Vice President Harris bids farewell to Pence
Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff escorted former Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence as they departed the Capitol on Wednesday, stepping in to fulfill a post-inauguration tradition typically carried out by incoming and departing presidents.
Harris and her husband escorted the Pences from the Capitol to their motorcade, a moment that traditionally would have seen President Joe Biden accompanying former President Donald Trump for his predecessor’s send off in a ceremonious handoff of power. Trump did not attend Wednesday's inauguration, making him the first president since Andrew Johnson in 1869 to fail to appear at his successor's Capitol swearing-in.
Trump instead flew to his Mar-a-Lago club Wednesday morning after a farewell ceremony hosted on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews.
The Pences exchanged laughs with Harris and Emhoff as they spoke for nearly a minute on the East Front steps of the Capitol, where Trump supporters staged a deadly riot in an effort to block the certification of Biden’s electoral win.
The Pences will fly to the former vice president’s hometown of Columbus, Ind., where he is expected to spend the day meeting with friends and supporters.