President Donald Trump’s return to Washington, D.C., began with his arrival at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday ahead of his historic transition meeting with President Joe Biden.
The president-elect exited the plane, saluted and briefly spoke to the servicemember awaiting him at the bottom of the stairs.
Trump then made his way to the White House as hundreds of members of the press, and even Biden’s staff members, awaited his arrival.
The pair met in the Oval Office on Wednesday morning to discuss the peaceful transfer of power.
As the cameras cut to the historic scene, Biden extended his hand to Trump and remarked, “Well, Mr. President-Elect and former president…” as Trump remarked, “Thank you very much, Joe.”
Biden continued, “And Donald, congratulations.”
Trump thanked Biden again before he began discussing the plans for the meeting. “And looking forward to having a, like we said, smooth transition — do everything we can to make sure you’re accommodated, what you need. And we’re going to get a chance to talk about some of that today. So — welcome. Welcome back,” Biden said.
Trump thanked Biden again and said, “And politics is tough. And it’s, in many cases, not a very nice world, but it is a nice world today. And I appreciate it very much — a transition that’s so smooth it’ll be as smooth as it can get.”
Trump responded, “I very much appreciate that, Joe,” to which Biden said, “You’re welcome.”
Biden thanked the reporters as they began endlessly shouting a variety of questions at the pair. Trump looked at Biden and made an unknown remark, likely about the press. They both smiled as Biden responded, and the pool was whisked out of the Oval Office in short order.
The much-anticipated visit sparked a plethora of online commentary. Comedian Tim Young, who was not alone in his observation, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “Biden…all smiles… said ‘Welcome Back’ to Trump…You can’t convince me that Biden didn’t vote for Trump.”
PBS reported that President Trump would also be meeting with congressional Republicans to discuss his top priorities when he assumes Office on January 20, 2025.
