Biden Transition Updates

Just six days after taking office, the Biden administration took a sharp turn in U.S. policy in the Middle East, announcing it will resume contact with Palestinian leaders and restore U.S. contributions to the U.N. agency which provides aid to Palestinians.

The changes were announced in a virtual speech before the U.N. Security Council by Richard Mills, acting U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Mills also said the new administration is committed to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with a secure Israel alongside a "viable Palestinian state." Mills said it is "the best way to ensure Israel's future as a democratic and Jewish state."

The remarks signaled a rejection of then-President Donald Trump's policy of the past four years, which overwhelmingly favored the interests of Israel's right-wing government. The Trump administration closed the Washington, D.C., office of the Palestine Liberation Organization; halted contributions to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, which provides aid to Palestinian refugees and their descendants; moved the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, recognizing the city as Israel's capital; recognized Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights; and presented a peace proposal which left all Israeli West Bank settlements in place.

Mills reiterated what had been long-standing U.S. policy before the Trump administration, calling on both sides to avoid unilateral actions that harm efforts to reach a peace agreement: "annexation of territory, settlement activity, demolitions, incitement to violence, and providing compensation for individuals imprisoned for acts of terrorism."

Mills acknowledged relations between the two sides are "at a nadir." But he added: "We hope it will be possible to start working to slowly build confidence on both sides to create an environment in which we might once again be able to help advance a solution."

In his remarks, Mills made no mention of reversing either the embassy move to Jerusalem or U.S. recognition of Israeli rule of the Golan Heights. And he said the U.S. "will maintain its steadfast support for Israel."

Mills also praised the U.S.-brokered establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab nations, which took place in the past year. Palestinians had seen that as a betrayal of Arab pledges to make peace with Israel only after the Palestinians made peace.

President Biden has been a strong supporter of Israel throughout his career and has known Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for decades, though relations between the two have at times been strained. A low point occurred during a Biden trip to Israel in 2010 when he was vice president. With Biden in the country, Netanyahu's government announced an increase in settlement construction, which Biden took as a personal insult. Netanyahu claimed he hadn't known the announcement would be made.

President-elect Joe Biden addressed a grieving nation on Tuesday after the United States had earlier in the day passed 400,000 deaths from the coronavirus.

Speaking at a service to remember Americans killed by the virus, Biden praised medical professionals for their roles in caring for the ill and their families during the pandemic.

"If there are any angels in heaven, they're all nurses. We know from our family experience what you do. The courage. The pain you absorb for others. So thank you. Thank you," Biden said at the Lincoln Memorial event.

Four hundred lights were turned on to honor the 400,000 Americans who died since the pandemic began in the U.S. one year ago.

"To heal, we must remember," Biden continued in his brief remarks. "It's hard sometimes to remember, but that's how we heal. It's important to do that as a nation."

Biden was joined by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, who called on Americans to unite through their mourning of lost loved ones.

"For many months, we have grieved by ourselves. Tonight, we grieve and begin healing together. Though we may be physically separated, we the American people are united in spirit."

Biden and Harris will be sworn into office Wednesday, and they have made addressing the coronavirus pandemic their top priority.

President Trump on Tuesday released an unrepentant virtual farewell address to the nation, describing himself as the "only true outsider ever to win the presidency," ahead of his reluctant departure from office Wednesday.

Trump, who will leave the White House with about his lowest approval rating yet, treated Tuesday's speech as a victory lap for his single term in office. He commended his response to the coronavirus, lauded his record on rewriting U.S. trade deals and cracking down on immigration, and praised his success in appointing three justices to the Supreme Court and hundreds of other judges to federal courts.

The U.S. surpassed the grim milestone of 400,000 deaths from COVID-19 on Tuesday. Only 39% of Americans approve of his handling of the pandemic, according to a new NPR poll.

Trump's remarks also come after his second impeachment in just over a year. The House of Representatives voted to impeach him last week for having incited a violent mob to storm the U.S. Capitol during the certification of his opponent's White House victory. A Senate trial is expected to begin soon.

"America is not a timid nation of tame souls who need to be sheltered and protected from those with whom we disagree," Trump said in the nearly 20-minute address posted to YouTube.

"That's not who we are. It will never be who we are," he said, railing against what he and other Republicans have decried as "cancel culture."

Trump, who has still not formally admitted his defeat in the race, told supporters: "This week, we inaugurate a new administration and pray for its success in keeping America safe and prosperous."

President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn into office Wednesday as the 46th president of the United States. Trump is not expected to attend the ceremony — a final dismissal of presidential decorum, the likes of which have come to define his presidency.

Trump, who inspired a legion of disaffected Republicans, told his supporters on Tuesday: "As I prepare to hand power over to a new administration at noon on Wednesday, I want you to know that the movement we started is only just beginning. There's never been anything like it."

