Politics live updates: Rep. Jim Clyburn says Rep. Marcia Fudge expected to be in Biden Cabinet

Sarah Elbeshbishi, Matthew Brown and Bart Jansen, USA TODAY

USA TODAY's coverage of the 2020 election and President-elect Joe Biden's transition continues this week as he rolls out more of his picks for top jobs in his administration. Meanwhile, the remaining final states certify their vote counts before the Electoral College ballots are officially cast Monday.

President Donald Trump has cleared the way for Biden's team to use federal resources and get briefings during the transition, although Trump has yet to formally concede the race.

Be sure to refresh this page often to get the latest information on the election and the transition.

Rep. Jim Clyburn says Rep. Marcia Fudge expected to be in Biden Cabinet

Rep. Jim Clyburn, the highest-ranking Black member of House leadership, said Tuesday that he expects President-elect Joe Biden to nominate Rep. Marcia Fudge to a Cabinet post and that retired Gen. Lloyd Austin would make a good secretary of the Defense Department.

Fudge, D-Ohio, a member of the House Agriculture Committee, has been promoted as a potential secretary of Agriculture. Clyburn, a co-chairman of Biden’s inaugural committee whose support in South Carolina was crucial to Biden winning the Democratic nomination and ultimately the White House, said he expects Fudge to join the Cabinet.

“I look for her to be in the Cabinet,” Clyburn, D-S.C., told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Tuesday. “I don’t know that she will be the secretary of agriculture. That may not be. But she will be a member of the Cabinet, at least she will be nominated for a Cabinet position.”

Clyburn said he also supported Austin, who would become the first Black secretary of Defense, if confirmed by the Senate. Clyburn said he worked with Austin on diversity issues while he was at the Pentagon and that the Congressional Black Caucus supports him.

“We worked together on diversity issues,” Clyburn said. “I look for this to be a pretty smooth hearing and confirmation. I like him very much. I think he’s going to be a good fit for us.”

Clyburn’s comments come as various groups have argued for more diversity on Biden’s Cabinet and among top advisers. Biden will meet Tuesday with civil-rights groups.

– Bart Jansen

Trump reached out to Pennsylvania House speaker over election

President Donald Trump and his allies have continued to lobby Pennsylvania officials on its failed election cases in the commonwealth, going so far as to try and stop the state’s certification of the election results.

The measures reflect a national attempt by the Trump campaign in battleground states ahead of the Dec. 14 convention of the Electoral College. Trump has sought to overturn results in states he lost to President-elect Joe Biden.

The president called state House Speaker Bryan Cutler to make his case, according to the Associated Press. The New York Times reported the president called Cutler twice over the past few days. Cutler's spokesman Michael Straub told the Times the president asked "what options were available to the legislature."

Supporters of the president have gathered in front of Cutler’s house to protest the results of the election.

Pennsylvania certified Biden's win in the state in November.

On Saturday, Trump called Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, urging him to ask the state legislature to overturn the results, which showed Biden the winner. Kemp has since told state lawmakers that attempts to change the election outcome by picking their own presidential electors is "not an option."

Georgia: Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp to state legislators: Picking own presidential electors 'not an option'

Some Trump allies, like Republican Rep. Mike Kelly, who represents part of northwestern Pennsylvania, have filed further lawsuits alleging widespread and coordinated fraud in state court. Nine state Republican lawmakers also filed a lawsuit on Monday levying similar claims.

– Matthew Brown

Ted Cruz said he would present oral arguments if PA case went to SCOTUS

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas said he would present the oral argument in front of the Supreme Court if the high court decided to hear the Trump campaign's latest election challenge in Pennsylvania.

“Petitioners’ legal team has asked me whether I would be willing to argue the case before the Supreme Court, if the Court grants certiorari. I have agreed, and told them that if the Court takes the appeal, I will stand ready to present the oral argument,” Cruz told FOX News Monday, which he confirmed in a tweet.

The latest case filed in Pennsylvania regarding the election asks for the state to exclude the mail-in ballots received, citing them as unconstitutional. Pennsylvania received more than 2.5 million mail-in ballots in the 2020 election. President Donald Trump lost the state to President-elect Joe Biden.

GOP Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania is leading the case, claiming that all the mail-in votes are illegal votes and that the state’s 2019 law that made mail-in voting universal was illegal. Kelly was ruled against twice by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in cases that also ask to invalidate mail-in votes and block Joe Biden’s win.

“As I said last week, the bitter division and acrimony we see across the Nation needs resolution. I believe #SCOTUS has a responsibility to the American People to ensure, within its powers, that we are following the law and following the Constitution,” Cruz also tweeted Monday.

– Sarah Elbeshbishi

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Politics updates: Clyburn says Marcia Fudge will be in Biden Cabinet

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