President Joe Biden will host President-elect Donald Trump for a conventional post-election meeting within the Oval Office on Wednesday, the White House said Saturday.
Such a gathering is common between the outgoing and the brand new president and is meant, amongst other things, to mark the start of a peaceful transfer of power in American democracy.
But then-President Trump, a Republican, didn’t host Biden, a Democrat, for a gathering after the 2020 election, when Trump lost his reelection.
Four years later, Trump ran for the presidency again and defeated Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, on Tuesday. Trump is the primary former president to return to power since Grover Cleveland recaptured the White House within the 1892 election.
The White House said Biden called Trump last Wednesday to congratulate him and invite him to a gathering within the Oval Office. Their meeting is scheduled for 11 a.m. ET.
In a speech Thursday, Biden said he had assured Trump “that I will direct my entire administration to work with his team to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition.” This is what the American people deserve.”
Asked about Trump as he left the church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he spent the weekend on Saturday, Biden said: “I'll see him on Wednesday.”
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