On Wednesday, President Donald Trump left a message for successor Joe Biden in the Oval Office, upholding a tradition while avoiding the usual transfer of power ceremonies on Inauguration Day.
Trump did not enter the Oval Office, but instead left the message with an assistant around 8 a.m. before leaving the executive residence. A source familiar with the matter told The Post on Wednesday.
Bush did the same for Bill Clinton in 1992, infamously scrawling: “I am rooting hard for you.”
When he left a note on the Resolute Desk for George H.W. Bush telling him that he was hoping for his success, President Ronald Reagan began the practise in 1989.
What Trump needs to leave for Biden is uncertain, but it will be the only handover between the two chief commanders on Wednesday after Trump agreed not to attend Biden’s swearing in.
He would be the first president not to attend his successor’s inauguration in 152 years.
Instead, Trump opted for a departure ceremony at Maryland’s Joint Base Andrews, where he gave a short speech praising his successes and promising that he would soon see the American people.
Meanwhile, Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, along with their families and senior congressional officials, are attending church services at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, DC.
