'Not getting all information': Biden says Trump-appointees at Pentagon stalling transition

President-elect Joe Biden condemned US President Donald Trump’s administration for ‘stalling the transition’ that could lead to national security risks. In a live-streamed conference, Biden accused the political appointees at the Pentagon and the Office of Management and Budget of setting up ‘road blocs’, adding that his team wasn’t getting all the information that was needed from the outgoing Trump administration in key national security areas.

“It is nothing short, in my view, of irresponsibility,” Biden said in a televised video. Biden added that he needed a ‘clear picture’ of the US troops' posture and operations to deter enemies. Biden said that his team had to ensure that nothing was lost in the handoff between transitions.  “We need full visibility into the budget planning underway at the Defense Department and other agencies in order to avoid any window of confusion or catch-up that our adversaries may try to exploit,” Biden said. The US vice president elect’s remarks came after he and the Vice President-elect Kamala Harris were briefed by their transition teams on national security. 

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Pentagon-wide halt on meetings

Earlier on December 18, Trump’s Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller had ordered a Pentagon-wide halt on meetings and cooperation with President-elect Biden’s transition team. Miller’s action had shocked the officials throughout the Pentagon, as miller cited distrust toward the Biden team from the top officials in the Trump administration.

The move was followed after Washington Post published a story about the funds Biden’s team will save if they halted Trump’s construction of the border wall in Mexico. This, according to the US broadcasters, raised speculations about leaks on part of the Biden transition team by the Trump administration. As President Trump's team and the Biden team were in talks, Miller, who was appointed to office on Nov. 9 after Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper, abruptly ordered cancellation of all scheduled transition meetings. Miller, however, told US news media that the DoD staff working the meetings were overwhelmed by the number of meetings and hence he had to call them off, not citing the actual cause of concern. 

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