Biden suggests GOP senators speaking out against alleged Russian hack is a sign of bipartisan future

Tim O'Donnell

President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday had some harsh words for President Trump's response to the alleged Russian cyberattack on U.S. federal agencies and companies. He accused the Trump administration of failing to prioritize cybersecurity and letting their guard down in their first place, but also expressed frustration with Trump for downplaying the seriousness of the hack and failing to officially identify a perpetrator, whom the intelligence widely suspects is the Kremlin. Biden's ire toward the White House did not extend to the Capitol, however.

Biden said he was pleased to see lawmakers from both parties speak out "loudly and clearly" against the security breach. "I want to thank prominent Republicans in the Senate particularly for speaking out," he said. "It's a sign. A sign that with a new administration we can confront these threats on a bipartisan basis with a united front here at home. That should be encouraging to the American people and a warning to our adversaries."

As Biden showed throughout his presidential campaign, his desire to reach across the aisle and work with Republicans on key issues is a priority, so it's no surprise to hear him single out GOP senators in this instance.

More stories from theweek.com
Televangelist Pat Robertson says Biden won, won't be president long, urges 'erratic' Trump to retire
Trump's eye-for-an-eye endgame
Are the worst days of the Trump presidency still ahead?

Latest Stories

  • Texas attorney general asked Trump administration to revoke COVID relief funds for Harris County

    Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton asked the Trump administration in the spring to revoke millions of dollars in COVID relief for Harris County, which includes Houston, because the funds were earmarked to expand mail-in voting in the 2020 election.

  • Distrust of the medical system among Black Americans poses added vaccination challenge for COVID-19

    Despite the fact that 71 percent of Black Americans say they know someone who has either died or been hospitalized after contracting COVID-19, just 42 percent said they planned to get vaccinated for it.`

  • How Biden will deal with the Pentagon's generals

    During his 34-year tenure on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which he twice chaired, Biden took a keen interest in military issues, frequently visiting U.S. forces deployed overseas.

  • After permit approved for whites-only church, small Minnesota town insists it isn't racist

    City leaders said if they had turned down Asatru Folk Assembly, they would have faced an expensive legal battle.

  • Fauci joins the coronavirus vaccine parade, as Trump sits it out

    Dr. Anthony Fauci received his first dose of Moderna's coronavirus vaccine on Tuesday as a symbolic gesture to show Americans the shots are safe.

  • Toronto police: Pakistani dissident death not suspicious

    Police in Toronto said Tuesday they are not treating the death of a prominent Pakistani dissident as suspicious. Authorities said the body of 37-year-old Karima Mehrab was found on Monday near Toronto's downtown waterfront, a day after she had been reported missing. “It is currently being investigated as a non-criminal death and there are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances,” Toronto police spokeswoman Caroline de Kloet said.

  • Texas veers away from national vaccination guidelines, will prioritize over 65 age group before essential workers

    Texas does not plan on following a federal advisory panel's recommendation that essential workers and people over age 75 should be next in line to receive COVID-19 vaccines after health care workers and long-term care facility residents, the state's health and human services department announced Monday.Instead, people in Texas who are over 65, as well as adults of any age with certain medical conditions considered coronavirus co-morbidities will receive priority. The department's announcement says the decision was reached after a state-level expert panel decided the "most vulnerable populations" should be protected as soon as possible, though it will likely be a few weeks before the state is done with the initial phase of vaccinations.> Texas breaks with CDC ACIP recommendations for next phase of covid19 vaccine prioritization; puts people 65+ and those with medical conditions that put them at high risk next in line after front-line health care workers and residents of long term care facilities pic.twitter.com/o3nDRaQpeZ> > — Meg Tirrell (@megtirrell) December 21, 2020There has been debate about who should receive shots next, with some arguing data clearly identifies age as one of the most significant factors in disease severity. But others believe the federal recommendation is the right call, since essential workers are at greater risk of coming into contact with the virus and don't have the luxury of working from home.More stories from theweek.com Televangelist Pat Robertson says Biden won, won't be president long, urges 'erratic' Trump to retire Trump's eye-for-an-eye endgame Are the worst days of the Trump presidency still ahead?

  • 'Good riddance,' China says as Germany leaves U.N. Security Council

    Germany's U.N. envoy, during his last scheduled U.N. Security Council meeting, appealed to China to free two detained Canadians for Christmas, prompting China's deputy U.N. envoy to respond: "Out of the bottom of my heart: Good riddance." Germany finishes a two-year term on the 15-member council at the end of this month and Ambassador Christoph Heusgen plans to retire after more than 40 years as a diplomat.

