President-elect Joe Biden is moving forward with transition plans, capping a tumultuous and tension-filled campaign during a historic pandemic against President Donald Trump, who still refuses to concede the election two weeks after Biden was projected as the winner and is taking extraordinary moves to challenge the results.
Running out of legal alternatives to override the election loss, Trump invited Michigan's top Republican state lawmakers to visit the White House on Friday, as he and allies pursue a pressure campaign to overturn results in a state Biden won by more than 150,000 votes.
Despite Trump's roadblocks and his administration refusing to recognize Biden as the president-elect, Biden is forging ahead as he prepares to announce key Cabinet positions.
Though Trump has alleged widespread voter fraud, he and his campaign haven't been able to provide the evidence to substantiate their claims and the majority of their lawsuits have already resulted in unfavorable outcomes.
Here is how the transition unfolded this past week. All times Eastern.
Nov 17, 2020, 11:57 AM EST
Harris will join Biden transition briefing virtually
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will join Biden’s transition briefing on national security remotely from Washington, D.C., according to an aide.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris attends a briefing on the economy at The Queen theater, Nov. 16, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Andrew Harnik/AP
She joined Biden in-person at The Queen Theater in Wilmington, Delaware, on Monday for their first joint remarks on the economy since they were projected winners of the election.
-ABC News’ Averi Harper
Nov 17, 2020, 10:56 AM EST
Biden announces members of White House senior staff
Biden, forging ahead with his transition despite Trump's refusals to concede, has named new members of his senior White House staff, bringing several of his closest campaign advisers into the fold.
“I am proud to announce additional members of my senior team who will help us build back better than before," Biden said in a release Monday. "America faces great challenges, and they bring diverse perspectives and a shared commitment to tackling these challenges and emerging on the other side a stronger, more united nation."
President-elect Joe Biden speaks during a press conference at The Queen, Nov. 16, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
Biden announced the following:
Mike Donilon, senior adviser to the president
Jen O’Malley Dillon, deputy chief of staff
Dana Remus, counsel to the president
Steve Ricchetti, counselor to the president
Cedric Richmond, senior adviser to the president and director of the White House Office of Public Engagement
Julie Rodriguez, director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs
Annie Tomasini, director of Oval Office Operations
While the former vice president has touted he pledged to build a diverse administration, five of the seven staffers are white, though women outnumber the men on the list. Notably missing from the list are any communication staffing announcements.
Also on the list are some members of Jill Biden’s staff, who worked with her during the campaign:
Anthony Bernal, senior adviser to Jill Biden
Julissa Reynoso Pantaleon, chief of staff to Jill Biden
-ABC News’ Molly Nagle
Nov 17, 2020, 9:46 AM EST
Overview: Biden team hindered by lack of formal transition from Trump
While Biden forges ahead and continues to build out his White House team, he remains hindered by the lack of a formal concession from Trump.
The Trump administration is still not recognizing Biden as the president-elect, and Biden warned Monday "more people may die" without a the process of a formal transition as the country battles the coronavirus pandemic on top of ongoing national security concerns.
President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris meet virtually with business and labor leaders at The Queen in Wilmington, Delaware, Nov. 16, 2020.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
Taking matters into his own hands, Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will receive a briefing on national security from security and defense advisers in Wilmington, Delaware, on Tuesday, as they stress their work must begin now and not on Jan. 20.
The briefing comes as Trump makes [geo-political moves not typical of a lame-duck commander-in-chief. Two officials confirmed to ABC News on Monday that orders were expected by the end of this week to reduce troop levels in Afghanistan to 2,500 and in Iraq to 2,500 by mid-January.
President Donald Trump walks to his motorcade on the South Lawn of the White House on Nov. 8, 2020.
Andrew Cabalero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Notably, Biden has said Harris is still getting briefings based on her role on the Senate Intelligence Committee, but it’s unclear how much she can pass on to Biden.
Pressing forward, Biden is also expected to name a number of senior White House staff as soon as this week, a group that will likely include Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-La., a key surrogate and his campaign's first national co-chair. Biden's campaign manager Jen O'Malley Dillon is expected to join the administration as deputy chief of staff, sources confirmed to ABC News.
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden is greeted by Congressman Cedric Richmond as he arrives in Columbus, Ga., on Oct. 27, 2020.
Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images, FILE
While Trump has no public events on his schedule for Tuesday, Vice President Mike Pence will lead a coronavirus task force meeting at the White House as the administration faces criticism on Trump’s apparent lack of interest in managing the virus. Trump hasn’t attended a task force meeting for months.
It all comes as state certification deadlines approach for the 2020 election, and the Trump campaign, working against those deadlines, also fights against the results which voted him out of office.
Nov 17, 2020, 9:56 AM EST
Biden tries end-around of defiant Trump
Biden is making clear that he wants Trump's help with the transition -- and is even warning that lives could be lost if he doesn't get it.
But Biden is signaling that he doesn't truly expect that help. He is acting in ways that say he doesn't really need it, much as it might boost his incoming presidency -- and maybe help the health of the nation.
The former vice president is outlining an agenda that actually starts before Jan. 20, with more stimulus spending now and mask mandates designed to slow the spread of COVID-19. He is setting up task forces and working groups along with a revamped West Wing staffing operation designed to adapt to the particular challenges of the moment.
President-elect Joe Biden answers questions from the press at The Queen in Wilmington, Del., Nov. 16, 2020.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
"It would make it a lot easier," Biden said Monday, "if the president were to participate."
Biden remains among the more calm Democrats in official circles. He's letting his surrogates and lawyers do battle with sputtering legal efforts and a torrent of falsehoods about the election propagated by the president.
It's appropriate to ask Republican members of Congress to say that Trump should acknowledge the facts and help assure smooth governance. Democrats, of course, have strong opinions on the subject as well.
What's becoming clear, though, is that state authorities and ultimately the judicial branch will be forced to end scattered election disputes. Trump will still be president when that happens; in some states, finality might be just days away.
But by then, Biden's plan is to be well on his way to doing a job Trump isn't showing particular interest in at the moment.