Trump plans to leave Washington, DC, before the inauguration because he doesn't want to fly out as an ex-president or ask to borrow Air Force One from Biden, report says
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Bill Bostock
Jan 15, 2021, 22:57 IST
Donald Trump seen on Air Force One in 2017.NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images
President Donald Trump wants to leave Washington, DC, before President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated on Wednesday, CNN reported.
His aim is to avoid leaving the White House as an ex-president, CNN said. A source suggested Trump didn't want to ask Biden if he could borrow Air Force One.
Biden is due to be sworn in at about midday on Wednesday amid a heightened security presence prompted by the riot at the US Capitol.
Trump intends to fly to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida to start his post-presidential life, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.
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President Donald Trump wants to leave Washington, DC, before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration because he doesn't want to go out as an ex-president or ask to borrow Air Force One, CNN reported on Friday.
Trump said on January 8 that he wouldn't attend the inauguration, making him the first departing president to refuse to attend his successor's ceremony since 1869.
Instead, CNN said, Trump plans to leave the White House before the midday swearing-in ceremony. His team is working on gathering a large crowd to see him off, the network said.
The White House did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on the president's plans.
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According to CNN, Trump plans to depart the White House for the final time as president in Marine One from the South Lawn. He's hoping for a military-style send-off, the network reported, citing an unnamed source who had spoken about the plan with Trump.
According to CNN, Trump ruled out attending Biden's inauguration even though allies had told him it would be a good idea to go. Trump refused on the grounds that he did not want to leave Washington, DC, as a former president, the network said.
Trump also indicated he'd be reluctant to ask Biden if he could borrow Air Force One, the official plane of the president, CNN said, citing a person familiar with the matter.
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Though Trump will leave Washington, DC, and the presidency on Wednesday, he still has to travel with the "nuclear football," a briefcase that presidents take everywhere, until Biden is sworn in.
To account for this, the White House Military Office will have a second briefcase that will stay in Washington, DC, for Biden's use, a source told CNN. During the switchover, Trump's codes will be deactivated.
Prosecutors in New York and Washington, DC, are investigating Trump and his organization.
New York's attorney general, Letitia James, is conducting an investigation into the Trump Organization's financial dealings, and the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr., is investigating Trump and the Trump Organization on suspicion of bank and insurance fraud.
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