The president has not yet indicated any career plans for when he leaves office Wednesday, but he is expected to depart the White House grounds for Florida, home to his Palm Beach resort, Mar-a-Lago.

"The world respects us again," Trump said, "Please don't lose that respect."

President-elect Joe Biden teared up twice Tuesday afternoon as he said goodbye to his adopted home state of Delaware and prepared to fly to Washington, D.C., to assume the presidency.

Paraphrasing, as he often does, Irish literature, Biden paused for several moments as he told a small, socially distanced crowd at a National Guard center named after his son Beau that "when I die, Delaware will be written on my heart."

Biden had hoped to travel to the capital by train, just as he did for decades as a U.S. senator, and like he and Barack Obama did before their 2009 inauguration. Security concerns nixed the train trip, though, so Biden is flying instead into Joint Base Andrews.

Still, Biden looked back on that 2009 trip, as he frequently did in speeches during his presidential campaign.

"Twelve years ago, I was waiting at the train station in Wilmington for a Black man to pick me up on our way to Washington, where we were sworn in as president and vice president of the United States of America," Biden said. "And here we are today, my family and I, about to return again to Washington, to meet a Black woman of South Asian descent, to be sworn in as president and vice president of the United States. ... That's America. That's Delaware."

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will join Biden later Tuesday for a ceremony on the National Mall honoring the 400,000 people who have died from COVID-19.

Updated 7:10 p.m. ET

Gen. Lloyd Austin, President-elect Joe Biden's pick to head the Pentagon, went before the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday in a bid to make history by being confirmed as the nation's first Black secretary of defense.

During his opening statement, Austin, 67, addressed the biggest issue hovering over his nomination.

In order for him to lead the Pentagon, both the House and Senate must approve a waiver because Austin has not been out of uniform for the seven years required by the National Security Act of 1947.

"Let me say at the outset, that I understand and respect the reservations that some of you have expressed about having another recently-retired general at the head of the Department of Defense," Austin said.

"The safety and security of our democracy demands competent civilian control of our armed forces. The subordination of military power to the civil."

Concerns over military waiver

Austin also sought to allay the fears of some committee members by promising to surround himself with "experienced, capable civilian leaders."

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., raised concerns that under Trump's first defense secretary, Jim Mattis, a retired Marine general who received a waiver from Congress, there was "an over deference to military views."

Austin reiterated that it was critical for him to have the right people involved in the decision-making process. He said if he's confirmed his chief of staff "will not be a military person," but someone who understands policy, strategy and also has ties to the White House and to Congress.

That was not enough to sway Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who is an Iraq and Afghanistan Army veteran.

"I supported the waiver for Gen. Mattis with reservations four years ago, which I quickly came to view as a mistake and I have since regretted," Cotton said.

"Unfortunately, I must announce that I oppose the waiver of the seven-year cooling-off period," Cotton said, adding that it was not a personal indictment of Austin's credentials.

Austin is a retired four-star Army General who once served as head of U.S. Central Command, the military's top command post which oversees U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Yemen. He's the only Black general to attain this position.

It was in that post that Biden came to know Austin, during the Obama Administration, NPR's Pentagon reporter Tom Bowman has reported.

Biden called Austin "a true patriot" in an op-ed in The Atlantic last month. He also referred to him as a trailblazer and one who challenged the Army to grow more inclusive in its ranks over his decades of military service.

"In his more than 40 years in the United States Army, Austin met every challenge with extraordinary skill and profound personal decency. He is a true and tested soldier and leader," Biden wrote.

The president-elect also wrote about spending hours with Austin, both in the field and in the White House Situation Room.

"I've sought his advice, seen his command, and admired his calm and his character," Biden added. "The fact is, Austin's many strengths and his intimate knowledge of the Department of Defense and our government are uniquely matched to the challenges and crises we face. He is the person we need in this moment."

Former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who served during the Obama administration and introduced Austin at the confirmation hearing, echoed those sentiments.

"Lloyd's accomplishments at the Department of Defense are without peer," Panetta said. "He knows that while we cannot defend our nation without our armed forces, we cannot defend our democratic form of government without strong civilian stewardship of our national security."

Capitol insurrection looms large

The deadly breach at the U.S. Capitol earlier this month was another subject about which senators questioned Austin. Since a mob threatened the certification of Biden's electoral victory during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol complex, many have raised concerns about extremism within the ranks of active duty military and members of the National Guard.

Prior to Austin's confirmation hearing, two National Guard members were removed from the mission to secure Biden's inauguration after vetting, according to Reuters.

Also on Tuesday, Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell explicitly blamed Trump for the riot that left five people, including a Capitol Police officer, dead, saying the president "fed lies to the mob" before they stormed the Capitol.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., was among a group of senators who sent a letter to Pentagon officials last week calling for them to "investigate and address white supremacy and extremist ideology" among their ranks.

