Without Trump, or Masks, Mar-a-Lago Partied On
President Trump did not attend his private social
club’s annual New Year’s Eve bash, which hundreds of guests attended despite
the coronavirus.
Mar-a-Lago, President Trump’s private club in Palm
Beach, Fla. Mr. Trump returned to Washington before the party began.
Michael
Crowley
By Michael
Crowley
Jan. 1,
2021
President
Trump’s private social club in Palm Beach, Fla., hosted a New Year’s Eve gala
at which revelers without masks dined indoors and danced to performances by
Vanilla Ice and members of the Beach Boys.
Mr. Trump
himself did not attend the black-tie party at the club, Mar-a-Lago, as he
usually does, instead cutting short his holiday vacation and returning to
Washington on Thursday without explanation.
But members
of the president’s family and extended political circle partied on anyway at an
event that flouted warnings against indoor gatherings during the holidays as
the coronavirus surges to its deadliest levels yet. The gala also appeared to
violate specific guidelines posted on the Palm Beach County website mandating
facial coverings in “all businesses and establishments.”
Attendees
included Mr. Trump’s oldest son, Donald Trump Jr., and his girlfriend, the
former Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle. Rudolph W. Giuliani, the president’s
personal lawyer and a former New York mayor, was shown in online footage
ballroom-dancing with a female partner to a rendition of “New York, New York.”
More than 500 guests were expected, according to The Palm Beach Post.
“Ok this is
amazing. Vanilla Ice is playing the Mar-a-Lago New Years Eve party,” the
younger Mr. Trump wrote in a Facebook post that included a clip of the
53-year-old rapper, best known for his smash hit “Ice Ice Baby,” performing
before hundreds of closely packed revelers dancing awkwardly in formal wear and
without masks. “As a child of the 90s you can’t fathom how awesome that is. Beyond
that I got the birthday shoutout so that’s pretty amazing.”
Other
guests included Mr. Trump’s second son, Eric, and his wife, Lara; the
president’s daughter Tiffany Trump; Representative Matt Gaetz, Republican of
Florida; and Mike Lindell, the Palm Beach-based chief executive of MyPillow and
a prominent supporter of the president.
Social
media posts from the event also showed live performances by Teri Nunn, the lead
singer of the 1970s and ’80s new-wave band Berlin, famous for the song “Take My
Breath Away,” and two members of the Beach Boys, who now perform without the
founding members Al Jardine and Brian Wilson. (Mr. Jardine and Mr. Wilson have
disavowed performances that the touring version of the group, fronted by
another founding member, Mike Love, has played in support of Mr. Trump.)
A menu
posted on Instagram by one attendee showed a first course of “Mr. Trump’s Wedge
Salad,” followed by cheese tortellini and a Wagyu beef entree.
Tickets to
the event reportedly cost $1,000. Many were most likely sold days before the
first news reports emerged on Wednesday that Mr. Trump would not attend.
One photo
posted online by Eric Trump featured at least 15 party guests and one server in
the background. Only the server wore a mask.
Mr. Trump
and the first lady, Melania Trump, unexpectedly returned to the White House
hours before the party, which he had originally planned to attend. It was unclear
why Mr. Trump flew back to Washington, where he has not appeared in public
since his return.
As the new
year approached on Thursday night, Mr. Trump’s mind was on his election defeat
as he continued to spread false claims of voter fraud. Less than 15 minutes
before midnight, as millions of Americans were preparing to toast the arrival
of 2021, Mr. Trump tweeted two clips from the right-wing One America News
Network promoting conspiracy theories about the election.
On Friday,
Mr. Trump continued to send election-related tweets, including several
promoting a protest rally in Washington on Jan. 6, when Congress will convene
to formally certify the election of President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Mr. Trump
also tweeted a complaint after Congress voted for the first time to override
one of his vetoes, upholding the passage of a sweeping military spending bill.
The president complained that the measure did not repeal a law shielding
technology companies like Facebook and Twitter from liability for their users’
posts, and that Congress had not approved the larger economic stimulus checks
he had demanded.
“Now they
want to give people ravaged by the China Virus $600, rather than the $2000
which they so desperately need,” he wrote. “Not fair, or smart!”
Michael
Crowley is a White House correspondent, covering President Trump’s foreign
policy. He joined The Times in 2019 from Politico, where he was the White House
and national security editor, and a foreign affairs correspondent. @michaelcrowley
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