8:00 a.m. EST [Secret Service name redacted], out! Having left a letter for President-elect Biden on the Resolute desk, President Trump leaves The White House for the final time, bound for his farewell celebration at Joint Base Andrews and a flight to Palm Beach.
8:30 a.m. As President Trump gives his farewell speech, White House resident staffers begin the frantic, yet precisely coordinated, changeover from one administration to the next—a process that’s even quicker this year thanks to the cancellation of the parade and luncheon. Visible atop press staffers’ desks amid these COVID times: Moving boxes and cartons of disinfecting wipes.
8:39 a.m. Can a girl get a follow? In Washington, D.C. for husband John Legend‘s performance, Chrissy Teigen tweets at the incoming president: “hello @JoeBiden I have been blocked by the president for four years can I get a follow plz”.
8:53 a.m. But first, we pray. President-elect Joe Biden, wife Dr. Jill Biden, Vice President-elect Harris and husband Doug Emhoff arrive for Mass at the Cathedral of St. Matthew of the Apostle along with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, her husband Paul Pelosi, soon-to-be Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other congressional leadership. A devout Catholic and regular churchgoer, “Joe’s faith isn’t just part of who he is,” Senator Chris Coons has said. “It’s foundational to who he is.”
8:59 a.m. Wheels up! Air Force One lifts off, headed south to Florida.
