President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump looked like old friends during Wednesday’s meeting at the White House, with Biden telling Trump “welcome back” after a four-year absence.
Reporters snapped photos as the two presidents held hands in front of the Oval Office fireplace and discussed Trump’s anticipated return to Washington, D.C., in January.
President Biden said he “hopes, as we’ve said, that there will be a smooth transition of power” and that his administration “will do everything we can to make sure you are accommodated.” [and] “You have what you need.”
Trump thanked the president and said the transition would be “as smooth as possible.”
“Politics is hard, and in many cases, it’s not a pleasant world. Trump told Biden: “But the world today is beautiful.”
They then laughed when members of the assembled press began asking them questions. You can watch their conversation via C-SPAN’s X post below:
Of course, Biden, 81, dropped out of the presidential race earlier this year, following his debate with Trump in late June. Trump, 78, defeated Biden’s running mate Kamala Harris in the 2024 election last week.
Before arriving at the White House on Wednesday, Trump addressed jubilant Republicans in the House of Representatives, the New York Post reported, having secured a majority for the next two years.
In 2020, Trump broke with that presidential tradition in a big way when Biden took office.
A source