A peaceful transfer of power — particularly from one political party to another — is, in my mind, the ultimate expression of the rule of law and of a society governed by the law, not by individual rulers. Say other things that you want about him, but it was George Washington’s great contribution to the American political tradition when he voluntarily gave up the presidency. It established an unbroken tradition of presidents yielding power, including to their bitter political opponents. Even on the cusp of the Civil War, for example, James Buchanan never suggested that Abraham Lincoln wasn’t entitled to become president after he won the election. The presidential transition process exists both on a symbolic level and on a practical level. On the symbolic level, it has tremendous significance. The ritual of one president preparing to cede power to another signifies that we are a law-abiding society in which the will of the voters governs.
But there is also a practical level. The federal government of the United States is one of the largest organizations in the world, and the process of transferring control from one group of political actors to another is incredibly complex. There are thousands of real-time decisions that will have to be made from the moment the next president takes office. There are organizational competencies that have to be developed. So, we’ve developed this long-standing tradition where as soon as the result of the election becomes apparent, the incumbent administration — if the administration is changing — undertakes to help the incoming administration take up the reins.