A snowstorm in Washington, D.C., early Monday morning disrupted federal government operations across the city and even all the way north to Delaware, where President Joe Biden was preparing to return to the White House for the new year after nearly a week away.
The storm — which was expected to deliver up to eight inches of snow to the D.C. region — led to the closure of all federal offices, most of which are located in the city, such as the departments of transportation, education, state and a number of agencies.
President Biden’s flight to Washington landed safely Monday morning at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, as usual, but Air Force One was forced to taxi for nearly 30 minutes as crews plowed a path through the snow on the tarmac for the plane to reach the gate.
The president’s motorcade back to the White House was also slower than usual, as law enforcement vehicles navigated his limo back through roads with several inches of snow, at one point stopping for more than five minutes. He returned almost two hours later than scheduled.
Federal employees were expected to work remotely, if eligible, along with “emergency” employees. The National Weather Service declared a winter storm warning until late Monday afternoon.
Biden had spent the last week in Delaware, his home state, first at his property in Rehoboth Beach and then at his home near Wilmington. During the trip, he spoke to Russian President Vladmir Putin about border tensions with Ukraine and took his new puppy, a German shepherd named Commander, for a walk on the beach.
The president returns to Washington in a new election year, where Democrats will launch a new push to pass voting rights legislation and the president’s sweeping social and climate agenda, known as the Build Back Better Act.
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Monday pledged that the Senate will vote on changing the filibuster rule later this month if Republicans continue to block voting rights, a change Biden has said he is open to if absolutely necessary.
And negotiations over Build Back Better are expected to pick back up after they fell apart in late December when Democratic Senator Joe Manchin announced he could no longer vote for the bill due to spending concerns.
According to Axios, Manchin is back at the negotiating table in 2022 with new demands to define the scope of the legislation.