While all eyes are on outgoing President Biden and incoming President Trump, there’s a whole world of work being done at the White House between residence staff setting up the home for the incoming family and other workers finding their offices for the first time.
“It’s surreal. It’s the oddest out-of-body experience you can have in politics or government,” Ari Fleischer, who served as press secretary for President George W. Bush, said of the experience. “That building is rare air. Only a few are allowed in.”
“There’s nothing like that first day,” he said.
Anita McBride, who served as chief of staff to first lady Laura Bush, said that while the president-elect is getting sworn in, there’s a flurry of activity at the White House.
“There are people at the White House, new staff coming in at the White House, already setting things up for him, setting up his offices, setting up their offices,” Ms. McBride said. “The work begins immediately. That is happening on the office side. In the resident side, the executive residence staff is moving very quickly. The trucks are pre-positioned of the outgoing family’s things, and the incoming family’s trucks are right behind it.”
She called it a “very organized chaos.”
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“There’s a lot of running around, there’s a lot of moving around, there’s a lot of activity, but everybody knows their job, everybody has an assignment, and everybody accomplishes what they need to accomplish,” she said. “So that when the [resident and his family walk into the White House after the parade, they feel at home.”
What’s helpful is that this isn’t the first time in the White House for Mr. Trump, first lady Melania Trump and youngest son Barron.
Mrs. Trump told The Associated Press earlier this week that she is packed and ready for her return.
“I already packed. I already selected the, you know, the furniture that needs to go in. So it’s, it’s very different, a transition, this time, second time around,” she said.
Barron, 18, will have a room at the White House for when he comes to visit on break from school at New York University.
The inaugural day starts with Mr. Trump taking the oath of office at noon. While it’s typically on the front steps of the U.S. Capitol, this year it will be inside the Rotunda due to frigid temperatures in Washington.
Mr. Trump will then give his inaugural address. Mr. Biden has said he plans to be there for the ceremony and the peaceful transition of power that he has promised.
Country music star Carrie Underwood is set to perform at Mr. Trump’s swearing-in ceremony.
After having lunch with congressional leaders at the Capitol, Mr. Trump has promised to greet spectators at Capitol One arena, where the parade also has been moved due to the frigid weather forecast. From there, he will go to the White House.
Mr. Trump has said previously that he will be getting to work on the first day. He is expected to have a flood of executive orders — from handling illegal immigrants, to rolling back recent climate initiatives from Mr. Biden, to focusing on energy production.
“I think you’re going to see countless executive orders, executive actions. He’s going to hit the ground running,” said Sean Spicer, who served as White House press secretary and communications director during Mr. Trump’s first administration.
Mr. Spicer said Mr. Trump has picked people who have been around the White House block before and know what to do “right out of the gate.”
“Day One is usually a celebratory day, but I think President Trump is going to really take advantage of Day One and try to get a ton done,” he said.
Mr. Fleischer said he anticipates that Monday “will be the busiest first day of a president probably in American history.”
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.