Agencies
Washington, January 08:
President Donald Trump on Friday said he will not attend President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on 20 January.
He will be the first incumbent president since Andrew Johnson to skip his successor’s inauguration. On Thursday, Trump pledged “a smooth, orderly and seamless transition of power” following a violent insurrection by his supporters at the U.S. Capitol earlier this week.
In a Friday tweet Trump said, “To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th.”
Trump offered no clues for how he would spent his final hours in office.
Biden will become president at noon regardless of Trump’s plans.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported while quoting a source that Trump will depart Washington, DC a day before the inauguration and is expected to travel to this Florida resort.
Vice President Mike Pence is still expected to attend the inauguration.
Biden’s transition team had no immediate comment on Trump’s announcement. But Jen Psaki, the president-elect’s incoming White House press secretary, said last month that whether Trump attended the inauguration was not top of mind for Biden.
With 12 days left in his term, Trump has finally bent to reality amid growing talk of trying to force him out early, acknowledging he’ll peacefully leave after Congress affirmed his defeat.
Trump led off a video from the White House Thursday by condemning the violence carried out in his name a day earlier at the Capitol. Then, for the first time on camera, he admitted his presidency would soon end — though he declined to mention President-elect Joe Biden by name or explicitly state he had lost.
“A new administration will be inaugurated on Jan. 20,” Trump said in the video. “My focus now turns to ensuring a smooth, orderly and seamless transition of power. This moment calls for healing and reconciliation.”
