Exposing the extent of fissures in their 'bromance', outgoing Vice President Mike Pence excluded US President Donald Trump from the farewell pictures posted on his Twitter page. Reportedly Pence will also be skipping Trump's sendoff ceremony scheduled at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday morning.
Pence is scheduled to attend the inauguration ceremony of incoming President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump is skipping the inauguration ceremony to welcome Biden and his administration into the White House.
'It has been the greatest honor of my life'
Quashing the hopes of Trump and his supporters of overturning the lost elections, Pence had told the lawmakers that he will not block the congressional certification of Joe Biden's victory. At the beginning of the joint session Pence clarified that he did not believe he has the "unilateral authority" to decide which electoral votes should be counted.
Business Insider had also reported that after Pence refused to block Congress' certification of Biden's victory, Trump told him, "I don't want to be your friend."
On Tuesday evening, while posting a farewell message from his official Vice Presidential twitter account, Pence wrote: "Thank you for the privilege of serving as your Vice President these past four years, it has been the greatest honor of my life. On behalf of our Wonderful Second Lady, Karen Pence, and our entire Family, Thank You and God Bless America."
He posted four pictures which showed Pence and his wife Karen Pence along with their family members.
Pence Skipping Trump's farewell Due to Logistics Issue
CNN reported that a military-style ceremony is planned for Trump's final departure from Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday. The invitations for the ceremony, which is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. ET, are sent to Trump's friends, allies and former administration officials.
Speaking to the outlet, sources revealed that at the moment Pence is not expected to attend the departure ceremony. "Logistically, it would be difficult for Pence to be there for Trump's sendoff and attend Biden's inaugural," revealed the sources to CNN.
As per the outlet, among those who received the invitations include Trump's former communications director-turned-critic Anthony Scaramucci, former chief of staff John Kelly and former White House counsel Don McGahn.
Calling his VP a coward, Trump had lashed out at Pence in a tweet posted just before the joint session. "States want to correct their votes, which they now know were based on irregularities and fraud, plus corrupt process never received legislative approval. All Mike Pence has to do is send them back to the States, AND WE WIN. Do it Mike, this is a time for extreme courage!" Trump had tweeted.
