Trump campaign distances itself from attorney Sidney Powell: Transition updates
The campaign now says she's not a member of the president's legal team.
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.
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Georgia secretary of state certifies election results, governor faces deadline to sign off
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has certified the results of the general election Friday, making it official that Biden won the state's 16 electoral votes.
"The numbers reflect the verdict of the people, not a decision by the secretary of state's office or our courts, or of either campaigns," Raffensperger said during a Friday morning news conference.
Following the certification of the results, Republican Gov. Brian Kemp must now "certify the slates of presidential electors receiving the highest number of votes" by 5 p.m. Saturday. While the president has repeatedly tagged Kemp in tweets, including one that said, "Republicans must get tough," the governor has not given any indication he will not follow through with his part of this process.
With the certification, a two-business-day time period begins for Trump to request a recount, as he's expected to, since he remains within 0.5% of Biden.
ABC News asked Kemp's office Friday if the governor will definitely certify the electors by the deadline but has not received a response.
-ABC News' Quinn Scanlan
Michigan lawmakers meet with Trump at the White House
Michigan lawmakers have arrived at the White House and were spotted walking into the West Wing just a couple of minutes before 4 p.m.
Trump is meeting with at least two Republican leaders ahead of the state's board of canvassers meeting on Monday in an apparent effort to try to influence them to override certification of the state’s vote. This would set up the potential for the GOP-controlled legislature to choose its own slate of pro-Trump electors to vote for the president at the Electoral College's December meeting.
The prospect of the Michigan legislature intervening in a process that it is not involved in by state law is not one that has been publicly embraced in Lansing or on Capitol Hill.
Bob Bauer, a senior adviser to the Biden team, tore into the idea of Trump’s meeting earlier Friday, slamming it as “pathetic” and “an abuse of office,” but he maintained that "there's no way whatsoever" Trump will be successful in overturning the election.
Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield, who is among those meeting with Trump, tweeted earlier in the day he "won't apologize" for accepting a meeting with the president, adding that he's honored to speak with him.
Biden, Harris meet with Democratic leadership
Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are sitting down with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leaders Chuck Schumer at The Queen Theater in Wilmington, Delaware, for their first in-person meeting since the election.
Reporters were briefly allowed into the top of meeting where Biden could be heard telling Pelosi and Schumer about how his team has repurposed various buildings around Wilmington to hold meetings and conduct transition work. He also thanked them for making the trip.
"Thanks for having us,” Schumer could be heard saying in return, while Pelosi said it’s an “honor” to be with him.
Biden also referenced the frosty relationship both Pelosi and Schumer have had with the current occupant of the Oval Office.
"In my Oval Office, -- mi casa, you casa," Biden said. "I’m gonna need you. I hope we’re gonna spend a lot of time together."
All four wore masks and were socially distanced, seated at a large rectangular table.
Pelosi told reporters on Capitol Hill earlier in the day they would discuss the lame-duck session and urgency of passing another round of coronavirus relief legislation. She also left the door open for the House of Representatives to intervene in Biden's transition as the Trump administration blocks it, though she didn't elaborate on details.
-ABC News' John Verhovek, Molly Nagle and Beatrice Peterson
Trump delivers remarks on drug prices, falsely claims he won election
Trump emerged before cameras on Friday afternoon to deliver remarks on lowering prescription drug prices which quickly unraveled into an attack on big pharmaceutical companies he claimed were working against him and a false declaration that he won the election.
“Big pharma ran million dollars of negative advertisements against me during the campaign -- which I won, by the way, but you know. We will find that out,” Trump said.
Turning to the coronavirus and promising news of vaccines, Trump accused Pfizer of delaying the release of its preliminary vaccine data until after the election as retribution for Trump's announcement of new rules designed to lower drug prices.
“So they waited and waited and waited and they thought they’d come out with it a few days after the election. And it would probably have had an impact. Who knows? Maybe it wouldn't have,” Trump said.
He left the event without taking questions from reporters. Since the election, Trump has held just three public events at which he hasn't taken any questions.
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