Blumenthal, who also said he opposes a waiver for Austin, also said he looked forward to working with him, should he be confirmed, on "countering and combating this very important threat."

Austin agreed that the issue was "critical" and that better screening is needed of military recruits. He also shared an anecdote about years ago when he was working as a lieutenant colonel with the 82nd Airborne Division in North Carolina.

"We woke up one day and discovered that we had extremist elements in our ranks and they did bad things," Austin said, without providing details.

He said military leaders held those individuals accountable, again without details, but added that signs of those extremist elements were clear.

"The signs for that activity were there all along. We just didn't know what to look for or what to pay attention to," Austin said. "But we learned from that."

Austin's confirmation, should it happen, will not be quick

With Democrats poised to take control of the U.S. Senate, Austin's eventual confirmation appears likely, but will not be immediate.

During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing last week, Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the committee's top Democrat, also spoke of his reservations about approving the waiver for Mattis and having to do so again for Austin.

But he also spoke to the frayed relations between the military and some American citizens.

Reed, who served in the Army, said that "the state of civil-military relations has eroded significantly" during the Trump administration. He pointed to last summer's national protests against police brutality and Trump's threat to use military force against civilians under the Insurrection Act.

Austin vowed to do more to address military sexual assaults, which many senators raised among their chief concerns. He was also peppered about how he viewed global threats, notably from Iran and China.

"I think China is ... our most significant challenge going forward," Austin said, while referring to Iran as a "destabilizing force" in the Middle East.

He was also questioned about his post-military service, including his position as a board member with defense contractor Raytheon Technologies.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said "we have to do a lot more to end the cozy relationship between the Pentagon and the defense industry." She also praised Austin for agreeing to do extend his recusal for matters involving Raytheon.

Should he be confirmed, Austin is expected to divest from the military contractor, as well as the investment firm Pine Island Partners, according to The Hill.

Updated at 1:03 p.m. ET

Avril Haines, President-elect Joe Biden's nominee for director of national intelligence, opened her confirmation hearing Tuesday morning with an implicit criticism of President Trump's management of the country's vast intelligence network.

"When it comes to intelligence," Haines said in her opening statement, "there is simply no place for politics, ever."

Haines, if confirmed, will assume control of an intelligence community that Trump viewed with suspicion from his first days in office, frequently dismissing its work or even accusing it of being part of a "deep state" cabal intent on destroying his presidency. Trump's departing director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, is a fierce ally of the president who as a Republican congressman from Texas had served on the contentious House Intelligence Committee but otherwise had scant relevant experience.

Unlike its House counterpart, the Senate Intelligence Committee is known for largely bipartisan, cooperative oversight of U.S. spy agencies, and the questioning of Haines reflected that.

Both the Republican acting chairman, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, and the Democratic vice chairman, Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, said they viewed China as the key geopolitical adversary of the United States. Warner said the country had for decades embraced a "bipartisan consensus" that engagement with China would lead to its integration into the West. "I was part of that consensus," Warner said, "and I was wrong."

Haines promised an "aggressive response" to China and to counter its "illegal and unfair practices." But she said the U.S. should try to cooperate with Beijing on areas such as climate change.

Sen. Angus King, independent of Maine, said the U.S. operates at a disadvantage because of a short-term view of world affairs versus China's 25- or 50-year approach. Haines agreed.

"China is capable and focused on a long-term horizon and the United States is not," she said in response to King. "No place else other than the [intelligence community] is well-positioned to [provide that perspective] for the president and his advisers and I hope to do this."

Haines is a veteran of the Obama administration who is widely described as professional and nonpartisan, and her appearance in open session was without controversy. The hearing continued in closed session in the afternoon to discuss classified matters.

The nominee's journey to this moment in her career has been circuitous. Haines grew up an only child in Manhattan, caring for an ailing mother who died when Haines was 15. After high school she spent a year in Tokyo studying judo, then received an undergraduate degree in physics at the University of Chicago. In her 20s she learned to fly, and with her husband ran an independent bookstore in Baltimore. Haines earned a law degree from Georgetown when she was 31.

When Biden introduced Haines as his nominee in November, he noted her unusual background.

"Brilliant, humble. Can talk literature and theoretical physics, fixing cars, flying planes, running a bookstore-cafe, all in a single conversation, because she's done all that," Biden said.

Her ascent in government was rapid. She began in the State Department's Office of the Legal Adviser, then moved to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where she came to know Biden. Haines followed Biden to the White House when he became vice president, working on the National Security Council. In 2013, despite her never having worked at the agency, Barack Obama named Haines deputy CIA director, making her the first woman to hold the No. 2 job.

"I think all of us probably had a bit of a question mark because [Haines] didn't have a background in the agency," Jeanne Tisinger, a senior CIA official, told NPR when Haines was appointed.

That changed quickly.

"I became a fan within weeks," Tisinger said.

