No official explanation for the early departure of the president from Mar-a-Lago has been given, although he remains consumed by efforts to reverse election results and tensions are rising in the Persian Gulf before the one-year anniversary of the assassination of Iran by the US . general top.
Without the president as the centerpiece, the power of Thursday night’s party was a little weaker. Artists whose heyday occurred decades ago – Vanilla Ice and Berlin – performed on the main stage of the ballroom. Guests tried selfies with Giuliani, who was wearing a blue velvet tuxedo jacket, and Judge Jeanine Pirro, Fox News host, along with personalities from the right-wing television network OANN.
Instead of his father, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump mingled among the guests with their respective significant others, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Lara Trump. Tiffany Trump also attended, although Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner were not seen.
Tables prepared for 10 people, without any social distance, were gathered in the ballroom with white floral arrangements and candles wrapped in a sculpture that reminds of the New Year’s Eve ball. The menu consisted of “Mr. Trump’s Wedge Salad” – the club kept “Mr. Trump” instead of “President Trump” on the plate – Wagyu cheese and meat tortellini.
Many guests and artists were disappointed to learn from CNN on Wednesday that Trump would leave Florida early. Ticket prices for New Year’s Eve gala have steadily increased since Trump took office, and have reached $ 1,000 this year, said a person familiar with the matter.
Bookings for the party increased when it became clear that Trump would travel to Florida on vacation after skipping his traditional Thanksgiving visit. Guests and artists initially hesitated to commit to the event without knowing whether the president would appear.
About 500 tickets were sold for this year’s event, which is slightly less – but not much – than in previous years. The Donald J. Trump Ballroom in Mar-a-Lago has a capacity for 700 people.
The president was expected to appear on Wednesday. But in the evening, word spread that he and the First Lady were leaving early the next day. Trump remained virtually out of sight at his club during his stay, while focusing on the election results and the Jan. 6 effort to delay certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.
This left the party without its usual central point: a speech by the president and a chance to catch a glimpse of the first lady.
As at other meetings in Mar-a-Lago this year, almost no guests wore masks.
This provided support for the start of the pandemic, when a similarly unmasked birthday party for Guilfoyle, held in the Mar-a-Lago ballroom, proved to be an early spread event.