Extract from ABC News
By Lucia Stein and Rebecca Armitage
As Donald Trump hopped on a plane bound for Florida yesterday, he left behind a cloud of uncertainty in Washington DC.
The Commander-in-Chief will be in his favourite place on earth for the Christmas break: his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
But before boarding Marine One, Trump made some 11th-hour moves that shocked many on Capitol Hill, including asking Congress to amend a $US900 billion coronavirus relief bill that Republicans and Democrats have spent months negotiating and following through on a threat to veto a massive defence bill.
Whether it was Trump trying to secure a better deal for Americans by asking for the stimulus payments to be more than tripled or a small act of revenge on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell who wanted to cap the payment at $US600 ($AUD794), the money is desperately needed by millions of people.
Now Americans will usher in a festive season tainted by anxiety as many — including some of his closest aides — wonder what the remaining 26 days of his presidency will look like.
Will Trump run down the clock at Mar-a-Lago?
Last week there were signs Trump may be coming to terms with a life outside the White House.
Far from returning to his former home in New York City, the family were set to move to a far more Trump friendly location: sunny Florida.
But like most of Trump's presidency, the move has courted controversy.
US outlets reported his potential neighbours would be seeking to enforce a decades-old contract that says Mar-a-Lago, his private social club, cannot be used as a full-time residence.
Unsurprisingly, a looming legal battle over his right to live in Mar-a-Lago full time doesn't mean he won't follow through with it anyway.
Trump already changed their legal residence from New York City to Palm Beach last year.
But what may shock some is that a permanent move to Florida could already be underway.
Some of those closest to the President have speculated he may simply decide to stay in Florida instead of returning to the White House for his final weeks in office, according to CNN.
Does Trump have to go back to the White House?
There is no law requiring the president to reside in the White House, so he could theoretically govern from the comfort of Mar-a-Lago until January 20.
That's when Joe Biden will be officially sworn in as the 46th president of the United States.
Reports suggest Trump won't attend the inauguration ceremony, and may even decide to announce another run for the presidency in 2024.
It's certainly one path the President could take come January. But the rising influence of one of Trump's lawyers suggests he does not intend to go down without a fight.
And just as a relic of Trump's former life is due to be blown up, the President may be waiting for the right moment to drop a bomb about what he plans to do next.
How Sidney Powell could influence the next 26 days
In the lead up to Christmas, far from having their foot out the door, the White House press corps has been on high alert.
A woman known for stoking conspiracy theories has been spotted leaving the building.
Sidney Powell was hired as a lawyer for Donald Trump's election campaign. And she's proved to be just as divisive as the president she serves.
Some Trump allies, including his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, have even tried to distance themselves from her despite reports suggesting she's still in touch with the president.
She has claimed the electronic voting systems used in several key battleground states had switched millions of ballots to favour Mr Biden, without providing any evidence.
Ms Powell also claims to have "evidence of foreign interference" in the election by Iran and China, but if evidence exists, she hasn't made it public yet.
But if Ms Powell does still have the ear of the President, commentators have already warned that it could mean another dark chapter of the Trump presidency is about to unfold.
What does she want Donald Trump to do next?
Nothing has been confirmed publicly, but Axios, the New York Times and others are reporting that Powell and her allies have floated several options with Trump.
One was to encourage the Department of Homeland Security to seize possession of voting machines as part of a push to overturn the results of the election (that's illegal, though).
Another was to instal Powell as a special counsel to investigate allegations of voter fraud (probably not possible under federal law)
And Michael Flynn, Donald Trump's former national security advisor, also reportedly suggested the president impose martial law and demand the election be re-held (which is unconstitutional — the president can't unilaterally invoke martial law).
Trump denied that report on Twitter.
The President hasn't followed through with any of his lawyers' ideas, but discussions of martial law in the Oval Office has been enough to make some of his aides nervous.
It doesn't help that Trump has apparently turned on many of those around him.
Trump's pardon bonanza
Even if Trump refuses to accept his time in office is coming to an end, he's still acting like a man who may be about to lose power.
Tuesday brought us a pardon bonanza, with Trump granting 15 pardons, and commuting five sentences. The next day, the President issued pardons for 29 more people.
Notably, some of those pardons were granted to people caught up in the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election, such as George Papadopoulos, a former campaign aide who pleaded guilty as part of the probe, and Alex van der Zwaan, the Dutch son-in-law of Russian billionaire German Khan.
Trump has also previously granted a pardon to Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about discussions he had with a Russian official before Trump took office in 2017.
And this may mark just the start of his pardon spree.
US media have been reporting for the last few weeks that Trump is considering pre-emptive pardons for his three children.
Giuliani, who is being investigated for breaking lobbying laws in his dealings in Ukraine, could also make the cut.
It's not unusual for presidents to grant pardons on their way out the door. Bill Clinton issued 140 of them on his final day of office, including one for his own brother.
But with a big question mark still over the President's plan for his last days in office, what does seem clear is that Trump's looking to clean house as much as he can before he goes.
A rush of people have already been putting in special requests with the man in charge.
CNN reported last week that "calls and emails have been flooding into the West Wing from people looking to benefit from the President's powers of clemency".
But how many of those friends will remain come February when he is known as a former president?
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