  • US companies no longer have to pay sick leave to people with Covid after Mitch McConnell reportedly blocks extension

    ‘This crisis has made it clearer than ever why paid leave for every worker is so important to families,’ says senator Patty Murray

  • Ivanka Trump campaigns in Georgia, but makes no mention of her father's election fraud claims

    Ivanka Trump campaigned in Georgia on Monday for Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, but didn't mention her father's claims that election fraud had cost him victory in the state.

  • Israeli police shoot alleged gunman in Jerusalem's Old City

    Israeli police said Monday they shot a Palestinian attacker who opened fire at a group of officers in Jerusalem's Old City. According to police, the attacker approached a police post near the Lion's Gate entrance to the Old City and fired with a rudimentary submachine gun known as a “Carlo.” An Israeli police officer tripped during the chase and was lightly hurt, police said.

  • Former FDA chief thinks new mutation of COVID-19 found in the U.K. is 'already in the U.S.'

    Former FDA head Dr. Scott Gottlieb believes the new variant of the coronavirus found in the United Kingdom is "already in the U.S." and a travel ban won't do anything to keep it from spreading in the country.The mutation is thought to be up to 70 percent more transmissible, and because of it, more than 40 countries have banned travel to and from the U.K. for at least 48 hours. The former Food and Drug Administration commissioner told CNBC's Shepard Smith on Monday that at this point, he does not believe a travel ban "is going to prevent this mutated strain from coming into the United States. We're going to have an epidemic that continues to build over the course of the next three or four weeks, we'll reach a peak, and then we'll start to see infection rates decline as we see vaccinations get rolled out."So far, there is no sign this is a deadlier strain, and Gottlieb told Smith "the question is, is this virus going to change the surface proteins in a way that can obviate either the vaccines or prior immunity, and there's no indication that it's doing that right now." However, Gottlieb cautioned that "over time, it will evolve in ways where it can probably obviate prior infection or vaccines to some degree, so we'll probably need to adapt our vaccines over time."As the virus continues to make its way around the world, Gottlieb said "we're going to start to see more of these variants, and that's why it's important to get the population vaccinated and snuff out these infections. The more infections you have, the more chances that these variants start to propagate."More stories from theweek.com Televangelist Pat Robertson says Biden won, won't be president long, urges 'erratic' Trump to retire Trump's eye-for-an-eye endgame Are the worst days of the Trump presidency still ahead?

  • 35 Outdoor Fire Pit Ideas That Are Lit

    Extend the outdoor season and get ready to smell the campfireOriginally Appeared on Architectural Digest

  • S. Korea scrambles jets after Chinese and Russian intrusion into air defense zone

    South Korea said on Tuesday it had scrambled fighter jets in response to an intrusion into South Korea's air defense identification zone by 19 Russian and Chinese military aircraft.

  • Mexico says to receive first vaccines from Pfizer on Wednesday

    MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -The first COVID-19 vaccine doses from U.S. pharmaceutical firm Pfizer Inc will arrive in Mexico on Wednesday, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Tuesday, paving the way for their application in the country. "This first shipment to Mexico has already been picked up at Pfizer's plant in Belgium, it arrives tomorrow," Ebrard told reporters at a regular news conference. "We think it will be touching down in Mexico before noon."

  • The US Navy appears to be sending Iran a message with a submarine packed with missiles

    Monday's statement marks the first time since 2012 the Navy has announced the presence of a guided-missile submarine in the Persian Gulf.

  • Trump turns on Pence as Lincoln Project ad ‘gets in his head’, report says

    President is reportedly lashing out at closest aides

  • Sheriff: Missouri girl's killers sought to remove 'demon'

    Ethan Mast, 35, and Kourtney Aumen, 21, are charged with second-degree murder, sexual abuse and three counts of assault. “Based on what I know, I think this could be some kind of honest-to-goodness religious-type episode,” Benton County Sheriff Eric Knox said in a phone interview. A probable cause statement from Sgt. Chris Wilson said the girl was already dead and had “severe purple bruising” throughout her body, along with ruptured blisters.

  • Two passengers leave plane by emergency slide before takeoff from NYC

    The passengers were on a flight bound for Atlanta when they opened the aircraft’s cabin door.

  • Australia confirms two cases of new coronavirus strain

    SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia confirmed on Monday it has detected two cases of a fast-spreading new coronavirus strain that has forced Britain to reverse plans to ease curbs over Christmas, the first confirmed cases of the strain in the Asia-Pacific region. Australia's most populous state on Sunday reported six new cases of the novel coronavirus in people returning from overseas and in quarantine, and authorities said among them were two cases of the fast-spreading new strain. "We've had a couple of UK returned travellers with the particular mutations," NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant told reporters.