Pence calls Harris while Trump continues to stew in denial

The other is holed up inside, silenced on social media, resisting entreaties to deliver a farewell address and refusing to speak to the man who beat him.

One way is decidedly more presidential than the other.

After an extended period of estrangement after Trump called Pence a “p*ssy” and lambasted him in front of a crowd that later stormed the US Capitol to hunt him, Trump and Pence are now speaking.

But many in Pence’s orbit remain furious at how Trump behaved the day of the insurrection attempt, which brought rioters within seconds of encountering Pence and members of his family in the hallways outside the Senate chamber. Trump did not call to check on Pence’s safety during the ordeal.

And the two men, while back on speaking terms, are now following entirely divergent paths in the twilight of their administration.

On Thursday, Pence spoke with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris for the first time, the highest-level contact to date between the outgoing and incoming administrations. Their conversation was described as cordial, with Pence offering his congratulations and assistance, according to a person familiar with the matter. The New York Times first reported the conversation.

Pence commits to 'an orderly transition and to a safe inauguration'

Trump has refused all courtesies to Biden, to whom he has not technically conceded in a formal way. He resisted inviting Biden to the White House for a traditional post-election meeting, has not phoned him and is not expected to welcome him to the White House on Inauguration Day. He maintains privately that he beat Biden, according to people who have discussed the matter with him.

Instead of welcoming Biden to the White House and sharing a car to the swearing-in ceremony, Trump is planning to depart the White House on the morning of January 20, participate in a send-off at Joint Base Andrews and fly to Palm Beach aboard Air Force One, all before Biden is sworn in as the 46th president. Even the use of Blair House, the presidential guest quarters, on Inauguration Eve was left to the State Department to formally offer to the Bidens.

Pence, meanwhile, plans to attend the inauguration.

In recent days, Pence has emerged as a more visible figure than the President, who has appeared only in recorded videos filmed by White House staff. While many of Trump’s advisers have encouraged him to deliver a farewell address, either live or recorded, has has seemed disinterested and non-committal. He’s voiced extreme self-pity, according to people familiar with the conversations, and has become surly because more Republicans aren’t defending him.

Pence, who has been among the advisers encouraging the President to more forcefully condemn last week’s riots, has adopted a more cheerful outlook.

During an afternoon outing on Thursday, he dropped into the pool of White House phone operators working in the New Executive Office Building across the street from the White House, presenting them with challenge coins and a framed letter of appreciation.

From there he traveled to the headquarters of Federal Emergency Management Agency for a briefing on inauguration security, which Trump was also briefed on this week at the White House but which he hasn’t addressed at length.

“We all lived through that day…