Sen. Rob Portman is the latest Republican to urge President Trump to move forward with the White House transition to President-elect Joe Biden.
The Ohio Republican said that while he supports Trump’s right to pursue litigation on his beliefs, the election had an unfair advantage to Biden. Portman said there’s been no proof of widespread fraud, and it’s time to start moving forward.
“There were instances of fraud and irregularities in this election, as there have been in every election,” Portman wrote in an op-ed in the Cincinnati Enquirer. “It is good that those have been exposed and any fraud or other wrongdoing should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, but there is no evidence as of now of any widespread fraud or irregularities that would change the result in any state.”
Trump has been fighting the results in several key battleground states and has yet to concede to Biden, who was declared the winner more than two weeks ago. Electors are due to vote in state capitols on Dec. 14, but if contested states declare Biden the victor by Dec. 8, Congress will presume those results as conclusive.
Portman has largely been an ally of Trump and said he voted for the president and co-chaired his campaign in Ohio, believing his policies would be better for his state and the country as a whole.
However, he emphasized that an efficient transfer of power is one of the most sacred constitutional processes that must be upheld. He urged the General Services Administration to release funds and begin the process ahead of the “Safe Harbor” date of Dec. 8.
“The Biden team should receive the requested intelligence briefings and briefings on the coronavirus vaccine distribution plan,” Portman said. “This is only prudent. Donald Trump is our president until Jan. 20, 2021, but in the likely event that Joe Biden becomes our next president, it is in the national interest that the transition is seamless and that America is ready on Day One of a new administration for the challenges we face.”
Portman added that he understands roughly half of the country’s disappointment but hopes people can move forward and accept the results.
“My hope is that all of us, as Americans, regardless of who we supported in the campaign, will be willing to accept the result because a thorough process was followed and the final vote count was clear,” he said.
Inauguration Day is set for Jan. 20, 2021.