Haines does have critics, particularly over her role in Obama's aggressive use of assassination-by-drone abroad. She also was at the CIA when it was found to have hacked the computers of Senate Intelligence Committee staffers. She recommended no disciplinary action be taken.

Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon asked whether she agreed with the CIA inspector general's conclusion that the hack was wrong. Haines said she agreed with the IG's apology.

Haines kept a low public profile during her years in government. But when nominated by Biden, she pledged to be a powerful internal voice for unbiased intelligence.

"Mr. President-elect, you know I've never shied away from speaking truth to power," she said. "I accept this nomination knowing that you would never want me to do otherwise ... even when what I have to say may be inconvenient or difficult, and I assure you, there will be those times."

NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre contributed to this report.

President-elect Joe Biden is nominating Pennsylvania health expert Dr. Rachel Levine to be assistant secretary for health in the department of Health and Human Services, in a move that could make Levine the first openly transgender federal official to win Senate confirmation.

Levine is currently the secretary of health in Pennsylvania, where she leads the state's fight against COVID-19. She is also professor at the Penn State College of Medicine. Levine began her medical career as a pediatrician at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York.

"Dr. Rachel Levine will bring the steady leadership and essential expertise we need to get people through this pandemic — no matter their zip code, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability — and meet the public health needs of our country in this critical moment and beyond," Biden said in a statement about the nomination.

Levine has previously won state Senate confirmation in Pennsylvania, including a unanimous vote in 2015 to endorse her as Pennsylvania's physician general. She then rose to the role of secretary of health, also with the state Senate's approval.

In an interview with NPR last month, Levine said the federal government must help states conduct effective vaccine programs to clamp down on the rapid spread of the coronavirus. She also said that despite the promise of COVID-19 vaccines, they do not offer a "quick fix."

"It will be essential for the federal government to provide more funding to the states, territories and cities that will be tasked with administering the vaccine," Levine said.

She added later, "I think that it really shows that we all have to work together and stand united to stop the spread of this virus."

Levine is a graduate of Harvard College and the Tulane University School of Medicine. In addition to her work with children and adolescents, Levine's expertise includes work on the opioid crisis, medical marijuana, eating disorders and LGBT medicine, according to her official bio.

Sarah Fuller is no stranger to making history. The Vanderbilt University senior shattered glass ceilings this winter as the first woman to play and score in a Power Five college football game. And she's now slated to take part in Wednesday's inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.

"It's an honor to be invited to participate in one of America's greatest traditions," Fuller tweeted on Sunday. "This historic inauguration is especially meaningful for American women and girls. The glass ceilings are breaking and it is the time to#LeadLikeAWoman."

The Presidential Inaugural Committee on Sunday released the names of additional individuals who will be highlighted during "Celebrating America," the prime-time program that will air Wednesday evening featuring remarks and performances from the incoming president and vice president, celebrities and other "American heroes."

Fuller is listed as one of the "everyday Americans who have stepped up in their communities." In addition to her historic role on the Vanderbilt football team, she is credited with helping lead its women's soccer team to an SEC championship — its first since 1994.

The soccer goalie was tapped for the men's football team after several coronavirus-related quarantines left it without a kicker.

On Nov. 28, Fuller became the first woman to play a football game in the Power Five, a group of the country's largest and most popular athletic conferences. And she became the first woman to score in a Power Five football game on Dec. 12, when she kicked a pair of extra points for Vanderbilt in a game against rival University of Tennessee.

Only two other women have played in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, according to ESPN: Katie Hnida of New Mexico and April Goss of Kent State.

In an interview with NPR's All Things Considered in December, Fuller said supportive messages have poured in from big-name professional athletes as well as young female kickers on their high school teams. She offered words of encouragement for other women hoping to follow a similar path:

"I would say to continue working hard but understand that there are going to be challenges that come your way, and the best thing you can do is stay positive and stay motivated and stay strong, and have people around you that will continue to support you during the tough times," Fuller said. "Because at the end of the day, if you push past those struggles it makes you stronger and that much closer to your goal."

Fuller is joining a jam-packed roster of entertainers, activists and front-line workers in Wednesday's special, which will be hosted by Tom Hanks and run from 8:30 to 10 p.m. ET. Other names include Lin-Manuel Miranda, Bruce Springsteen, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, labor leader Dolores Huerta, Chef José Andrés and Kim Ng, the first woman MLB general manager.

Other "everyday Americans" that will be highlighted in the event include critical care nurse Sandra Lindsay, who was the first person in the U.S. to be vaccinated outside of a clinical trial, and two eight-year-olds who led successful campaigns to feed families in their communities.

President-elect Joe Biden will nominate Gary Gensler to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission and Rohit Chopra to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, according to a statement from Biden's transition team Monday morning.

The pair's selection marks a triumph for progressives who have pushed for more aggressive oversight of the financial industry.

