White House 'split' as Trump refuses to concede

President Donald Trump is not one to admit defeat. But he faces a stark choice now that Democrat Joe Biden has been declared winner and President-elect: concede graciously for the sake of the nation or don't — and get evicted anyway.

After nearly four tortured days of counting yielded a victory for Biden, Trump was still insisting the race was not over. He threw out baseless allegations that the election wasn't fair and "illegal" votes were counted, promised a flurry of legal action and fired off all-caps tweets falsely insisting he'd "WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT."

While some in his circle were nudging Trump to concede graciously, many of his Republican allies, including on Capitol Hill, were egging him on or giving him space to process his loss — at least for the time being.

Around a unusally-empty White House due to pandemic social distancing measures,  White House correspondent Jonathan Lemire says the mood is tense.

"The director of personnel in the White House let word be known to agencies across the government that if anyone was perceived as looking for their next job, they should be immediately terminated because that would be seen as disloyal to this president who has not yet conceded," Lemire says.

Trump is not expected to formally concede, according to people close to him, but is likely to grudgingly vacate the White House at the end of his term. His ongoing efforts to paint the election as unfair are seen both as an effort to soothe a bruised ego and to show his loyal base of supporters that he is still fighting. That could be key to keeping them energized for what comes next.

Allies suggested that if Trump wants to launch a media empire in coming years, he has an incentive to prolong the drama. So, too, if he intends to keep the door open to a possible 2024 comeback — he would be only a year older than Biden is now.

Trump's adult sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, have also urged their father to keep fighting and challenged Republicans to stand with them.

(Image Credit: AP)