President Trump had planned to appear at Washington, D.C’.s Trump International Hotel on Election Night — the site that has epitomized the president’s blending of personal and official business throughout his first term. Instead, sources told the New York Times, Trump will watch the returns roll in at the White House.
“We’re thinking about moving it, actually, over to the White House,” Eric Trump confirmed to Fox and Friends on Friday morning. “It’s going to be a really, really beautiful night,” he said.
The reasoning behind the change of plan, and whether it has anything to do with Trump’s dismal polling, isn’t clear. But the paper proffers two possible explanations: the money involved in throwing the shindig, at a time in which the Trump campaign is notably low on cash; and coronavirus restrictions in Washington, D.C., which forbid gatherings of more than 50 people. (Later on Friday, President Trump said the restrictions were what forced the venue change, and blamed Washington’s mayor, Muriel Bowser, for imposing them.) Similar limitations curtailed a Trump rally in Minnesota on Friday, though the campaign, not known for its strict adherence to public-health guidelines, has continued to hold large events across the country that run contrary to guidelines put forth by public-health officials.
Also unclear: whether an uncanny-looking version of Trump in cake form will show up on Tuesday, in a repeat of 2016.
In any case, hanging out at the White House all night should give the president time to engage in his favorite stress-relieving activity: tweeting. He will have plenty of time and space to either cast doubt on election results that, if polls are accurate, are unlikely to be favorable to the president — or to even claim victory based on early results that look deceptively good for the president.
