Frustrated by the loss of his Twitter account and forced to accept that he will soon step down, President Trump effectively stopped doing his job, delegating daily responsibilities to Vice President Mike Pence while crouching with an ever-smaller group of advisers acquiescent and contemplated other presidential pardons.
Trump had considered leaving the White House before his last day in office on Wednesday, this weekend, but he chose to leave on the morning of President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration day, according to two people familiar with the discussions that warned that with Trump, plans are always subject to change.
Intrigued by the idea of overtaking Biden, the always self-centered president called for a big farewell. It would start with a crowd of fans and supporters waving flags to watch him leave on the southern lawn of the White House, according to a person familiar with the planning, and continue for a more formal ceremony at Andrews Joint Base, presenting a rug, military band, color guard and salute of 21 shots. He will take his last Air Force One flight to Florida to take up residence at Mar-a-Lago, his property in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Although Trump is not yet willing to formally grant Biden directly, or to participate in the traditional show of peaceful transfer of power by attending his successor’s oath, Pence on Thursday called Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and “congratulated her and offered help before the inauguration, ”said a person familiar with the call.
Pence, his relationship with Trump has now been cut because he refused to encourage the president’s efforts to challenge the constitution and overturn the election result, confirmed earlier this week that he plans to attend Biden’s inauguration. Trump, in one of his last tweets last week, made it clear that he would not go.
Previously, Trump had suggested leaving the city early to avoid having to host Biden at the White House before the Capitol opening ceremonies, as has been traditional – to provide the time-honored photo of presidents leaving and entering that gives visual definition to America’s peaceful transfer of power. Although he may now stay until the day of his inauguration, Trump still has no plans to meet with the president-elect.
His administration this week extended a traditional courtesy, inviting Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, to stay at Blair House, across Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House, on the eve of the inauguration.
Finally forced by the bipartisan furor after last week’s Capitol insurrection to acknowledge the “new administration” – if not its defeat – Trump has almost completely withdrawn from the duties of the post he fought so hard to keep. Aides and friends who spoke to him this week describe him as “angry” at the deletion of his Twitter account, but also say that he is somewhat sober with his lawyers’ warnings about his potential legal responsibility for inciting the deadly turmoil of last week.
From the moment the pro-Trump crowd broke through the doors of the Capitol and entered the chambers of the House and Senate to prevent the counting of Congressional electoral votes, Pence effectively assumed the responsibilities of the presidency. With Trump mesmerized by the live television coverage of his supporters fighting for him, it was up to Pence – who presided over the count and had to be rushed into hiding – to authorize the sending of the National Guard in the District of Columbia to smother the crowd.
Just a week later, the president was watching television again – with country music star Toby Keith, to whom he gave a medal – while the House voted for his impeachment for inciting an insurrection, making him the only president to face two charges. . He was confident that the Senate would again not be able to convict him, according to a person who speaks to him regularly, and focused mainly on his anger at the 10 House Republicans who voted in favor of impeachment, filling the aides with questions. about who some of the lawmakers were and what he could do to get revenge.
Trump spent time on Thursday instructing advisers to take down reports of his frustration with Rudolph W. Giuliani, one of the few outside lawyers still willing to defend him. That afternoon, while Trump took parting pictures with employees while others loaded boxes into vans and cars moving outside the West Wing, Pence visited the Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters for a briefing on security preparations for the ceremony. Opening.
After the meeting, Pence told reporters that the government “would ensure that we have a secure tenure, that President-elect Joe Biden and Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris swear an oath … consistent with our history and traditions.”
On the way home, Pence stopped to greet some of the 20,000 National Guard soldiers stationed outside the Capitol, thanking them for their services to ensure that the opening ceremonies are safe.
On Friday, Trump had not yet told the nation about reports from the FBI and other law enforcement agencies that domestic terrorists, encouraged by the Capitol violation that left at least five dead, threatened not only possession, but all 50 state capitals.
My Pillow chief executive Mike Lindell, one of Trump’s staunchest supporters when arguing that the fraud cost the president’s re-election, was spotted in a quiet White House. When Lindell left the west wing, a photographer captured an image showing that the notes he held referred to “martial law” and the “Insurrection Act”.
Pence is also due to deliver a speech on Saturday about the government’s “foreign policy achievements” at Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif., And then at the 10th Mountain Division in Fort Drum, NY, his office announced on Wednesday.
Usually, outgoing presidents participate in an official farewell ceremony with members of the armed forces. Trump, however, is not caring. On Thursday, the White House emailed a brief statement to Trump’s reporters that could mark a 67-word farewell. Above all, it was a greeting to himself.
“United States military troops in Afghanistan have been down for 19 years. Likewise, Iraq and Syria are also at their lowest point in many years, ”said the president. “I will always be committed to stopping wars without end. It was a great honor to rebuild our armed forces and support our brave men and women in uniform. $ 2.5 trillion invested, including beautiful new equipment – all made in the USA ”
Spending his last days almost entirely out of sight, Trump said he was preparing a series of pardons and pondering whether to give one to himself. Self-forgiveness would be an act of dubious and untested constitutionality and – at a time when he and his family business are under investigation – suggesting indifference to the law in an effort to inoculate itself from any federal lawsuits.
Those who have been in contact with the president are reluctant to predict whether he will continue with the blatant attitude. His calculations must now be weighed against the unresolved issue of his Senate impeachment trial; a conviction could prevent you from seeking a position again.
Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Made it clear in a statement on Wednesday that he is open to voting in favor of Trump’s sentencing, a move that some government officials say aims to deter president of a self-forgiveness or any other damaging moves in his final days.
“He knows that forgiving himself is complicated, will require scrutiny and will not protect him from state actions,” said a former senior government official about Trump. But the calculation, the official said, was more about “whether the scrutiny and annoyance is worth it” than any final impeachment.