President Trump is expected to depart Washington, D.C., next Wednesday morning, before Joe Biden is inaugurated as the new president, an administration official confirmed Friday.
Trump has said he will not be in attendance to see his successor sworn in, but aides had previously expected the president to leave the White House a day early for Florida.
Instead, Trump will leave the morning of the inauguration. He is expected to stop at Joint Base Andrews for a military ceremony, an official said. The plans were first reported by Reuters.
Leaving before Biden is sworn in will allow Trump to depart on Air Force One since he will still technically be the president. Had Trump waited until after the inauguration, he would have had to request permission from Biden to use the presidential plane.
The president has forgone the usual victory lap that many presidents have taken on their way out of office to boast of their accomplishments. Trump made brief remarks earlier this week at the southern border to highlight his agenda cracking down on immigration.
But he has otherwise mostly been out of sight since Jan. 6, when he delivered a speech to supporters near the White House urging them to fight the certification of electoral votes affirming Biden as the winner of the 2020 election.
A short time later, waves of pro-Trump rioters overwhelmed law enforcement and stormed the Capitol building, forcing the vice president, lawmakers and others in the building to evacuate or shelter in place. Multiple people died in the ensuing violence, including one Capitol Police officer.
Dozens of people have been arrested for their role in the mayhem, and federal officials have said they are building sedition and conspiracy charges for some involved.
Trump was impeached earlier this week by the House, with 10 Republicans joining Democrats to vote in favor of the article charging the president with inciting violence against the government.
The president recorded a video message that day urging national unity and disavowing the violence his supporters engaged in. But he has yet to acknowledge his own role in the Capitol riots and at no point has Trump conceded that he lost the election fairly to Biden.
In Trump’s absence, Vice President Pence is expected to attend Biden’s inauguration.
“It’s a good thing, him not showing up,” Biden said last week of Trump’s plans to skip the ceremony, a break with more than a century of tradition.
“He has exceeded even my worst notions about him,” Biden said. “He has been an embarrassment to the country, embarrassed us around the world. Not worthy, not worthy to hold that office.”