After his resounding victory on November 5, those on the left have criticized the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump for “delaying” the signing of transition agreements with the Biden Administration.

Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, even went as far as to say that the Trump transition team “broke the law” when they refused to sign the ethics agreement. She emphasized that she knew “because I wrote the law.”

Warren is wrong. She’s referring to the Presidential Transition Enhancement Act (2019), which amends the Presidential Transition Act (1963) and sets forth the framework of agreements that will be entered between the General Services Administration and a new presidential administration to facilitate the transition process. The incoming administration does not have to sign these agreements or memorandums by a specific deadline. It is not required that an ethics agreement be signed by/on the date the candidate becomes President-elect. In the tweet above, Warren also notes that details are still being worked out by the Biden Administration and the Transition Team.

The Trump-Vance Transition Team, however, announced on Tuesday that they had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Biden White House to begin “critical preparations” in the transition.

After the agreement was executed, Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles issued the following statement.

After completing his selection of the incoming Cabinet of President Joe Biden, President-elect Trump enters the next phase of the transition of his administration by signing a Memorandum of Understanding. This agreement allows the intended nominees for the Cabinet to begin preparations. Landing teams will be deployed to all departments and agencies to ensure a smooth transition of power.

The MOU includes:

  • The transition will not use taxpayer funds for costs associated with the transition. This is in line with President Trump’s commitment to saving taxpayers’ hard-earned money.
  • The Transition will not rely on GSA-provided technology or government buildings and will instead operate as an independent organization. This autonomy will ensure that the Trump Administration can be ready from Day One.
  • The transition has already been built with security and privacy protections, so we won’t need additional government or bureaucratic oversight.
  • There is an Ethics Plan in place for the Transition, which will allow personnel to move seamlessly into the Trump Administration. According to the Transition Enhancement Act, this Ethics Plan will appear on the General Services Administration’s website.
  • The teams will be able to quickly integrate into the federal departments and agencies with documents and policy sharing.
  • As per the agreement, Transition will reveal the landing team to the Biden Administration.
  • Again, the agreement stipulates that private funding will be used for the Trump-Vance Transition, allowing American taxpayers to save money. The donors to the Transition are going to be made public. Per the Transition’s existing policy, it will not accept donations from foreign countries.

The Trump-Vance Transition Team will confirm that it has an ethics plan, and it will post it to the GSA’s website, as required by law. But, oh yeah, they won’t use taxpayer funds, government buildings, or technology through the GSA. Trump has learned the hard way not to put too much trust in a departing administration.