NANTUCKET, Mass. — NANTUCKET, Mass. (AP) — Joe Biden He is ending his final Thanksgiving holiday as president on Nantucket, a family tradition that appears to be part of a broader farewell to the White House this year.
The four years that the Democrat will last as president will remove the Republican Donald Trumpwhose Cabinet appointments, tariff threats and glitzy evenings at his Mar-a-Lago, Florida club have captured the public’s attention since the November election. He left for Biden presidential contest in July and was replaced on the ticket by Vice President Kamala Harris, who lost to Trump.
During his five days on the Massachusetts island, with its picturesque half-timbered houses and seashell beaches, the 82-year-old Biden still grappled with questions about his heritage. He planned to return to Washington later on Saturday, and the next day he would leave for Angola for his only visit to Africa as president.
On Friday, as Biden and his family strolled along the quaint brick sidewalks and cobblestone streets that have made Nantucket an affluent and desirable summer vacation spot, passersby shouted “I love you, Joe.” The Biden contingent included the president’s daughter, Ashley, and son, Hunter, and Hunter’s 4-year-old son, Beau.
In the last year, Biden has called Trump’s lies He was “un-American” about the government’s hurricane relief and repeatedly warned that the incoming president could Undermining US democracy and foreign alliances.
But when asked by reporters on Thanksgiving Day what he was thankful for, Biden said, “I’m thankful for a peaceful transition to the presidency.”
Biden also said he was thankful for his family, news Cease fire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon and the possibility of further progress in the Middle East. The president, who has largely avoided questions from reporters recently, addressed a variety of issues related to Trump and politics.
He suggested that Republicans’ margins of power in the next Congress are “jewel-thin” and that Trump will have to accept “some real compromise” as he pushes forward. his agenda.
“I think there may be a little bit of internal calculation,” Biden said.
Biden also said he hoped Trump would “reconsider” his tariff threats against Mexico and Canada, America’s main trading partners.
“We are surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean and two allies: Mexico and Canada,” Biden said. “And the last thing we need to do is start screwing up those relationships. I think we have them in a good place.”
A few days earlier, Trump had pledged on his social media site Truth Social to impose 25% tariffs on both countries until they stopped illegal immigration and blocked the flow of drugs across their border with the United States. The threat created Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Trump to participate in a phone call and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Go to Florida on Friday to meet with him
After that phone call, Trump said in a message that he was “effectively closing our Southern border,” a statement Sheinbaum disputed, though he expressed confidence the tariffs would be avoided. Mexico has already taken steps to address the issues raised by Trump—a point that Biden also raised.
Trump has also threatened China with an additional 10% tariff if it does not stop exporting materials used to make the drug fentanyl.
Biden told reporters that Chinese President Xi Jinping understood the value of making no mistakes in relations with the United States.
“The one thing I’m sure about Xi is that he doesn’t want to make a mistake,” Biden said. “And I’m not saying he’s our best friend, but he understands what’s at stake.”
On Thanksgiving Day, Biden went to the firehouse to hand out pumpkin pies with his wife Jill and grandson Beau. The first lady told firefighters and police that the family has been going to Nantucket for Thanksgiving since 1975, an outing the family calls “nana-tucket” in a nod to her central role in establishing the tradition.
Firefighters gave Biden a pair of baseball caps.
The president put on his own and asked his grandson: “What do you think?”
“He looks good,” said his grandson, who said no when the president asked him if he wanted to be a firefighter.
On Friday, the Biden family had lunch at the Brotherhood of Thieves restaurant and stopped at Nantucket Bookworks, an art gallery and several other shops. Their evening ended with a ceremonial Christmas tree lighting and caroling as the crowd snapped photos and videos of a smiling Biden.
This year’s holiday may have a special emotional resonance as a respite from some family turmoil.
in decemberThey will be charged with three felonies for buying Hunter Biden a gun in 2018prosecutors said, he lied on a federal form about not using or being addicted to illegal drugs. He also makes faces judgment in California in December He pleaded guilty to federal tax charges in September.
The President said that he would not forgive his son changing his last sentence.