Gensler is a top financial regulator known for taking on big banks and trading houses after the Dodd-Frank financial reforms enacted after the 2008 financial crisis.

A former Goldman Sachs executive, Gensler has an extensive career in government, serving as under secretary of the treasury for domestic finance from 1999 to 2001 and assistant secretary of the treasury for financial markets from 1997 to 1999. He went on to serve in the Obama administration as the chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and was the CFO for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.

Chopra, an ally of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., helped her launch the CFPB prior to her run for U.S. Senate. He went on to become the assistant director of the CFPB, where he led the agency's effort on student loans. He now serves as a commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission.

"[Chopra] has actively advocated to promote fair, competitive markets that protect families and honest businesses from abuses," the announcement read. "Commissioner Chopra was unanimously confirmed by the Senate in 2018, and he has pushed for aggressive remedies against lawbreaking companies, especially repeat offenders."

Both Gensler and Chopra will have to be confirmed by the Senate.

Updated at 1:10p.m. ET

The inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States is going to look vastly different than those of his predecessors, given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and heightened security concerns after a mob of pro-Trump extremists violently breached the U.S. Capitol two weeks ago.

There will be no throngs of people massed beneath a platform at the Capitol. Also absent will be President Trump, who's skipping town early.

Here's what you can expect on Wednesday:

What's the lineup of events?

The inaugural ceremonies will begin with the national anthem and invocation around 11:30 a.m. ET. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is expected to be sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor shortly before noon.

The president-elect will then be sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts at noon ET on the Capitol's West Front, as is tradition.

It is anticipated there will be roughly 1,000 guests in attendance, the majority of whom will be members of Congress and their guests.

After he's sworn in, Biden will deliver his inaugural address (see more on that below).

Biden will then move to the Capitol's East Front for what's known as Pass in Review, a longstanding tradition in which a new president assesses the military troops.

After that, Biden, Harris and former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, along with their spouses, will then travel to Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Biden will then receive a military escort, with every branch of the military represented, from 15th Street to the White House before an evening of virtual activities.

What can we expect from Biden's address?

The inaugural address gives a new president a chance to lay out an agenda and vision with all Americans (and the world) watching.

Some of the best-known remarks from past presidents have been uttered during such an address, including former President John F. Kennedy's famous line: "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

While the details of Biden's speech are being kept tightly under wraps, his inaugural team said the address will lay out his vision to "defeat the pandemic, build back better, and unify and heal the nation."

As a presidential candidate, Biden talked at length about the campaign being a "battle for the soul of America." It's likely he'll draw on that theme as he attempts to offer a message of healing to a nation bitterly divided by politics and in the midst of a pandemic that has cost the lives of nearly 400,000 Americans.

In recent days, Biden has detailed a huge legislative package to deal with the pandemic and its economic fallout, and outlined his plans to accelerate vaccinations. His team has also ticked through executive actions he plans to take after he's sworn in.

Trump won't be there?

No. Trump, whom the House of Representatives impeached last week for inciting his supporters to storm the Capitol while lawmakers worked to certify Biden's election victory, is breaking with 150 years of tradition by not joining Biden at the event. It's customary for an outgoing president and other former presidents to sit behind a new president, symbolizing the peaceful transfer of power.

Biden called Trump's decision not to attend "one of the few things he and I have ever agreed on."

Trump will leave the White House on Wednesday morning with a departure ceremony at Joint Base Andrews on his way to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

Vice President Pence will attend the inauguration, however, as will three former presidents — Bush, Clinton and Obama.

What's security like?

Jan. 20 comes two weeks to the day after the Capitol was breached and ransacked by a pro-Trump mob, and as such, the events will have the largest security presence of any inauguration in U.S. history.

Up to 25,000 National Guard troops will be in place by Wednesday in response to security concerns. That's five times the number of U.S. service members currently stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The National Mall is closed to the public, and the area surrounding the Capitol has been blocked off. Vast stretches of downtown Washington, D.C., are barricaded and off-limits.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser extended the city's public emergency following the Jan. 6 attack through Jan. 21, out of concerns there could be additional riots.

The FBI has also warned there could be violent protests in all 50 states ahead of Biden's inauguration. Statehouses have erected barricades and fencing, and some states have increased law enforcement and activated National Guard troops.

Despite security concerns, Biden and Harris have remained determined to take the oath of office outside, on the West Front.

"I think we cannot yield to those who would try and make us afraid of who we are," Harris told NPR in an interview last week.

How else will Wednesday differ from past inaugurations?

For one thing, the size. The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies would normally offer 200,000 tickets for the events at the Capitol, along with bundles of tickets for members of Congress to share with constituents.

But because of the coronavirus pandemic, no tickets are being offered to the public, and members of Congress are only able to have one guest join them. In fact, the Biden transition team has been urging supporters to stay home.

