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen was the 15th chair of the Federal Reserve, under the Obama administration, and a former chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Clinton administration. Outside of public service, Yellen was a faculty member at the University of California at Berkeley for four decades. She has been confirmed by the Senate four times. If confirmed, she will be the first woman to hold this position. Neera Tanden, director of the Office of Management and Budget Neera Tanden is the president and CEO of the Center for American Progress. She has worked in both the Clinton and Obama administrations, including as a senior adviser for health reform at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. If confirmed, she will be the first woman to hold this position. Cecilia Rouse, chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisers Cecilia Rouse is the dean of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. She previously served on the Council of Economic Advisers during the Obama administration and the National Economic Council during the Clinton administration. The Biden Transition also announced appointees for the following three roles:
Biden also announced his appointees for seven top White House communications roles on Sunday. Kate Bedingfield, White House communications director Kate Bedingfield was a deputy campaign manager and communications director for the Biden presidential campaign. During the Obama administration, Bedingfield worked as a communications director for Biden, associate communications director, deputy director of media affairs, and director of response. Outside of government service, Bedingfield has been the chief spokeswoman and vice president of corporate communications at the Motion Picture Association of America. Jen Psaki, White House press secretary Jen Psaki served as White House communications director during the Obama administration. She also held other key communications roles, including State Department spokesperson, deputy White House communications director, and deputy White House press secretary. Psaki worked on presidential campaigns for John Kerry and Barack Obama. Psaki is currently leading the confirmations team for the Biden Transition. The other five appointments include the following Biden campaign and Obama administration veterans:
Brian Deese, director of the National Economic Council Biden announced on Thursday that he was appointing Brian Deese to director of the National Economic Council. Deese was a deputy director of the council during the Obama administration. He also was a senior advisor to Obama and deputy director and acting director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Possible NomineesPotential Nominees
Other News
Transition in Context: What is ascertainment?Under the Presidential Transition Act, the administrator of the General Services Administration (GSA) is responsible for ascertaining—or identifying—the apparent winner of the presidential election. Doing so allows the president-elect to begin to receive funding, office space, and support services in the transition between administrations. The GSA administrator has typically made this ascertainment shortly after the presidential election with the exception of the 2000 presidential election. In that year, the GSA administrator did not ascertain the election until December 13, after the Supreme Court decided the Florida recount case, Bush v. Gore. The GSA ascertained the results of the election on November 23, 2020, identifying Biden as the apparent winner. GSA Administrator Emily Murphy said in a letter, "Please know that I came to my decision independently, based on the law and available facts. I was never directly or indirectly pressured by any Executive Branch official—including those who work at the White House or GSA—with regard to the substance or timing of my decision.” According to the Center for Presidential Transition, recent incoming administrations have had 77 days to prepare for the transfer of power. The Biden Transition will have 57.
Transition in Context: Timing of Announcements Transition in Context: What is The Plum Book?The United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions, also known as The Plum Book, is released every four years after the presidential election to provide a list of more than 9,000 key federal civil service positions.This 200-page document is published by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. The positions featured are noncompetitive, meaning they can be filled by appointment. Most presidential appointments—1,242 in 2016—require Senate confirmation (PAS). These PAS positions include not only agency heads like the secretary of state or the secretary of the Treasury, but also other roles like the architect of the Capitol, the chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality, and the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. In 2016, another 472 positions were presidential appointments that did not require Senate confirmation (PA). Examples of these PA-only positions include White House chief of staff, director of the National Institute of Justice, and the chairman of the Commission on Civil Rights. The Plum Book also includes information about thousands of other political appointments, including Senior Executive Service general positions and Senior Foreign Service positions. The tradition of the Plum Book has existed for more than six decades.
Transition in Context: Where does the Cabinet come from?The formation of the Cabinet is rooted in Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, which states that the president “may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices.” The Cabinet includes the vice president and the leaders of 15 executive departments: Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Justice, Labor, State, Transportation, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs. Several other positions have become Cabinet-rank over the years, although not all administrations include the same set of offices. The Trump administration, for example, currently identifies the following Cabinet-rank positions:
The Obama administration included all of the above positions in its Cabinet, except for director of the CIA and director of national intelligence. It also identified the chair of the Council of Economic Advisors and the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations as Cabinet-rank.
Transition in Context: In Their Words...Here’s how Democratic and Republican leaders and advisers have reacted to the nomination of Neera Tanden for director of the Office of Management and Budget.
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