Sighs of relief accompany a sense of unease as Biden era dawns, Trump departs D.C.

WASHINGTON — Relief and apprehension alike are washing over the U.S. capital as Donald Trump finally makes room for Joe Biden at the White House.

By the time Biden is sworn in today as the 46th U.S. president, Trump will be ensconced in Florida — a fitting split-screen end to one of the most acrimonious periods in American history.

Trump is studiously avoiding Biden entirely, taking one last trip aboard Air Force 1 after a self-designed early-morning sendoff from Joint Base Andrews.

He arrived at the base via helicopter, landing to the strains of his 1980s rally playlist — “Gloria,” “YMCA” and a new farewell addition, “My Way” — before being greeted by a 21-gun salute and cheers from a modest crowd of about 200 supporters.

It’s believed to be the first time in 152 years that a sitting president has opted to skip out on the inauguration of his successor.

“As the athletes would say, we left it all on the field,” Trump said during an ad-libbed speech that included a rare thank-you from his wife, Melania.

“You are amazing people, this is a great, great country and it is my greatest honour and privilege to have been your president.”

Trump even looked emotional — a rare sight for a president who purports to value toughness above all else — as he basked in the cheering for a final time.

“We will be back, in some form,” he promised. “Have a good life. We will see you soon.”

As Trump boarded the plane, Biden was seen emerging from Blair House, the guest residence a stone’s throw from the White House, on his way to a prayer service at St. Matthew’s Cathedral.

Trump is leaving Washington in high-alert paralysis two weeks after an angry mob of supporters stormed Capitol Hill and terrorized members of Congress.

Instead of flag-waving crowds and gala balls, inauguration day is playing out behind a gauntlet of National Guard troops in the centre of a largely deserted, locked-down city.

Kirsten Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., will be among the comparatively small number of people attending the ceremony in person.

“I’m actually not nervous, because I have seen first-hand all of the strong security presence throughout downtown D.C.,” Hillman said in an interview.

“I’m feeling quite confident that it’s going to be safe.”

The fact that safety is even a question at a U.S. presidential inauguration is remarkable in itself. But the Jan. 6 siege at the Capitol changed everything — including confidence in the National Guard.

The FBI has been working to vet all 25,000 Guard members deployed in Washington, worried about the potential for an insider attack or other threat.

So far, 12 members have been removed from their D.C. assignment, including two who reportedly made extremist posts or texts in reference to the inauguration. There were no specific threats to Biden.

Guard members have been a fixture in the city for weeks, gradually expanding a rigid security perimeter that now encircles virtually the entire downtown core.

Unscalable two-metre fences, some of them topped with razor wire, line block after block, with streets closed off by concrete barriers, troop transports and Humvees.

For Hillman, all of it provides a pointed reminder that democracies shouldn’t be taken for granted.

“We should all celebrate our democracies, often and heartily — in my view, I think we take them for granted a little more than we should sometimes,” she said.

The fact that Congress persevered the night of Jan. 6 and ultimately finished the job of certifying Biden’s election win was a testament to the country’s enduring spirit, she said.

“No matter what the challenges … people are going to make this work because it is fundamental to their democracy. So, I think you can turn it around and see it as a real testament to the strength of institutions that have been severely tested.”

Hillman herself may already face a severe test of her own.

As one of his first actions in the White House, Biden is expected to sign an executive order rescinding Trump’s presidential permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

The transition team confirmed that plan Tuesday, promising to revoke, revise or replace any orders Trump signed “that do not serve the U.S. national interest, including revoking the presidential permit granted to the Keystone XL pipeline.”

Advocates for the project have been clinging to hope that the ensuing outcry — the Alberta government is already threatening legal action — will prompt the Biden team to have second thoughts.

Either way, Hillman is sanguine about a new era in Canada-U.S. relations getting off to an awkward start.

“It’s important for us to be able to have a robust and mature relationship with the United States,” she said.

“A robust, mature, and close relationship is one where you can have disagreements, and you can have them in the strongest possible terms, and you can move on, and not let those disagreements derail the entire relationship.”

— With files from The Associated Press

James McCarten, The Canadian Press