Instead, the event will be livestreamed by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

For another thing, the pageantry surrounding the inauguration will look a lot different this year, to accommodate public health and security concerns. In essence, the pomp has been stripped down, preserving the simpler elements of the transfer of power.

So ... does that mean no parade?

That's right, there won't be the traditional public parade from the Capitol to the White House this year.

Instead, there will be a virtual parade called "Parade Across America," which the Biden inaugural team says will feature "diverse, dynamic performances in communities across the country" and will pay "homage to America's heroes on the front lines of the pandemic."

Democrats have had success recently in re-imagining traditional political moments as virtual events. During the summer convention, Democrats unveiled a highly produced nominating roll call that was widely praised for its creativity and inclusion.

And no ball?

Yes, no inaugural balls this year. Instead, there will be a TV special Wednesday night hosted by film star Tom Hanks.

The 90-minute program is called "Celebrating America" and will feature musical acts and remarks from both Biden and Harris.

What about musical guests?

Yes. Pop star Lady Gaga will sing the national anthem, and Jennifer Lopez, who started 2020 performing at the Super Bowl, will also perform a musical number.

On Monday afternoon, the Presidential Inaugural Committee announced that country star Garth Brooks will also perform on Wednesday.

"This is an honor for me," Brooks told reporters on a press call. "This is not a political statement; this is a statement of unity."

Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will step down from her California Senate seat Monday before taking up a more high-profile position in the chamber two days later, transition officials have announced.

When Harris makes history as the first woman, first Black person and first Indian American to serve as vice president, she'll also become president of the Senate. It's a largely ceremonial position — most of the time. But in a Senate that will be split 50-50, the tiebreaking vote she can cast will give Democrats control of the chamber. Given the hyperpartisanship in Congress, she may need to cast many tiebreaking votes.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has tapped California Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill the vacancy created by Harris' resignation. Padilla will be the state's first Latino senator and its first male senator in three decades. Harris' departure means there will be no Black woman in the Senate, and because of that, Newsom drew some criticism for appointing Padilla.

Harris leaves her Senate seat after just four years, less than a full term. Still, in the early weeks of her term in 2017, she quickly established a reputation as one of the Democrats' top committee questioners when President Trump's first Cabinet nominees came forward for confirmation.

Drawing on skills honed as a prosecutor in California, Harris peppered John Kelly on immigration issues and other matters during his confirmation hearing to head the Department of Homeland Security.

This set a tone that would last through Harris' term, and it was largely how she established a platform from which to launch her run for president in 2019.

Harris grilled former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, then later Bill Barr, during high-profile hearings, and she pressed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his 2018 confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which became a cultural flashpoint when sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh surfaced mid-confirmation.

Harris also served on the Senate Intelligence Committee while the panel held hearings and investigations looking into Russia's interference in the 2016 election.

Harris was the 10th Black person to serve in the U.S. Senate and only the second Black woman.

At Wednesday's inauguration, Harris will be sworn in by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the first woman of color to serve on the Supreme Court, who also administered the vice presidential oath to Joe Biden, now the president-elect, in 2013.

Harris will use two Bibles in the ceremony, according to a transition official, including one belonging to Regina Shelton, a family friend whom Harris viewed as a surrogate mother. Harris took the oath of office as both California attorney general and U.S. senator on Shelton's Bible.

Harris will also use a Bible previously owned by the late Justice Thurgood Marshall, the first Black member of the Supreme Court and Harris' lifelong political role model.

In a recent interview with NPR, Harris reflected on the moment that she'll take the oath of office as vice president. "I will be thinking about my mother, who's looking down from heaven. I will be thinking of all the people who are counting on us to lead," she said.

It's not yet clear what Harris' main focus will be as vice president. When Biden announced her as his running mate, he said he made Harris the same promise that Barack Obama gave him in 2008: that the vice president would be the "last person in the room" and a key adviser on every important administration decision.

That's something Harris has echoed when asked what policies she might take the lead on in the White House. "On every decision that we have made as an incoming administration, we're in the room together, Joe and I," Harris told NPR on Thursday. "I can't tell you how many meetings we've been in together that range from [vaccine distribution] to many other topics that are priorities for us."

President Trump plans to leave the White House and Washington, D.C., on Inauguration Day with a departure ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, a senior administration official said on Saturday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the announcement is not yet official.

Trump — who has not congratulated President-elect Joe Biden for winning the election or conceded that his loss was legitimate — is the first president in modern history to skip the swearing-in of his successor.

Trump fought the results of the presidential election and was impeached by the House of Representatives last week for inciting his supporters to storm the Capitol while Congress certified Biden's win.

He had already announced on Twitter — just before he was banned from the platform — that he would not be going to Biden's inauguration. Biden said afterward that "it's a good thing, him not showing up." Vice President Pence plans to attend.

