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WASHINGTON, Jan 19: On the verge of becoming president, Joe Biden pushed for unity on Monday, while President Donald Trump remained secluded at the White House in the center of a capital awash with troops and security barriers.
Biden marked the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday with a trip from his home in Delaware to pack bags of food for charity in Philadelphia, a gesture symbolizing his call for Americans to unite after four years of division.
“Service is a fitting way to begin to heal, unite and rebuild this country that we love,” Biden said in a video marking the occasion.
But the 78-year-old Democrat’s fervent calls for optimism and healing, which will also dominate his inauguration ceremony at noon Wednesday, are faced with the harsh reality of multiple crises.
Covid-19 is out of control, vaccine distribution is faltering, and the economic recovery remains in balance.
America’s difficult transition of power was underscored Monday when Biden’s spokeswoman quickly dismissed Trump’s announcement that the Covid-19 ban on travelers arriving from much of Europe and Brazil would be lifted later this month. .
Trump had refused for more than two months to accept the results of the November presidential election, and the country is seething with division and anger.
When Biden is sworn in at noon Wednesday, he will face a city under the protection of more than 20,000 National Guard soldiers.
Checkpoints and large areas closed to ordinary citizens mean there will only be a few guests. Similar closures have been imposed on state capitol buildings across the country, where local authorities fear provocations from right-wing groups ahead of the inauguration.
The acting defense secretary said the army and the FBI were investigating National Guard soldiers, who carry automatic weapons, in case any of them pose a threat.
“While we do not have intelligence to indicate an internal threat, we are not going to leave a stone unturned to secure the capital,” said the official, Christopher Miller.
In a culturally significant brand, legendary country singer Garth Brooks said he would join the musical line-up at the Biden ceremony and emphasized that this “was not a political statement, it is a statement of unity.”
Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez are ready to perform.
Trump reflects on pardons
Trump, who has yet to congratulate Biden or invite him to the traditional Oval Office tea visit, has been largely out of the public eye since his supporters stormed Congress on January 6, which sparked his historic second impeachment a week later.
His latest Gallup poll as president on Monday showed his exit with a 34 percent approval rating, his all-time low.
According to the US media, one of Trump’s final actions could be announced on Tuesday at the latest: dozens of pardons for convicted criminals.
Speculation is mounting whether Trump will take the unprecedented and legally shady step of granting himself and his children, who work as White House and campaign advisers, pre-emptive pardons.
According to CNN and other outlets, Trump has a list of about 100 people to whom he will grant clemency.
After what The New York Times reports has been an intense lobbying effort, these are expected to be a mix of white-collar criminals and people whose cases have been defended by criminal justice activists.
The most controversial possible pardons that have been the subject of speculation for months would be for the likes of Edward Snowden, Julian Assange and Trump’s influential adviser Stephen Bannon.
If Trump forgives himself or his children, something that is not currently expected, that would ensure a politically explosive end to one of the most polarized presidencies in American history.
A car pardon could also harden anger against Trump among Republicans in the Senate, which is expected to begin impeachment soon.
When Trump announced that the US would lift Covid-19 travel bans in Europe and Brazil starting January 26, Biden’s spokeswoman responded by saying the ban would remain in place, the latest twist in the chaotic end of time Trump in office.
Inauguration snub
Trump, the first president to lose re-election since George HW Bush was replaced by Bill Clinton, is skipping the inauguration of Biden, the first former president to snub his successor in a century and a half.
On Wednesday, he will travel to his Mar-a-Lago golf club residence in Florida, leaving the White House early to benefit from full presidential travel privileges until the last minute.
Marine One will take you from the White House to Joint Base Andrews to take Air Force One, the presidential plane that you will no longer be able to use after noon.
According to a Bloomberg report, Trump is hosting a military send-off for himself at Andrews, watched by a crowd of guests. AFP
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