BUSINESSES THAT ARE CONCERNED
ABOUT THEIR FUTURE.
JAKE SHERMAN, ALWAYS GREAT TO
SEE YOU.
THANK YOU ALI VITALI AND MONICA
ALBA AS WELL.
>>> NOW TO WHAT MAY BE MOVEMENT
IN AN ESCALATING BATTLE OVER A
DECISION BY A TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL NOT TO
INITIATE THE FORMAL TRANSITION
PROCESS.
THE GENERAL SERVICES
ADMINISTRATION HAS RESPONDED TO
A LETTER THAT LEADERS OF TWO
HOUSE COMMITTEES SENT TO
ADMINISTRATOR EMILY MURPHY LAST
WEEK GIVING HER UNTIL TODAY TO
EXPLAIN WHY SHE HAS NOT
ASCERTAINED JOE BIDEN AS THE
APPARENT WINNER OF THE ELECTION.
THAT MOVE WOULD GIVE THE BIDEN
TEAM ACCESS TO MONEY AND
MATERIALS NEEDED FOR A SMOOTH
TRANSITION.
NOW, THE GSA OFFERED TO SEND
MURPHYS DEPUTY TO CAPITOL HILL
TO BRIEF LAWMAKERS ONE WEEK FROM
TODAY.
ILLINOIS DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN
MIKE QUIGLEY CHAIRS THE HOUSE
APPROPRIATIONS SCHEE SS SUBCOMMI
OVERSEES THE GSA.
GREAT TO SEE YOU.
THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME.
SO, HERES WHAT THEY SAID, A
WEEK LATER THAN YOU AND YOUR
COLLEAGUES WANT AND NOT THE ADD
ADMINISTRATEOR BOUGHT HER DEPPE
ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH THAT?
>> ABSOLUTELY NOT.
EVERY DAY IS ABSOLUTELY
CRITICAL.
WERE AS A COUNTRY FACING A TWIN
CRISIS, A PANDEMIC AND AN
ECONOMIC DOWNTURN AS A RESULT.
AND THE NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUES
THAT THE VICE PRESIDENT TALKED
ABOUT TODAY ARE ACTUALLY
PARAMOUNT TO MOVE FORWARD.
WAIT ANOTHER WEEK TO HEAR FROM
SOMEBODY ABOUT WHY THEY MAY OR
MAY NOT BE DOING ASCERTAINMENT
ISNT SATISFACTORY AND TOWARD
THAT END, I JUST GOT A NOTICE
THAT SPEAKER PELOSI SAID IN A
STATEMENT JUST A FEW MINUTES AGO
THAT THIS HAS TO HAPPEN, THIS
BRIEFING HAD INGING HAS TO HAPPE
>> HAS TO HAPPEN TOMORROW, BUT
IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU, THAT
SHE, YOUR COLLEAGUES, CAN DO
ABOUT IT?
>> LOOK, WEVE BEEN IN TOUCH
WITH THE TRANSITION TEAM AND THE
LEADERSHIP OF ALL THESE
COMMITTEES.
KEEPING ALL THE OPTIONS OPEN.
AT THIS POINT IN TIME, WERE
ALSO HOPING THAT THE DECISIONS
MADE BY THE STATES WILL HAVE
SOME IMPACT THERE.
WERE GOING TO BE -- WERE GOING
TO BE SEEING CERTIFICATION IN
PENNSYLVANIA, IN MICHIGAN.
OBVIOUSLY, THE HANDWRITINGS ON
THE WALL.
ITS PAST DUE.
WE NEED THEM TO MOVE FORWARD.
>> WELL, OPTIONS OPEN, WHAT ARE
YOUR OPTIONS, SPECIFICALLY?
WHATS UNDER CONSIDERATION IF
ITS A NO-SHOW TOMORROW?
>> YOU KNOW, WHAT WE SAID IN THE
LETTER INITIALLY WAS, IF YOU
DONT DO THIS OR WERE NOT
SATISFIED, WE HAVE ARTICLE I
POWERS AND WERE NOT GOING TO BE
AFRAID TO USE THEM AND THAT IS
TO COMPEL HER TO APPEAR.
AGAIN, WE DONT WANT THE DEPUTY,
WE WANT THE PERSON WHO MAKES
THIS DECISION.
AND I UNDERSTAND JUST HOW MUCH
PRESSURE MS. MURPHY PROBABLY
FEELS.
