(Headline USA) U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander said Friday that President Donald Trump‘s administration should aid in a transition to the vote-leader, former Vice President Joe Biden, saying the Democrat has a “very good chance” of becoming the next president.
“If there is any chance whatsoever that Joe Biden will be the next president, and it looks like he has a very good chance, the Trump Administration should provide the Biden team with all transition materials, resources, and meetings necessary to ensure a smooth transition so that both sides are ready on day one,” the Republican from Tennessee said in a statement. “That especially should be true, for example, on vaccine distribution.”
Alexander, who is retiring, said recounts and resolving disputes after a close election are not unprecedented and should reassure Americans that the results are valid.
He also drew upon the example of Al Gore, who 37 days after the 2000 election, “made the best speech of his life accepting the result” that George W. Bush would become president.
“My hope is that the loser of this presidential election will follow Al Gore’s example, put the country first, congratulate the winner and help him to a good beginning of the new term,” Alexander said. “The prompt and orderly transfer or reaffirmation of immense power after a presidential election is the most enduring symbol of our democracy.”
Alexander’s comments follow similar concerns from other prominent Tennessee Republicans who have left office, including former Gov. Bill Haslam, former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and former Sen. Bob Corker, who had some notable public feuds with Trump while in office.
“While the president has the right to legitimate legal challenges, responsible citizens cannot let the reckless actions by him and his legal team stand,” Corker, a NeverTrumper, said Friday on Twitter. “Republicans have an obligation when the subject is of such importance to challenge demagoguery and patently false statements.”
U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican and top Trump critic within the party, has said it’s “difficult to imagine a worse, more undemocratic action by a sitting American President” than Trump’s pressure on local and state officials to try to overturn the election.
Adapted from reporting by Associated Press.
