Q: Who is Emily Murphy?
A: There are many Emily Murphys, but the one we’re talking about is the administrator of the GSA.
Q: What’s the GSA?
A: According to a November 23 CBS News article, the GSA – General Services Administration:
“…is a sprawling bureaucracy established in 1949 that now has 12,000 employees and a $21 billion budget. It works largely behind the scenes to support other federal entities, with responsibility for managing federal office space, procuring supplies and improving the use of technology across the government.
“The GSA provides a presidential transition team with Washington office space and coordinates access to federal agencies to plan potential policy changes with current administration officials, using $6.3 million allocated to support its efforts.”
Q: How did Emily get to be administrator of the GSA?
A: Trump and his toadys liked her.
Q: Is that why Emily’s Momma is proud?
A: No.
Q: Is Emily a Republican?
A: Well, after graduating from college, Murphy moved to Washington, D.C., beginning her career at the Republican National Committee. She also worked for Jim Talent, a Republican and former Senator from Missouri. She was an advisor to acting GSA administrator Timothy Horn, who was appointed by Trump. Then Horn nominated Emily for GSA administrator. Are you doing the math?
Q: Is that why Emily’s Momma is proud?
A: No.
Q: I’ve noticed that Emily wears a lot of purple…
Q: Is that why Emily’s Momma is proud?
A: Emily does take her purple fashion cues from Ivanka…
A: But, no.
Q: So Emily, whom nobody ever heard of until recently, heads a government agency that nobody ever heard of until recently. Why is she all over the news now?
A: After November 7, 2020, when Joe Biden became generally acknowledged as president-elect, she refused to sign a letter allowing Biden’s transition team to begin work to facilitate an orderly transition of power:
Q: Wow! That’s really important! Is that why Emily’s Momma is proud of her?
A: No.
Q: How long did Emily hold out?
A: Until November 23, when Emily issued what’s called a “letter of ascertainment,” which allowed the transition of power to begin.
Q: What did the letter say?
A: Among other things, Emily hedged her bets:
“…she was now making ‘certain post-election resources and services available to assist in the event of a presidential transition.’”
Q: Is Emily’s Momma proud because of Emily’s bet-hedging skills?
A: No.
Q: What took Emily so long to issue the letter?
A: A November 23 article in the Washington Post suggested Emily was afraid:
“Then there was the president’s anger, and the risk that he would fire her and her top aides if she moved forward.”
Then, after Emily issued the letter…
“Murphy and her senior staff were bracing for a tweet from Trump announcing that they were fired, two people familiar with their thinking said. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions.”
Q: Didn’t Emily care about all the havoc her actions were creating?
A: Apparently not as much as she feared getting fired by Trump.
Q: Is anyone holding Emily accountable?
A: Some Democrats are trying to. A November 23 New York Times article says,
“The Democratic chairwomen of the House Oversight and Reform and Appropriations Committees demanded last week that Emily provide a briefing to lawmakers no later than Monday [November 23] to explain why she had departed with past practice and had so far refused to approve the start of the process for Mr. Biden.”
That deadline came and went, and “the GSA suggested that Ms. Murphy would not meet with top lawmakers on the issue, instead offering a 30-minute briefing by her deputy, Allison Brigati, on November 30.”
On November 24, the House Democrats wrote Ms. Murphy yet another letter, demanding a briefing on Tuesday:
“‘We cannot wait yet another week to obtain basic information about your refusal to make the ascertainment determination,’ wrote the chairwomen, Representatives Carolyn B. Maloney and Nita M. Lowey of New York, as well as the chairmen of the panels that oversee and fund the GSA, Representatives Gerald E. Connolly of Virginia and Mike Quigley of Illinois.”
They gave Emily until 5pm on November 24 to respond.
Q: Ewww. After all this, how the heck can Emily Murphy’s Momma be proud of her?
A: Because it appears that Emily’s actions won her something that many do covet, but not all achieve:
Her very own, spankin’ brand-new listing in Wikipedia:
(Wikipedia as I found it on November 24: “4 hours ago.”)
I Hate Houseguests 