The head of a government agency that helps presidential transitions said she was threatened because of a lack of ascertainment that Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won the Nov. 3 election.
In the letter, Murphy defended her actions and revealed that she'd been threatened.
“I have dedicated much of my adult life to public service, and I have always strived to do what is right. Please know that I came to my decision independently, based on the law and available facts. I was never directly or indirectly pressured by any Executive Branch official—including those who work at the White House or GSA—with regard to the substance or timing of my decision,” Murphy wrote.
“To be clear, I did not receive any direction to delay my determination. I did, however, receive threats online, by phone, and by mail directed at my safety, my family, my staff, and even my pets in an effort to coerce me into making this determination prematurely. Even in the face of thousands of threats, I always remained committed to upholding the law.”
Some Democrats have claimed that the cost of Murphy’s non-action was American lives.
“More people may die, if we don’t coordinate,” Biden told a press conference last week.
“The longer this goes, the more it’s going to jeopardize people’s lives and people’s well-being,” Jen Psaki, a Biden adviser, added on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. “We’re going to continue to put public pressure on, of course, but not just us. I think that’s going to continue and rise in the days to come,” she added.
Citizens for Ethics, a government watchdog started by Hillary Clinton ally David Brock, said Tuesday that “thousands of Americans could have died because this woman would not let the Biden transition work with the Trump administration on coronavirus response.”
Democrat social media users called for Murphy to be fired and prosecuted for her decision to not release transition resources for weeks.
Biden’s campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment about the threats.
Trump in a tweet late Monday thanked Murphy for her work.
“She has been harassed, threatened, and abused—and I do not want to see this happen to her, her family, or employees of GSA. Our case STRONGLY continues, we will keep up the good fight, and I believe we will prevail!” he wrote.
“Nevertheless, in the best interest of our Country, I am recommending that Emily and her team do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols, and have told my team to do the same.”
A GSA official was scheduled to brief some members of Congress on a transition next week, but Democrat House chairs rejected the offer.
“Every additional day that is wasted is a day that the safety, health, and well-being of the American people is imperiled as the incoming Biden-Harris Administration is blocked from fully preparing for the coronavirus pandemic, our nation’s dire economic crisis, and our national security,” they wrote earlier on Monday, requesting a briefing sometime on Tuesday.
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