US President-elect Joe Biden's transition team announced its picks for the incoming administration's White House communications team on Sunday, selecting seven women for the country's top communications jobs.
"President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect [Kamala] Harris today announced new members of the White House staff who will serve in senior communications roles," the transition team said in a statement.
"For the first time in history, these communications roles will be filled entirely by women."
Among the newly appointed team are industry veterans, including the Obama administration's former White House communications director Jen Psaki, who will serve as White House press secretary for the Biden-Harris administration.
Kate Bedingfield, Biden's communications director when he was vice president, will be the White House communications director for the new administration.
"Communicating directly and truthfully to the American people is one of the most important duties of a President, and this team will be entrusted with the tremendous responsibility of connecting the American people to the White House," Biden said in a statement.
The personnel announcement comes less than a week after Biden and Harris presented their nominees for foreign policy and national security positions to the country.
Broken foot
The announcement also came as it emerged that the 78-year-old president-elect broke his right foot while playing with his dog. "Initial x-rays did not show any obvious fracture, but his clinical exam warranted more detailed imaging, a statement by doctor Kevin O'Connor said.
"Follow-up CT scan confirmed hairline (small) fractures of President-elect Biden's lateral and intermediate cuneiform bones, which are in the mid-foot. It is anticipated that he will likely require a walking boot for several weeks," the statement said.
Biden's transition team is gaining speed even as US President Donald Trump refuses to concede the election.
Trump on Sunday gave his first live television interview since the November 3 presidential election, appearing on Fox Business News and repeating unfounded claims of electoral fraud.
In a telephone conversation that lasted around 45 minutes, Trump told Fox anchor Maria Bartiromo that the election was "rigged" and a "total fraud," but that judges don't want to get involved.
Court fight
Bartiromo encouraged the president during the interview, arguing that "this is disgusting" and "we cannot allow America's election to be corrupted."
Trump lost the election to Biden, a Democrat, but he has refused to concede, opting instead to take the fight to court in an attempt to have mail-in ballots in key swing states thrown out.
Nevertheless, almost every lawsuit filed by the Trump campaign has been dismissed due to a lack of evidence.
A federal appeals court in Pennsylvania on Friday dismissed the Trump campaign's efforts to refile its lawsuit in that state, writing that the campaign's allegations "have no merit."
The swing state of Wisconsin also finished recounting its vote on Sunday, confirming president-elect Biden's victory there.
Speaking with Fox, Trump acknowledged that it would be difficult to bring his allegations all the way to the Supreme Court.
