In a scathing attack on outgoing US President Donald Trump, President-elect Joe Biden on Monday (December 28) claimed that under the Trump administration, US government agencies in charge of national security have “incurred enormous damage.”
Biden said that those departments have been "hollowed out in personnel, capacity and in morale" during Trump regime.
Biden said, “Most notable the Department of Defence, we encountered obstruction from the political leadership. The truth is, many of the agencies that are critical to our security have incurred enormous damage.” He added that the actions of the Trump administration “makes it harder for our government to protect the American people, to defend our vital interests”.
Biden's attack on Trump administration followed a briefing from members of his national security and foreign policy agency review teams "on their findings and key challenges that the Biden-Harris administration will inherit," his transition team said before his remarks.
Biden said it is important to ensure "nothing is lost" during the transition period and asserted that his team must be given a "clear picture" of the country's force posture worldwide and operations to deter enemies, as well as "full visibility" into the budget planning underway at the Pentagon and other agencies to "avoid any window of confusion or catch-up" that can be misused by the enemies of the US.
"We have encountered roadblocks from the political leadership at the Department of Defense and the Office of Management and Budget," Biden said. "Right now, we just aren't getting all the information that we need from the outgoing administration in key national security areas. It's nothing short in my view of irresponsibility," he added.
(with inputs from agencies)
