On Thursday, Trump plans to award New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick the Presidential Medal of Freedom, according to a White House official. With just days to go in office and facing calls to resign, President Donald Trump is planning to spend the upcoming week taking a ceremonial victory lap and making last-minute use of his presidential powers. A trip to the border is in order, pardons appear to be in the works, and so, too, is an award ceremony for one of his favorite football coaches as well as a top political ally. It’s an agenda that seems off-key for a president facing the prospects of a second impeachment following the violence and destruction he incited at the Capitol last Wednesday, which resulted in the deaths of five people, including a U.S. Capitol police officer. But Trump has maneuvered his way through political controversy before, and an aide said these events have long been in the works. On Monday, Trump plans to award Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) the highest civilian honor. On Tuesday, he plans to visit Alamo, Texas, to visit a section of the U.S.-Mexico border wall. And on Thursday, Trump plans to award New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick the Presidential Medal of Freedom, according to a White House official. A spokesperson for the Patriots did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The president’s efforts to pursue a normal schedule of events amid the tumult he inspired began last week, when, in the aftermath of the riots, he awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to professional golfers Annika Sorenstam and Gary Player. This week’s events will have a similarly somber backdrop. Democrats could vote as early as Tuesday on articles of impeachment for inciting the violent mob that ransacked the Capitol, House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) said Sunday during an appearance on Fox News. Not everyone in the administration is apparently going about business as usual. Vice President Mike Pence was also planning to hold events this week highlighting policy wins for the administration. Now, however, he is expected to lie low during his final days at the White House, according to people close to him. Pence and Trump have reportedly not spoken after mobs of Trump supporters descended on the Hill while Pence was there overseeing the Electoral College certification in Congress. With just 10 days left in his time in office, Trump is trying to take advantage of the power of the presidency up until the very last minute. He has mulled preemptive pardons for family members and even his closest staff members, and is expected to hitch a final ride on Air Force One back to Florida ahead of Biden’s inauguration in a final snub of the election results.
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