THE FINAL ANALYSIS, THIS IS YOUR
JOB, IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO
DO.
IT IS UNIQUE IN THAT SHE SERVES
FOR A PRESIDENT, AND I STRESSED
THIS WITH HER, HE IS NEVER GOING
TO CONCEDE.
NEVER.
AND AT THIS POINT IN TIME,
UNLESS SHE DOES THE RIGHT THING,
SHELL BE HELPING HIM OVERCOME
THE WILL OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
>> YOU SAY YOU STRESSED THIS
WITH HER.
YOU HAD A ONE-ON-ONE
CONVERSATION.
WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT WHY
SHE -- WHAT SHE TOLD YOU ABOUT
WHY THIS HASNT HAPPENED YET,
AND DO YOU FEEL LIKE SHE HAD ANY
LEGITIMATE REASONS FOR IT?
>> I GUESS WHAT I WANT TO DO IS
SORT OF CLASSIFY, GIVE AN
OVERVIEW OF THE CONVERSATION IN
A SENSE.
I SENSE THE PRESSURE THAT SHE
WAS UNDER, BUT I MADE CLEAR WHAT
HER LEGAL REQUIREMENTS ARE.
THIS, AS TOUGH AS ALL THAT IS,
THIS IS HER JOB.
I STRESS THIS IS A PRESIDENT WHO
IS NOT GOING TO CONCEDE.
AND THERE ARE 43 OTHER
PRESIDENTS, PRECEDING, FOR ONE
WAY OR ANOTHER WHO DIDNT HAVE
THIS PROBLEM.
WHILE THERE MAY BE THE FIRST GSA
ADMINISTRATOR WHO DOES THIS, A
GSA ADMINISTRATOR WOULD ALLOW AN
BITERED PRESIDENT UNWILLING TO
CONCEDE TO SUNVERT THE WILL OF
THE PEOPLE AND PUT THIS COUNTRY
IN DANGER FOR NOT ALLOWING A
TRANSITION TO TAKE PLACE.
>> WELL, CONGRESSMAN, KNOWING
HER IN YOUR ROLE AS THE HEAD OF
THE SUBCOMMITTEE THAT OVERSEES
THE GSA, DO YOU HAVE ANY SENSE
THAT THE NUMBER OF REPUBLICAN
LAWMAKERS WHO ARE COMING, HAVE
COME OUT IN RECENT DAYS AND MAY
CONTINUE TO COME OUT AND SAY,
LOOK, THE PRESIDENT NEEDS TO
ALLOW THE TRANSITION TO MOVE
FORWARD, COULD HAVE AN IMPACT ON
HER OR DO YOU FEEL LIKE THE ONLY
THING SHES GOING TO RESPOND TO
IS SOMETHING DIRECTLY FROM THE
WHITE HOUSE?
>> I, YOU KNOW, SHE SERVED WITH
THIS PRESIDENT FOR FOUR YEARS.
ITS HARD TO IMAGINE THAT SHES
GOING TO SEE THIS.
YOU KNOW, IM HOPING THAT WERE
SEEING THE LAST ACTS OF AN
AUTOCRATIC PRESIDENT.
SO I CANT IMAGINE THAT SHE
WOULD BELIEVE THAT THAT WOULD
COME.
I THINK IT WOULD BE MUCH EASIER
TO MAKE THIS DECISION, AS TOUGH
AS SHE IMAGINES IT IS, AND I
UNDERSTAND HER CONCERNS, IS, YOU
KNOW, THE OPPOSITE IS FAR WORSE.
I DO THINK THE CERTIFICATION
WILL HELP.
WE CERTAINLY DONT HAVE A LOT OF
PROFILES IN COURAGE YET.
THIS SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED THE
DAY AFTER THE ELECTION.
AGAIN, LETS REMEMBER, UNDER
OBAMA/BIDEN, THE DAY AFTER THAT
LAST ELECTION, WHICH WAS MUCH
CLOSER THAN THIS ONE, THEY
INVITED THE TRUMP/PENCE TEAM TO
THE WHITE HOUSE.
THEY SAW WHAT THE RIGHT THING TO
DO IN AN ELECTION LIKE THIS WAS.
SHE NEEDS TO STEP UP AND
RESPECTFULLY DO THE RIGHT THING.
>> WELL BE WATCHING CLOSELY TO