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Thousands of MAGA fans greet Trump and Melania as they return 'home' to Mar-a-Lago, say 'he's not alone'

Before he left the White House with former First Lady Melania Trump, he told his supporters, 'Goodbye. I love you. We’ll be back in some form'

Former President Donald Trump may have lost the election to President Joe Biden but his popularity has not dwindled one bit. It is evident in the hordes of MAGA supporters who gathered in thousands to welcome him back home to Florida. 

Before he left the White House with former First Lady Melania Trump and boarded the Air Force One for the last time, he said to his supporters, "Goodbye. I love you. We’ll be back in some form." He ditched Biden's inauguration to kickstart his new life at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and flew out from Washington DC after a farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews.

At Joint Andrews Base, he addressed his 500 fans present and said that it had been an "incredible four years" and insisted "we'll be back". "I will always fight for you, I will be watching, I will be listening. The future of this country has never been better," Trump said in the 10-minute speech. "We have the greatest country in the world. It was my greatest honor and privilege to be your President." He also received a 21 gun salute from the military.

Shortly before he flew out, the former president hoped for success for Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris (without naming them). Then he headed to Mar-a-Logo, where he was greeted by flag-waving and cheering supporters who lined the streets of Mar-a-Lago, Florida, to welcome the former president. 

Fans carried placards reading Trump is "still my President", "Welcome Home," "We Love You President Trump," and "Trump won". Trump's motorcade reportedly slowed to greet fans as he was seen beaming from the window. His long term ally Roger Stone appeared at a rally in West Palm Beach and said, "I don't think you've seen the last of Donald Trump."

Palm Beach Gardens activist Willy Guardiola, 63, reportedly said, "He’s going to be overwhelmed. He’s going to see the support and the love we have for our president". "We want to show him he’s not alone," Daniel Rakus, 65, of Palm Beach, said. "He did a great job. We support him." Trump supporters also took to Twitter to cheer him on. "There are people on the streets of Palm Beach, FL supporting President Trump the people who attended Joe Buy-den’s “inauguration” President Trump is loved!!!" one tweeted. 

Trump is expected to live at his Mar-a-Lago resort in South Florida now. Moving trucks were spotted there on Monday.

Trump's presidency was full of strain, complete with two impeachments, deep political divisions and a pandemic that has caused 400,000 deaths in the US. Before leaving the Oval Office, he left Biden a little note, the content of which is still unknown. "The president wrote a very generous letter,” Biden told reporters later in the Oval Office. “Because it was private, I won’t talk about it until I talk to him. But it was generous."

Many are noting that "There were more Americans at West Palm Beach receiving Trump... Than at Joe Bidens inauguration. Let that sink in." This is notwithstanding the fact that almost no one in the video at Trump's welcome is seen wearing a face mask and Biden has stressed the importance of masks and preventions since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis.