Biden campaign reportedly worries inauguration could turn into Trump MAGA rally

Some members of Joe Biden's campaign team are reportedly worried that Inauguration Day in Washington, D.C. might turn into a huge President Trump rally, similar to the raucous "Make America Great Again" events he held throughout the campaign.

In a Daily Beast piece headlined "Biden World Fears Trump Will Bring 'Weird S***' to Their Inauguration," the liberal website says Biden supporters, more worried about COVID-19 than Trump supporters, might not attend — but MAGA supporters just might fill that void.

"Inaugurals always require intricate planning. This one will be a really delicate dance to have that element of accessibility without risk," Steve Kerrigan, who served as the CEO of the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC), told the Beast. "I cannot see a President-elect Biden, like Trump, putting narcissism or ego ahead of the safety of people."

"But the questions being confronted by inauguration planners are now twofold. How do you actually keep attendees away? And if wannabe revelers decide not to show up, will you be left with a mass gathering of Trump supporters in their place?" the Beast wrote.

"What do you do if our people don't show up and his do?" one official involved in inaugural planning reportedly said. "They probably will, and the last thing you want is a MAGA rally on the Mall when Joe Biden is sworn in as president ... I think [Trump] would want to make it as much of a s***show as possible."

While the election is still in flux — few states have certified results, the Electoral College doesn't vote until Dec. 14, and Team Trump has filed more than a dozen lawsuits questioning the voting process — viewing stands are already being erected along Pennsylvania Avenue, including directly in front of the White House. Hundreds of thousands of people often show up, even though it's usually frigid in D.C. on Jan. 20. CNN said that appears to be on track again.

"Judging by hotel bookings, the surge in Covid-19 cases won't keep people from attending the presidential inauguration in Washington, DC, in January," CNN wrote on Twitter.

"Several of DC's signature hotels have already reached capacity for January 20, and many of those that do still have vacancies are increasing their rates and enforcing minimum-stay periods," CNN wrote, noting luxury hotels are already sold out. But budget hotels are also selling out fast: "Every Holiday Inn in DC is sold out for Inauguration Day, with the closest rooms still available being in Alexandria, Virginia's Old Town."

But it just so happens that Trump has his own hotel, too.

The Beast wrote another story headlined, "MAGA Maniacs Have Trump's D.C. Hotel Booked Solid for His Inauguration."

"The reservations clerk at the hotel on Monday advised that there was no way to predict when someone might cancel and create a vacancy between Jan. 16 and Jan. 21. 'You would have to keep checking,' she said," the site reported on Wednesday.