Presidential Transitions: Issues Involving Outgoing and Incoming Administrations
The President’s authority to exercise power begins immediately upon being sworn into office and
continues until he is no longer the officeholder. By the same token, while congressional oversight
of the executive branch is continuous, some activities may take on special significance at the end
or beginning of an Administration. The disposition of government records (including presidential
records and vice presidential records), protections against “burrowing in” (which involves the
conversion of political appointees to career status in the civil service), the granting of pardons,
and the issuance of “midnight rules” are four activities associated largely with the outgoing
President’s Administration. The incumbent President may also submit a budget to Congress, or he
may defer to his successor on this matter. Continuing this transition process, the first actions of a
new President generally focus on establishing the priorities and leadership of the Administration.
These can include executive orders, appointments to positions that require Senate confirmation as
well as those that do not, and efforts to influence the pace and substance of agency rulemaking.
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL34722.pdf
50 page report by the Congressional Research Service CRS. Lengthy but worth reading.
