Two decades later: How lessons from the 9/11 Commission Report can help us improve the political appointment process and protect our national security One of the 9/11 Commission report’s most notable findings was that a delayed presidential transition in 2000 “hampered the new administration in identifying, recruiting, clearing, and obtaining Senate confirmation of key appointees.” Read More
The Three Big Mistakes in the 2020 Plum Book For most people, the only way to find out who is serving in the top decision-making positions in government is to reference the 2020 Plum Book. Unfortunately, this document has significant procedural and factual problems and could be greatly improved. Read More
The Biden Administration Faces Obstacles Getting Key Officials in Place Despite a Well-Organized Transition At the 100 day mark of his administration on April 29, President Joe Biden had outpaced his predecessors by appointing a record of nearly 1,500 officials to government positions not requiring Senate approval and by nominating 220 others for Senate confirmed jobs. Read More
The Center for Presidential Transition’s Pivotal Role in This Year’s Presidential Transition of Power The retrospective report offers an in-depth look at the pivotal support the Center provided—from laying the groundwork with the Biden and Trump teams almost a year ago to preparing prospective political appointees in recent months—and its role as the go-to resource for nonpartisan counsel and support for presidential transitions. Read More
Pace of Senate Confirmations: How Does Biden Compare With Previous Presidents? Presidents are responsible for about 4,000 political appointments, about 1,200 of which require Senate confirmation. This blog includes a comparison of how Biden’s pace of appointments and confirmations compares with the previous three presidents. Read More
After 50 Days, Biden Has Submitted More Nominations to the Senate Than Recent Presidents, but Had Fewer Confirmed March 10th marked President Joe Biden’s first 50 days in the White House. Biden has submitted more nominations than his recent predecessors at a comparable time, but the Senate has confirmed fewer of those nominees. Read More
How the Biden Transition Team Ethics Plan Compares With the Biden Administration’s Ethics Pledge Ethics requirements are now essential for transition teams planning for a new administration and for appointees once a president takes office. These plans assure that staff members do not personally benefit from their roles or promote agendas that create a conflict of interest. Read More
Biden Joins the Club: Each of the Previous Five Presidents Had an Early Cabinet Nominee Withdraw Biden is the sixth president in a row who has notched at least one unsuccessful Cabinet-level nomination by the end of their first two months in office. Read More
Why Delays in Confirming Biden’s Cabinet Matter: Sub-Cabinet Positions Are Rarely Filled Until the Cabinet Secretary Is Confirmed The pace of confirming Cabinet secretaries historically influences the staffing of other leadership positions such as deputy secretaries and undersecretaries. Read More
Top Acting Officials in the Biden Administration As President Joe Biden continues to staff his administration, he has named acting officials to fill some of the 1,200 positions that require Senate confirmation. The following is a list of acting officials named by the Biden administration for top positions at the 15 Cabinet agencies. Read More