A 2020 law aimed at improving presidential transitions was hailed as a shining example of bipartisanship — a symbol that Congress can “stop politicizing ethics reforms,” as then-Congressman Mark Meadows described it on the House floor.
But one fateful assumption in the law — that presidential transition teams would actually want government support — has rendered the law toothless as a second Trump presidency approaches.
It’s a loophole legislators didn’t anticipate presidents actually taking advantage of, lawmakers and historians told NOTUS. The original Presidential Transition Act of 1963, subsequent updates to the law, ethics requirements, outside contribution limits and disclosure requirements all hinge on the president actually accepting government services.