Trump’s Snub Forces Biden To Fly Chattered Plane To Washington D.C

Donald Trump delivered Joe Biden one more snub Tuesday, forcing him to charter his own plane to fly from Delaware to Washington D.C. instead of authorizing an Air Force jet.

The president-elect flew the short hop from his home state, after a tear-stained speech eulogizing his dead son Beau, on a private Boeing 737 – then as he landed at Joint Base Andrews taxied past an idle Air Force Boeing 757 on the tarmac.

The snub was the latest in Trump’s defiant refusal to acknowledge his successor. In contrast the Obama administration sent an Air Force plane to New York for the Trumps in January 2017.

Just as the Biden family landed, the White House released a 20-minute farewell video from Trump, which did not mention his successor by name or congratulate him on his victory.

On Wednesday, the Trumps will fly out of Washington without greeting the Bidens, with the president holding his own farewell ‘ceremony’ at Andrews before getting on Air Force One to his Mar-a-Lago estate.

He timed the flight to ensure the executive 747 retains the call sign Air Force One for the duration of his time in the air. The Bidens instead will go to Mass with Congressional leaders including Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy – a sign of Trump’s diminishing influence in the Republican party. Even Mike Pence is not going to Trump’s farewell.

Trump fought to overthrow Biden’s election victory, and even after he finally acknowledged on January 7 that he would not remain in office, has not invited his successor to the White House. The snub has been echoed by Melania Trump’s refusal to invite Jill Biden to her new home.

In contrast, Biden set an emotional tone as he departed Delaware, crying as he spoke about his late son Beau, who died of cancer in 2015.