White House: Some lawmakers skipped Trump's inauguration so he doesn't have to concede

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Friday justified Donald Trump’s refusal to concede that he lost the election by running through a list of grievances about how Democrats treated Trump in 2016.

Trump has refused to admit that he lost the 2020 election, instead tweeting debunked claims of voter fraud and election rigging. The General Services Administration, which is responsible for administering the transition to brief and prepare President-elect Joe, has refused to ascertain that Biden did indeed win the election and continues to block the transition.

The Trump administration’s refusal to cooperate in the transfer of power to the incoming administration is happening despite the increasing death toll of the COVID-19 pandemic and the need for a nationwide vaccine distribution plan. Experts say the refusal to cooperate could make the virus, now surging across much of the country, even worse.

But this obstruction is justified — according to McEnany, who has been largely absent from the White House since the election, instead appearing on Fox News on behalf of Trump’s campaign to push lies about “voter fraud” — because, among other reasons, some Democratic lawmakers boycotted Trump’s inauguration in 2017.

“You had 70 lawmakers say we’re not coming to his inauguration, Democratic lawmakers,” said McEnany.

Many of those lawmakers refused to attend the event out of solidarity with the late Rep. John Lewis (D-GA), who was attacked by Trump for declining to attend the inauguration. Their absence had no effect on the transition.

McEnany also complained about the FBI investigation into the Trump campaign’s connections to Russia, which she falsely offered as evidence that Trump was never given a real transition.

“It’s worth remembering that this president was never given an orderly transition of power,” McEnany said. “So while every legal vote is counted, let us not forget the inexcusable transition or lack thereof that President Trump had to endure in 2016.”

In fact, the transition to Trump was authorized by the General Services Administration on the day after the 2016 presidential election.

“On the day after the presidential election in 2016, I ascertained that Donald Trump had won,” former GSA administrator Denise Turner Roth wrote in a column for CNN. “My determination was based on several factors: a review of the results reported by every state, the major news organizations that called the election for Trump, Trump’s clear margin of victory and the absence of voting irregularities or fraud.”

Biden’s victory over Trump meets and exceeds the standards Roth used for the transition from Obama to Trump. Biden’s win in the electoral college of 306-232 over Trump has been acknowledged by the major media outlets, and he has a popular vote victory of nearly 6 million votes.

Former President Barack Obama hosted Trump at the White House two days after the election. Former first lady Michelle Obama hosted Melania Trump that day as well.

Thus far, the current occupants of the White House have not extended any such invitations to the Bidens and have not indicated any plans to do so.

McEnany’s lie — that Trump was never allowed a proper transition — is betrayed by Trump himself, who in his 2017 inaugural address praised the transition.

“Every four years, we gather on these steps to carry out the orderly and peaceful transfer of power, and we are grateful to President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for their gracious aid throughout this transition,” Trump said.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.