Just over an hour after President Donald Trump took the oath of office, former President Joe Biden and former First Lady Jill Biden left DC in a helicopter. Nighthawk 46 – known as Marine One when the current president is on board – took them to Joint Base Andrews where the outgoing president addressed a crowd of supporters.
“It has been the honor of my life to serve as your president,” Biden told the cheering crowd before telling them, “I love you all.”
BIDEN GREETS TRUMP AT THE WHITE HOUSE WITH A TWO-WORD MESSAGE
Biden and the former first lady board Special Air Mission 46 at Joint Base Andrews following the inauguration ceremony on January 20, 2025. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
After wrapping up his brief remarks, the former president and his wife headed to California’s Santa Ynez Valley for some personal time.
While some headed to Santa Barbara airport hoping to see Biden’s plane land, a no-fly message in the airspace around Vandenberg indicated the former president would land there, local outlet KEYT reported.
“He and Jill were there last summer, so this is his second visit in less than a year,” Shelby Sim, president/CEO of Visit the Santa Ynez Valley, told People magazine. Sim also told the outlet that there is a “rumor” that the former president is looking for a home in the area, but emphasized that this visit is “purely for relaxation.”
Biden and the former first lady walk to Air Force One during a farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on Jan. 20, 2025, after Trump’s inauguration.
The Bidens also traveled to the Santa Ynez Valley after the former president delivered his speech at the Democratic National Convention just weeks after withdrawing from the 2024 election. They were reportedly staying with a “friend,” billionaire donor Joe Kiani, the New York Post reported at the time.
Kiani has given Biden’s super PAC, foundation and inaugural committee nearly $3 million, according to House Republicans who have questioned the relationship. Meanwhile, Kiani received an appointment from Biden in September 2021 to serve on his Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, which advises the executive branch on policy issues related to Kiani’s medical technology company, Masimo. Since Biden took office in January 2021, Masimo has received nearly $3 million in federal contracts, according to Republicans.
During their last visit to the area after the then-president withdrew from the race in August, the Bidens reportedly stayed at Kiani Preserve, an 8,000-acre estate owned by the billionaire donor of the same name.
BIDEN’S FREE VACATION AT A FRIEND’S CALIFORNIA MANSION FEARS STRANGE FROM CRITICS
Biden and the former first lady depart aboard the helicopter to pick them up from the East Front of the United States Capitol in Washington, DC, following Trump’s swearing-in on January 20, 2025.
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Little is known about where the Bidens will go after they leave the White House, as the family has not yet made their plans public. The former president has two homes in Delaware — one in Wilmington and one in Rehoboth Beach — but he has not clarified whether either will serve as a home base after his presidency. However, if the rumor Sim is referring to turns out to be true, the Bidens could settle on the West Coast.
Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.