The Inauguration Day event at the U.S. Capitol is considered to be one of the abiding symbols of the peaceful transfer of power, with the outgoing president and other living former presidents sitting on the rostrum with the incoming administration.

Normally, the outgoing president is then seen off by his successor and takes a helicopter from the Capitol to the military base just outside Washington, D.C., which is home to Air Force One and other official government and military aircraft. Recent past presidents have made brief remarks to staff and supporters before flying out of town.

Details of what Trump's departure ceremony will entail or what time it will take place were not immediately available. After the departure ceremony, Trump — who is president until noon ET on Wednesday — is expected to fly one last time on Air Force One to Palm Beach, Fla., where he plans to live at his Mar-a-Lago Club.

For more than a year and a half, President-elect Joe Biden campaigned promising to undo several Trump administration policies on Day 1 of his presidency, and now his team is filling in the details of that and more as he prepares to take office.

Biden's incoming chief of staff, Ron Klain, on Saturday laid out in a memo the executive orders the new president will issue on Jan. 20 and in the early days of the new administration.

As Biden promised from the very beginning of his campaign, he will sign an order returning the United States to the Paris climate agreement, the international accord to lower greenhouse gas emissions that the Obama administration played a lead role in crafting. President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the agreement.

Biden has promised to implement sweeping changes to the energy and transportation sector to reach the country's Paris emissions goals.

Biden will also sign orders to direct the Education Department to extend a pause on federal student loan payments and interest; to extend the ban on evictions and foreclosures as a result of the pandemic; and to reverse Trump's travel ban on some Muslim-majority nations.

Additionally, Biden will sign an order requiring masks on federal property and for interstate travel. Biden has said he'll use part of his inaugural address to urge Americans to commit to wearing masks for at least 100 days to help slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic that has now killed almost 400,000 Americans.

Klain wrote that Biden will also submit a broad immigration proposal to Congress. On Thursday, Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion stimulus package he says is his top legislative priority for the beginning of his term.

Biden will continue to sign executive orders through the first 10 days of his presidency.

On Day 2, Biden will sign more actions related to testing and other measures for the coronavirus, Klain said in the memo. On Jan. 22, Biden will direct agencies to "take immediate action to deliver economic relief to working families bearing the brunt" of the coronavirus crisis, the memo said.

In the second week of his presidency, Biden will sign "Buy American" provisions, as well as executive actions on criminal justice reforms, racial equality measures, climate, immigration and access to health care, Klain said. Additional actions are undergoing final legal reviews, he said.

"While the policy objectives in these executive actions are bold, I want to be clear: the legal theory behind them is well-founded and represents a restoration of an appropriate, constitutional role for the President," Klain said.

Updated at 8:37 p.m.

President-elect Joe Biden outlined his plans for economic relief from the coronavirus crisis on Thursday, citing the need for a more robust vaccination plan as well as for additional direct payments to American families to help recover the U.S. economy. His plan, called the American Rescue Plan, is expected to cost $1.9 trillion.

The package includes $1,400 direct stimulus checks, which would supplement the $600 checks Congress passed late last year. Biden also proposes an additional $160 billion for a national vaccine program, including $20 billion for distribution, and an additional $50 billion for expanded testing.

"It's not hard to see that we are in the middle of a once-in-several generations economic crisis, with a once-in-several generations public health crisis. A crisis of deep human suffering is in plain sight," Biden said.

"We have to act, and we have to act now," Biden said. "We cannot afford inaction."

The plan also calls on Congress to invest $170 billion in K-12 schools and higher education, including $130 billion for schools to safely reopen.

The American Federation of Teachers praised Biden's plan as taking "tangible actions for emergency relief."

Union president Randi Weingarten said in a statement: "We are grateful that someone is finally acting like a real president. Joe Biden is meeting the moment—a moment of deep national crisis, a worsening virus, a weakening economy and a growing number of struggling Americans—with tangible actions for emergency relief."

Furthermore, Biden has proposed raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour, as well as providing billions for child care assistance, federal nutrition programs, rental assistance and tribal governments' pandemic response. The package also includes $350 billion in emergency funding for state and local governments.

While Democrats will hold a technical majority in both chambers of Congress, Biden could still face an uphill battle in getting these relief measures passed. Parts of the plan have already been popular among Democrats, including raising the minimum wage and expanding sick and medical leave. But at least one senator — Joe Manchin, a moderate Democrat of West Virginia — has signaled reluctance to tack on to the national debt through large direct payments. Republicans voiced similar concerns throughout negotiations for the last package.

If he and others defect, it would complicate Biden's efforts to swiftly put money in Americans' pockets. The Senate will be split with a 50-member Democratic caucus and a 50-member Republican caucus. As vice president, Kamala Harris will have the tiebreaking vote.

During his campaign, Biden made tackling COVID-19 and the economic hardships it had put on Americans a core pitch to voters.

