For years, there has been concern that President Barack Obama would not step down when his second term expires in a little less than 147 days.
A meeting held Thursday at the White House will likely allay some of those concerns. During that meeting, Obama Administration officials met with representatives of the Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns to discuss the preparations for the “peaceful transition of power” in January.
A White House spokeswoman said the meeting was led by Obama’s chief of staff, Denis McDonough. It included former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, who is leading the transition team for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who is the transition chair for Republican nominee Donald Trump.
The “peaceful transition of power” is a phrase that has often been coined in American politics since “The Revolution of 1800.” It was a bitter election, even by today’s standards—and the first to involve deep political divisions between two leading political parties—that could have just as easily resulted in armed conflict as its peaceful resolution.
Thomas Jefferson’s transition to the presidency and his Democratic-Republicans’ move to control both chambers of Congress proved that a wholesale change-of-direction was possible without resorting to all-out warfare. It also proved the American Experiment could be a long-term success.
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