Trump returns to Washington | News, sports, jobs

President Joe Biden meets with President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday Associated Press

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump returned to Washington victorious Wednesday, visiting the White House for a nearly two-hour meeting with President Joe Biden and promising a simple transfer of power despite actively working to disrupt the same process four years ago .

Sitting in the Oval Office, in front of a powerful fire in the fireplace, the former rivals shook hands before Biden called Trump ‘Mr. president-elect and former president” and then simply chose “Donald.”

“Congratulations,” the Democrat said to the Republican. “I’m looking forward to having, as they said, a smooth transition. Welcome. Welcome back.”

Trump responded, “Thank you very much,” and said that “politics is hard. And it’s not a very pretty world in many cases. But it’s a beautiful world today, and I really appreciate it.”

Other than the opening moments, the meeting was private, with Biden and Trump assisted by their chiefs of staff. Trump said the transition between the outgoing and new administrations will be “as smooth as possible and I really appreciate that, Joe.”

Trump, the winner this time, says he is willing to ensure there is a seamless transition between administrations. But when he lost four years ago, it was a very different story: Trump filed dozens of lawsuits falsely alleging widespread voter fraud, refused to actively participate in the transition work, denied the election results and helped launch a mob. who attacked the US Capitol in an attempt to stop the certification of Biden’s victory.

He also did not invite Biden to the White House, and he declined to attend the inauguration — the first time that has happened since Andrew Johnson skipped Ulysses S. Grant’s swearing-in 155 years ago.

The new all-smiling scene in the White House — despite what happened four years ago — provided a major relief to the remarkable political recovery of Trump, who left Washington in 2021 as a weakened, politically defeated leader. Today, he is preparing to return to power, with Republicans taking back the Senate, on the cusp of gaining a majority in the House and with what he and his Republican allies see as a mandate for governance.

Neither the president-elect nor Biden answered the questions reporters shouted after their brief remarks. At one point, Biden looked at Trump, who moved his head to the side and shrugged his shoulders but did not respond.

Trump later told The New York Post that he and Biden discussed two issues on which they differed sharply: the war in Ukraine and Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas in Gaza.

“I asked for his opinion and he gave it to me,” Trump told the newspaper. “We also talked a lot about the Middle East. I wanted to know his opinion on where we stand and what he thinks. And he gave them to me, he was very friendly.

It was unclear how long the president-elect’s dovish attitude toward Biden, who would become both his successor and predecessor in the White House, could last.

First lady Jill Biden greeted Trump upon his arrival and presented him with a handwritten letter of congratulations for his wife Melania, who did not make the trip to Washington. The letter also expressed the first lady’s team’s willingness to assist with the transition.