McEnany dodges on Trump attending Biden inauguration: He’ll ‘attend his own inauguration’

Top Trump aide Kayleigh McEnany on Friday sidestepped whether President Trump would attend President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, saying Trump plans to “attend his own inauguration.”

McEnany, the White House press secretary, appeared for an interview on Fox Business as a senior adviser to Trump’s campaign and pushed back when asked if Trump would definitely attend Biden’s inauguration.

“President Trump believes he will be President Trump, have a second term,” McEnany said, adding that “litigation is the first step” and there were “many steps” until Inauguration Day in January.

Fox Business host Stuart Varney noted that it “would look pretty bad” if Trump did not attend his successor’s nomination.

“I think the president will attend his own inauguration,” McEnany replied. “He would have to be there, in fact.”

WH Press Sec. Kayleigh McEnany, appearing on Fox Business as Trump Campaign Adviser, on whether Trump will attend President-elect Biden’s inauguration ceremony:

“I think the president will attend his own inauguration.”pic.twitter.com/uHTDneIiXx

— The Recount (@therecount) November 13, 2020

Biden was projected to win the presidential race on Saturday after extending his lead over Trump in several battleground states, though the president has refused to concede and his campaign has mounted legal challenges in states including Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

The Trump campaign’s bid to stop vote certification in Michigan was declined on Friday, and a hand recount of votes in Georgia is currently underway. 

Trump’s refusal to concede has caused issues for Biden’s transition. Emily Murphy, who oversees the General Services Administration, has blocked access to federal funding for salaries and travel by declining to acknowledge Biden as president-elect.

And the Office of the Director of National Intelligence has not interacted with the Biden campaign, meaning that he’s not getting access to presidential intelligence briefings. A number of GOP senators have since come out this week calling for Biden to get access to such briefings.