After months of holding off on filing some official transition forms, President-elect Donald Trump‘s team announced Tuesday that it had entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Justice Department, paving the way for FBI background checks.
The Department of Justice and President Trump will work together to ensure that the America First Agenda, which the enormous bulk of our citizens supported on Election Day, is implemented on Day 1, according to receiving Trump chief of staff Susie Wiles, in a statement.
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After it appeared that some appointees may miss the approach, the MOU will help Trump’s management officials to publish their names for background checks and security clearances. This is a top priority for a bipartisan group of lawmakers.
Trump had previously suggested eschewing a background check when some of his questionable Cabinet nominations received negative media attention because it has long been a custom for officials to go through it. However, this is not required by law.
Trump’s choice for the intelligence sector’s leader, Tulsi Gabbard, was again placed on a national aircraft watchlist, and Pete Hegseth, the nominee for the defense secretary, has been the subject of unfavorable reports about physical assault stemming from a 2017 case, which has prompted some lawmakers to call for the checks.
In a letter sent this week to incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD ), outgoing Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY ) demanded that appointees be subject to FBI background checks.
” As we move to the 119th Congress, Senate Democrats stand ready and willing to work with Senate Republicans to give advice and consent as we examine all of the approaching government’s nominations”, Schumer wrote.
” In particular, we commit to working in a bipartisan fashion to approach each candidate by reviewing regular FBI background-investigation supplies, scheduling sessions and markups in the committees of authority, and considering nominees on the Senate flooring”, Schumer continued.
On the Democratic side, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) recently told the Hill that” the FBI should do the background investigations, in my wisdom”.
” I do think there will be FBI background checks”, said Sen. Roger Wicker , (R-MS ) told Politico.
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Next week, the Trump change team announced it had entered into an agreement with the cheerful Biden administration to help Trump’s transition team to start coordinating with , federal , agencies, but at the time, the agreement did not imply FBI checks.
It was reported that otherwise, appointees do get time safety clearance on the first day of Trump’s subsequent administration. But with Tuesday’s fresh MOU deal, background checks may occur.
