(AP) – President Barack Obama is set to welcome his successor, Donald Trump, to the White House, extending an olive branch to a man he blasted as unfit to serve as commander in chief and who led the charge to challenge the legitimacy of his own presidency.
The Oval Office meeting on Thursday symbolically begins the transition of power. Obama is a Democrat who ushered in a sweeping health care law and brokered a landmark nuclear accord with Iran. Trump is a Republican who has vowed to wipe those measures away after he takes office on Jan. 20.
First lady Michelle Obama also plans to meet privately in the White House residence with Trump’s wife, Melania Trump.
FOX 17 will air and stream a joint event starting at 11:30am.
Here are some of the other events planned for Thursday, from the Associated Press:
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The White House says Vice President Joe Biden will be meeting with Vice President-elect Mike Pence.
The meeting will take place Thursday afternoon at the White House. Journalists and photographers won’t be granted access to the meeting.
The vice presidential meeting comes the same day that President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump will meet at the White House. Their wives also plan to meet.
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The White House says President-elect Donald Trump’s team will start working directly with federal agencies this week on the transition.
Trump’s team will start getting briefings related to the Defense Department, State Department, Treasury Department and other agencies. The briefings will include budget details, flow charts for staff and other information.
Officials at those agencies will start speaking regularly to Trump team members to facilitate the handover of power in January. And Trump’s team will start creating policy teams that will work out of government-provided offices near the White House.
The White House also says the Obama administration will host two “exercises” involving multiple agencies to help familiarize Trump’s team with government practices and systems for responding to domestic emergencies.
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President-elect Donald Trump will meet with House Speaker Paul Ryan to talk about the Republicans’ legislative agenda.
The meeting Thursday with be the first face-to-face between the men since Trump’s surprising win. Trump and Ryan have had a tense relationship. Ryan did not campaign with Trump and has been critical of some of his policy proposals.
Trump has blasted Ryan as disloyal, “weak” and “ineffective.”
A source familiar with the plans tells The Associated Press that Vice President-elect Mike Pence will also attend the lunchtime meeting. It will follow Trump’s White House meeting with President Barack Obama.
The source asked for anonymity to discuss details before an official announcement.
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