Trump family’s two-week vacation comes to an end

The Trump family are returning to Washington D.C. after a two-week vacation at Mar-a-Lago in Florida that was partly marred by the fallout from the ordered killing of a top Iranian general. 

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump headed to Palm Beach International Airport from Mar-a-Lago on Sunday afternoon. 

Trump’s daughters Ivanka and Tiffany were among those also spotted in the motorcade. 

It brings to an end a two-week stay at the resort for Trump and other members of his family.

They rang in the New Year at Mar-a-Lago by hosting a lavish party for their family, friends and political allies.

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump headed to Palm Beach International Airport from Mar-a-Lago on Sunday afternoon, bringing an end to their two-week stay at the Florida resort

Trump's daughter Ivanka was among those also spotted in the motorcade leaving the resort

Trump’s daughter Ivanka was among those also spotted in the motorcade leaving the resort

But Trump’s holidays are now definitely over with twin challenges awaiting him as he returns to the White House on Sunday night: the continuing fallout from the strike in Iraq and his looming impeachment trial in the Senate. 

Even before Air Force One touched down outside the divided nation’s capital, Trump on Sunday faced growing questions from Democrats fearful that the killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani endangered Americans in the region and may have been an effort to distract from the president´s political crisis back home. 

‘Next week, the president of the United States could be facing an impeachment trial in the Senate. We know he’s deeply upset about that. And I think people are reasonably asking, ‘Why this moment?’,’ Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat running for president, said on CNN’s State of the Union.

‘Why does he pick now to take this highly inflammatory, highly dangerous action that moves us closer to war?’ 

Tiffany Trump was spotted on her phone in one of the vehicles in the motorcade sitting alongside her boyfriend Charbel Boulos

Tiffany Trump was spotted on her phone in one of the vehicles in the motorcade sitting alongside her boyfriend Charbel Boulos

President Donald Trump's motorcade heads from his residence at Mar-a-Lago to Palm Beach International Airport on Sunday after their two-week vacation

President Donald Trump’s motorcade heads from his residence at Mar-a-Lago to Palm Beach International Airport on Sunday after their two-week vacation

It brings to an end a two-week stay at the resort for Trump and other members of his family. They rang in the New Year at Mar-a-Lago by hosting a lavish party for their family, friends and political allies

It brings to an end a two-week stay at the resort for Trump and other members of his family. They rang in the New Year at Mar-a-Lago by hosting a lavish party for their family, friends and political allies

Crowds of supporters lined the route for Trump's motorcade as the family left Mar-a-Lago

Crowds of supporters lined the route for Trump’s motorcade as the family left Mar-a-Lago

In the hours before Trump’s return, tensions simmered half a world away as hundreds of thousands flooded streets on Sunday in Iran to walk alongside a casket carrying the remains of Soleimani while Iraq’s parliament voted in favor of a resolution calling for an end of the foreign military presence in their nation, an effort aimed at expelling the 5,000 U.S. troops stationed there over the war against the Islamic State group.  

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who appeared on the full gamut of Washington Sunday morning news shows, defended the strike, which killed Soleimani at the Baghdad airport, as part of a deterrence ‘strategy to convince the Iranian regime to behave like a normal nation’.

‘The American people should know that we will not waver. We will be bold in protecting American interests and we will do so in a way that is consistent with the rule of law,’ Pompeo told CNN.

The conflict is rooted in Trump pulling out of Iran´s atomic accord and imposing sanctions that have crippled Iran´s economy. But it was not at the forefront of Trump’s agenda when his vacation began.

Trump departed for Mar-a-Lago, nestled against the Atlantic Ocean in tony Palm Beach on December 20 – just two days after the House of Representatives voted largely on party lines to approve two articles of impeachment against him over his pressure of Ukraine to investigate a potential political foe, former vice president Joe Biden.

During his stay, the president visited his nearby golf course nearly every day and kept his public appearances to a minimum. 

