'Nothing's going to stop' transition -Biden

[NFA] President-elect Joe Biden said on Tuesday that nothing would stop the transfer of power in the U.S. government, even as President Donald Trump says without evidence that last week's election was marred by fraud and some of his Republican allies back investigations.

Lisa Bernhard produced this report.

U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT JOE BIDEN: “We are already beginning the transition.

We’re well underway.” U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday said that nothing would stop the transfer of power as he prepares to enter the White House in January, even as President Donald Trump says without evidence that the election was marred by fraud.

BIDEN: "We're going to be moving along, in a consistent manner, putting together our administration, the White House, and reviewing who we're going to pick for the Cabinet positions, and nothing's going to stop that." This, as some senior Republicans have also sought to sow doubt about the outcome of the election.

Among them, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who backed Trump’s right to launch a legal challenge to Biden’s victory in several battleground states.

BIDEN: “I think that the whole Republican party has been put in a position, with a few exceptions, of uh, um, [pause] being um, mildly intimated by the sitting president.” And Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday predicted a "second Trump administration" - a comment at odds with congratulatory phone calls between Biden and the leaders of Britain, Germany, Ireland and France.

Biden was asked by a reporter whether he would take legal action to gain access to classified information and other documents that are normally transferred during this time but that the Trump administration is withholding.

BIDEN: “I don’t see a need for legal action, quite frankly.

I think the legal action is, you’re seeing it play out – the action’s he’s taking – and so far there is no evidence of any of the assertions made by the president or Secretary of State Pompeo.

[laughs] Secretary of State Pompeo.” Biden called Trump’s failure to concede the election an “embarrassment” that would not help Trump’s legacy.

Biden won the election by securing more than the required 270 votes in the Electoral College – and also won the popular vote by more than 4 million votes.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll out Tuesday found that nearly 80% of Americans, including more than half of Republicans, recognize Biden as the winner of the presidential election.