He has described recent $600 coronavirus relief checks as a "down payment" and said he would push to see Americans receive an additional $1,400 payout.

More than 385,000 Americans have died from coronavirus-related illness, and as many U.S. hospitals once again have reached crisis levels in capacity for aiding those affected by the virus.

Biden has pushed the importance of getting as many Americans as possible vaccinated from the virus. His plan includes launching community vaccination centers and mobile vaccination units in more remote areas, as well as increasing funding for more testing.

The president-elect has also said he will urge the country to wear masks for the first 100 days of his presidency. Wearing masks is a practice public health officials advocate in slowing the spread of the virus but one that had become a political issue during President Trump's tenure in the White House.

Biden hopes these relief options will help stabilize the U.S. economy and reopen a number of sectors that have had to shutter in full or in part as a result of the virus. Also a priority is American schools, which have struggled to adequately tackle the virus, adding an additional strain to working families during the pandemic.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce in a statement said it welcomed Biden's economic recovery plan. "Specifically, we applaud the President-elect's focus on vaccinations and on economic sectors and families that continue to suffer as the pandemic rages on."

The president-elect, who will be inaugurated next Wednesday, views this package as a first step in his administration's coronavirus plan and is expected to outline a recovery plan next month.

"I know what I just described does not come cheaply," Biden said on Thursday, "But failure to [act] will cost us dearly. The consensus among leading economists is we simply cannot afford not to do what I'm proposing."

Updated 12:45 p.m. ET

President-elect Joe Biden may not have big crowds at his coronavirus-limited inauguration, but he won't be lacking for star power.

The Presidential Inaugural Committee announced Thursday that pop star Lady Gaga will sing the National Anthem and Jennifer Lopez will perform a musical number at the Capitol ceremony next week.

Other participants will include Leo J. O'Donovan, a Jesuit priest and former Georgetown University president who will lead the invocation, and Andrea Hall, the first Black woman to be named captain with the South Fulton Fire and Rescue Department in Georgia, who will lead the Pledge of Allegiance.

There will also be a poetry reading by Amanda Gorman, the first-ever national Youth Poet Laureate. The Rev. Silvester Beaman, pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Wilmington, Del., will conduct the benediction.

In making the announcement, the CEO of the inaugural committee, Tony Allen, said that the participants "represent one clear picture of the grand diversity of our great nation and will help honor and celebrate the time-honored traditions of the presidential inauguration as President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris take the oath of office on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol."

The announcement notes that Lady Gaga "worked closely with President-elect Biden's 'It's On Us' campaign to address sexual assault on college campuses" and that Lopez and her partner, former baseball player Alex Rodriguez, "have been outspoken about the disproportionate impact of coronavirus on Latinos and the need to contain the virus, rebuild the economy, and unify the country."

Allen said the group is also committed to the president-elect and the vice president-elect's "steadfast vision of a new chapter in our American story in which we are an America united in overcoming the deep divisions and challenges facing our people, unifying the country, and restoring the soul of our nation."

The ceremony will be held on Jan. 20 on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. It will be just two weeks after the Capitol was ransacked by a pro-Trump mob seeking to stop the counting of Electoral College votes showing Biden and Harris won the election.

The Capitol and the U.S. Supreme Court across the street are now surrounded by nonscalable fencing with troops stationed in and around the buildings. On Wednesday, Trump became the first president to be impeached twice because of his actions leading up to the violence Jan. 6.

Attendance at the inauguration will be limited, with members of Congress being given just one ticket because of the coronavirus. In addition, local government leaders are urging people not to come to Washington that day because of threats of violence, following last week's storming of the Capitol.

Former President Barack Obama had six Cabinet members confirmed by the Senate before his Inauguration Day in 2009. President Trump had two. But when President-elect Joe Biden takes office next week, it's unclear whether he'll have any Cabinet members in place.

After he won the election, Biden rolled out his picks for top officials quickly. But between Trump's protracted political fight over election results and the future control of the Senate up in the air until the Jan. 5 Georgia runoffs, the Republican-controlled Senate was slow to schedule hearings for them.

The first is slated for Friday, when the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hears from Avril Haines, Biden's pick for director of national intelligence. Then on Tuesday, the day before inauguration, the Senate has scheduled hearings for four nominees: retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin for defense secretary, Janet Yellen for Treasury, Alejandro Mayorkas for homeland security and Antony Blinken for state.

Biden plans to appoint acting agency heads when he takes office next week, a transition official said, drawing mainly from the ranks of career civil servants.

Now, the rush to consider and vote on his Cabinet will collide with Biden's push for a massive coronavirus relief package — as well as congressional investigations into the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, and the impeachment process for Trump.

"I hope that the Senate leadership will find a way to deal with their constitutional responsibilities on impeachment while also working on the other urgent business of this nation," Biden said in a statement on Wednesday.