President Donald Trump gave two thumbs up and flashed a smile after leaving his golf resort to return to Mar-a-Lago where he threatened to strike back in a 'disproportionate manner' if Iran took retaliatory action against the U.S. for the killing of General Qassem Soleimani

President Donald Trump gave two thumbs up and flashed a smile after leaving his golf resort to return to Mar-a-Lago where he threatened to strike back in a ‘disproportionate manner’ if Iran took retaliatory action against the U.S. for the killing of General Qassem Soleimani 

Donald Trump warned Sunday that if Iran retaliates against the U.S. he will take 'disproportionate' action against them. He also said he did not need to notify Congress if he decides to issue another attack

Donald Trump warned Sunday that if Iran retaliates against the U.S. he will take ‘disproportionate’ action against them. He also said he did not need to notify Congress if he decides to issue another attack 

But behind the scenes, he held a series of meetings and phone calls to prepare for what lies ahead.

Trump spoke to some of his closest Republican allies in the Senate, including Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, about the upcoming trial. 

Though the details of the trial remain unclear, including when it will begin, the outcome seems all but certain, as the Republican-led Senate will almost surely not remove Trump from office.

But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has delayed transmitting the articles of impeachment to the upper chamber, a necessary step before the trial can begin, because she has demanded assurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., that the proceedings be fair.

McConnell, who has been dismissive of the request, has begun negotiations with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York over the contours of the trial, including whether witnesses would be called. 

The president had pushed to call witnesses to make it a showy trial – including Biden’s son and the whistleblower who first reported the pressure to Ukraine – believing he can convince the American public of his innocence. But Graham and others have implored him to let the Senate handle the matter as expeditiously as possible.

Trump has fumed that impeachment will be a permanent stain on his legacy but he has listened to advisers who believe it could be a political opportunity, pointing to polling that shows it playing poorly with independents in a trio of vital Rust Belt battleground states. The president has also mused about holding a series of rallies after the likely Senate acquittal.

Soleimani's body was returned to Iran on Sunday. People are seen carrying his casket upon arrival at Ahvaz International Airport in Tehran. The casket was greeted by chants of 'Death to America' as Iran issued new threats of retaliation

Soleimani’s body was returned to Iran on Sunday. People are seen carrying his casket upon arrival at Ahvaz International Airport in Tehran. The casket was greeted by chants of ‘Death to America’ as Iran issued new threats of retaliation

Following massive funeral marches in Iraq, his body was flown to Ahvaz, Iran. Military personnel carry Soleimani's casket in Iran. A tide of mourners packed the streets of the Iranian city of Ahvaz Sunday to pay respects to the top general

Following massive funeral marches in Iraq, his body was flown to Ahvaz, Iran. Military personnel carry Soleimani’s casket in Iran. A tide of mourners packed the streets of the Iranian city of Ahvaz Sunday to pay respects to the top general

An organizer for a funeral procession for Soleimani called on all Iranians to donate $1 each 'in order to gather an $80million bounty on President Trump's head'. The organizer made the remarks during the procession in Mashad

An organizer for a funeral procession for Soleimani called on all Iranians to donate $1 each ‘in order to gather an $80million bounty on President Trump’s head’. The organizer made the remarks during the procession in Mashad

But even as Trump held meetings at Mar-a-Lago about the trial and his upcoming re-election campaign, which will move into a new phase when the Iowa caucus is held in less than a month, the Iran matter moved to the forefront.

Tensions between the nations erupted after an attack killed an American contractor at a joint U.S.-Iraqi base. And after days of deliberations with his inner circle of national security advisers, Trump opted for the most dramatic response, the drone strike that killed Soleimani.

Despite Tehran’s call for vengeance, Trump did not back away from his trademark bellicose bluster.

‘The United States just spent Two Trillion Dollars on Military Equipment,’ Trump tweeted early Sunday. ‘We are the biggest and by far the BEST in the World! If Iran attacks an American Base, or any American, we will be sending some of that brand new beautiful equipment their way…and without hesitation!’

But linking the two crises shadowing the White House, Democrats said the heightening tensions with Iran would not dissuade them from Trump´s impeachment.

‘I think our system is strong enough that we can do both,’ Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., told Fox News Sunday. 

‘I very much worry about what the president is doing right now to escalate tensions and the likelihood of war in Iran, but our country will have to deal with both these issues at the same time. 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk