President Donald Trump now plans to leave Washington on the morning of Inauguration Day on January 20th after considering a departure on January 19th, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Mr Trump, who had already announced plans not to attend President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, is planning a farewell event at Joint Base Andrews, the base outside Washington where Air Force One is headquartered, the source said.
He will then fly on to Palm Beach, Florida, to begin his post-presidency at his Mar-a-Lago club, the source told Reuters.
Meanwhile, Mr Trump’s impeachment trial could begin on Inauguration Day, just as Democrat Joe Biden takes the oath of office in an extraordinary end to the defeated president’s tenure in the White House.
The trial timeline and schedule are largely set by Senate procedures and will start as soon as the House of Representatives delivers the article of impeachment. That could mean starting the trial at 1pm on Inauguration Day. The ceremony at the Capitol starts at noon.
Mr Trump was impeached on Wednesday by the House of Representatives over the deadly Capitol siege, the only president in US history twice impeached, after a pro-Trump mob stormed the building.
