The inauguration of Joe Biden

Marine One just took off from the White House lawn, carrying President Trump to Joint Base Andrews for his send-off ceremony.

But it is not typical for a president's final flights to be officially called Marine One and Air Force One, since those craft only have those names when the President is on them. (Typically, presidents leave DC after the new president is inaugurated.)

The helicopter flight for the outgoing president typically becomes known as Executive One.

See moment Marine One takes off:

In the midst of a flurry of last minute Executive Orders signed overnight, President Trump revoked a rule he signed early in his term that included a five-year lobbying ban for administration officials and a lifetime ban on lobbying for foreign governments.

Trump had signed the order "Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Appointees" within his first week in office as part of his campaign promise to "drain the swamp" in Washington.

But now, as he and his advisers depart the White House, Trump is presumably allowing for those officials to begin lobbying when they leave government.

The January 28, 2017 executive order required appointees to pledge that they will not "engage in lobbying activities with respect" to the executive agency they were appointed to serve within five years after "termination of their employment" – effectively allowing them to lobby other areas.

As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump initially called for enacting the five-year lobbying ban through legislation and for a similar restriction for members of Congress and their staff. But his executive order was ultimately free of that language.

At the signing, Trump slammed former President Barack Obama for enacting a two-year lobbying ban for officials who left his administration, saying his Democratic predecessor's order was insufficient and full of loopholes.

President Trump just walked out of the White House. He's on his way to Joint Base Andrews, where he's expected to have a short farewell ceremony at the base before one last presidential flight to Palm Beach.

Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks at a send-off ceremony at the base.

Watch the moment Trump leaves the White House:

A source close to Vice President Mike Pence said he said his final goodbye to President Trump yesterday and is not expected to be at the White House this morning as Trump departs. 

He's also not expected to attend the ceremony at Joint Base Andrews before Trump departs for Florida.

Once the inauguration of Joe Biden concludes today, Pence will fly to Indiana and then will be back and forth between Indiana and DC. 

By breaking with tradition and leaving Washington while still president, Trump’s final military flight this morning is expected to carry the designation “Air Force One.”  

It is typical for outgoing presidents to depart Washington on one of the airplanes maintained by the 89th Airlift Wing of the Air Force and typically known as Air Force One. The new president typically offers this as a courtesy to his predecessor.  

But it is not typical for that final flights to be officially called Marine One and Air Force One since those craft only have those names when the President is on them.  

The helicopter flight for the outgoing president typically becomes known as Executive One.

And the airplane flight is usually called a Special Air Mission. Trump’s predecessor, 44th President Barack Obama, left town on a flight officially known as Special Air Mission 44.  

But Trump’s early departure from the White House means he’ll still be president for the entirety of his flight to Florida.  

There will be an aviation change around Trump’s Mar-a-Lago compound in Florida. The airspace restriction above the facility will shrink from 30 miles to just three. 

First lady Melania Trump did not write her own "thank you" notes to the White House residence staff who have cared for her and her family for the last for years, according to two sources with knowledge of the notes and Trump's handling of them.

The 80 or so staff who received the type written notes were under the assumption the first lady had written them herself. Instead, Trump tasked a lower-level East Wing staffer with writing them "in her voice," and she signed her name. 

Several sources familiar with Trump's activities, or lack thereof in recent weeks, have described the first lady as being "checked out," that she "just wants to go home," and is "not sad to be leaving" Washington and the White House.

One of the sources discussing the "thank you" notes with CNN said it is customary for first ladies – and occasionally presidents as well – to write cards or short letters of gratitude to members of household staff, especially the ones whom they get to know extremely well. Much of the correspondence includes personal anecdotes and the letters become "cherished keepsakes" for the residence staff, says the source.

The butlers, cooks, housekeepers, ushers and maintenance workers do not typically turn over with each administration and many have been working at the White House for a decade or more

Melania Trump will be exiting the White House with the lowest favorability rating of her tenure as first lady, according to a new CNN poll.

At 47%, more people have an unfavorable view of the first lady now than at any point since CNN first asked about views of her in February 2016. The poll, conducted by SSRS for CNN, puts Trump's favorable rating at 42%, with 12% of those asked answering they are unsure of their feelings about the first lady.

The coronavirus pandemic will be President-elect Joe Biden's top priority after he is sworn in later today, the incoming White House press secretary Jen Psaki told CNN.

“Hundreds of thousands of Americans, obviously, have lost their lives, but many more millions have lost their jobs. And these are two intertwined crises,” she said. “I would expect that coronavirus — getting it under control, addressing it, communicating with the public about it — is going to continue to be front and center for him in his agenda,” she said. 

Biden is expected to sign a slate of executive actions, including ones around the pandemic, after he is sworn in. However, Psaki cautioned that it could take “several months until we’re really seeing progress.”

“Our team is eager to get into agencies and into the White House to really gain a better assessment of how bad things are. But we're also going to be honest about what we're looking at here,” she added.

Americans shouldn’t expect to hear about Trump in Biden’s inaugural speech, Psaki said.

“We spend a lot less time talking about and thinking about and worrying about Donald Trump than I think most people assume. This is a forward-looking speech,” she said. “So he's going to talk about the problems we're facing, the resolve of the public to come together, the power of coming together and unifying.”

Incoming White House press secretary speaks with CNN:

President Trump is expected to leave the White House soon to make his way to Joint Base Andrews.

Eager for a final taste of the pomp of being president, he's expected to have a short farewell ceremony before one last presidential flight to Palm Beach.

Trump hasn't left the White House or been seen in public for a week. On Monday evening he taped a final message from the Blue Room of the White House, ticking through several achievements that he believes should define his administration. He released that video Tuesday afternoon, followed by a raft of 11th-hour pardons and commutations released early Wednesday morning. The batch of 73 pardons and 70 commutations issued in the final hours of his presidency included Steve Bannon and Lil Wayne.

Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks this morning before his final departure from Joint Base Andrews. Invitations have gone out to Trump's friends, allies and former administration officials saying it will begin at 8 a.m. ET. Each invitee is allowed five guests; organizers hope to secure a large crowd because Trump has complained about the size of his gatherings in the past.

In a sign the guest list may not have been carefully curated, Trump's former communications director turned critic, Anthony Scaramucci, was invited to the departure. He told CNN he did not plan to attend, but saw his invitation as a sign the White House was eager to bulk up the guest list.

Trump will be in Florida when President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris are sworn in at noon, at which point he will no longer be president.

President Trump issued a raft of 11th-hour pardons and commutations early Wednesday that included his onetime political strategist, a former top fundraiser and two well-known rappers but not himself or his family.

The batch of 73 pardons and 70 commutations issued in the final hours of his presidency was expected, and is in keeping with a long-standing presidential tradition of exercising clemency powers at the last minute.

But several controversial names do appear, including Steve Bannon, who has pleaded not guilty to charges he defrauded donors in a "We Build the Wall" online fundraising campaign.

Trump had spent the past days deliberating over a pardon for the man who helped him win the presidency in 2016 and followed him to the White House.

A senior Trump adviser said part of the motivation for the President to issue a pardon for Bannon is that he believes his former chief strategist can help lead a political comeback for President Trump. The outgoing President has discussed the idea of another run in 2024. Though some advisers have dismissed the idea as Trump is now leaving office in disgrace. Trump also saw Bannon as one of the few remaining high profile conservatives to back the president all the way to the bitter end. 

As for their relationship, once fractured after Bannon was fired following Charlottesville, the adviser said, “they made up.”