Biden Welcomes Trump Back to Oval Office in Traditional Power Transfer Ceremony

Trump and Biden in the Oval office Nov. 13, 2024(AP)

WASHINGTON (TNND) — President-elect Donald Trump traveled to Washington, D.C. Wednesday to meet with President Joe Biden in a ceremonial tradition representing a smooth and peaceful transfer of power.

Trump returned to his old office- the Oval Office- and participated in the ritual he declined to participate in four years ago. He also met with Republicans from Congress as they focused on his Day 1 priorities.

While the majority of their interaction was a closed-door meeting, Biden was seen in a brief video congratulating Trump and greeting him with a handshake adding that he looked “forward to a smooth transition.”

“Thank you very much,” Trump responded. “Politics is tough. And it’s, in many cases, not a very nice world. But it is a nice world today and I appreciate it very much.”

Priorities, according to Johnson, include securing borders, lowering costs for groceries and gasoline, protecting Americans, and other key issues.

They want an end to the wokeness and the radical gender ideology and a return to common sense in our children’s classrooms and corporate boardrooms and government agencies,” Johnson added.

Trump met with House Republicans before speaking with Biden and told GOP lawmakers “It’s nice to win” while highlighting his election numbers.

“We won the majority by 7.1 million, we won, which is great because Republicans aren’t supposed to be winning the majority, you know that right?” Trump said. “And we won it every way, all seven swing states by a lot, and Michigan was great.”

Biden continues to insist he will do everything he can to make the transition from his administration to Trump go as smoothly as possible.

One day after Vice President Kamala Harris officially conceded to Trump, Biden delivered a speech from the White House Rose Garden saying the Biden administration will “work with his [Trump’s] team to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition” because that’s what the American people deserve.

Trump won the election with more than 270 electoral votes after Biden stepped aside in July and endorsed the vice president.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre echoed Biden’s sentiments by adding that he is committed to “making sure that this transition is effective, efficient and he’s doing that because it is the norm, yes, but also the right thing to do for the American people.

Melania Trump did not attend the White House meeting, according to her office.

“Her husband’s return to the Oval Office to commence the transition process is encouraging, and she wishes him great success,” a statement read.

Trump continues to announce a flurry of appointments to his administration including Fox News host Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to run Homeland Security and Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy leading a new Department of Government Efficiency or “DOGE.”

But Wednesday’s visit is more than just a courtesy call.

“They will go through the top issues — both domestic and foreign policy issues — including what is happening in Europe and Asia and the Middle East,” Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan told CBS. “And the president will have the chance to explain to President Trump how he sees things … and talk to President Trump about how President Trump is thinking about taking on these issues when he takes office.”

Trump’s latest visit comes as Republicans, who wrested the Senate majority from Democrats in last week’s elections and are on the cusp of keeping GOP control of the House, are in the midst of their own leadership elections happening behind closed doors Wednesday.