President Joe Biden will meet today at the White House with President-elect Donald Trump. The meeting is aimed at demonstrating a peaceful transition between administrations and comes as Mr. Trump’s team has not yet signed the necessary documents to begin the power transfer process.
Mr. Biden will welcome the incoming president to the Oval Office, a traditional courtesy extended by outgoing presidents, which Mr. Trump bypassed in 2020 when he lost his re-election bid.
“He believes in our norms and institutions, he believes in the peaceful transfer of power,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Tuesday about President Biden’s decision to invite Mr. Trump for a meeting.
“This is what is supposed to happen,” she added.
President Biden and President-elect Trump have sharply criticized each other for years. Their teams have vastly different positions on policies, from issues related to climate change to those concerning Russia and trade.
Mr. Biden, 81, has portrayed Mr. Trump as a threat to democracy, while Mr. Trump, 78, has portrayed Mr. Biden as incompetent.
The President-elect has made baseless claims about the manipulation of the 2020 presidential election.
Ahead of the scheduled meeting at the White House around 11 AM local time in Washington, Mr. Trump will also meet with Republican lawmakers, as well as Speaker of the House Mike Johnson.
Mr. Biden aims to use the meeting to demonstrate continuity, but the transition from one administration to the next is partly blocked.
According to the White House, Mr. Trump’s team has not yet signed the agreement that would allow his incoming administration staff access to government facilities and information.
“Attorneys for the Trump-Vance transition team are continuing to engage constructively with attorneys for the Biden-Harris administration regarding all agreements outlined by the Presidential Transition Act,” said Brian Vance, a spokesperson for Mr. Trump’s transition, referring to the law governing the transfer of power.
Valerie Smith Boyd, director of the Center for Presidential Transition Partnerships, a nonprofit that advises incoming administrations, said the agreement highlights that the United States only has one president until January 20, and also includes signing ethical rules to prevent taking advantage of information made available during the transition period.
“This agreement needs to be signed for interactions with federal agencies to begin,” she said. “Everything depends on this.”
It’s likely that Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump will discuss a range of topics, including foreign policy.
The outgoing president may ask Mr. Trump to support Ukraine in its war against Russia. U.S. support for Kyiv has been questioned following Mr. Trump’s victory.
Meanwhile, the President-elect has promised to end the war soon, though without explaining how he would do so.
Ms. Jean-Pierre declined to provide details on the issues that would be discussed in the meeting between the two leaders.
This will be the first meeting between Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump since their debate in June, when the Democratic president had not yet dropped out of the race.
Mr. Biden’s weak performance raised concerns among Democrats about his age and led to his withdrawal from the presidential race.
Following this development, Ms. Harris was chosen as the Democratic nominee for president. She led a brief campaign that ended with her defeat on November 5. /VOA
