Trump privately discussing his post-presidency plans as he publicly insists he won: ex-White House official

Writing in The Atlantic this Tuesday, Peter Nicholas says that as the days go on in January, President Donald Trump is running out of options to fulfill his "authoritarian dreams."

While Trump and his most loyal supporters are carrying on their effort to overturn the 2020 election, Nicholas says there's a different vibe circulating inside the White House -- a vibe emanating from people who know for the most part that Joe Biden will be inaugurated on January 20.

"I don't know of anybody in the building who thinks there will be anything but a Biden inauguration on January 20, and quite frankly, I think that includes Trump on most days," a former Trump aide told Nicholas on condition of anonymity.

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) agrees.

"He knows he lost," Kinzinger told Nicholas, speaking of Trump. "He may buy the conspiracy theories that he reads on Twitter, but at the end of the day, he knows he lost. He realizes that for the next 10 years of his life, he'll have to answer for this, and he wants to be able to say it was stolen. It's all about him and his pride right now."

Another person speaking to Nicholas who's familiar with Trump said that in private, Trump talks about his post-presidency plans despite his public persona that suggests he plans to be sticking around for another four years.

There's been speculation about a possible Trump run in 2024, but the CEO of the conservative news outlet Newsmax told Nicholas that's unlikely as well.

"I think he's going to like being a former president," Chris Ruddy said. "You have a lot of influence."

Read the full article over at The Atlantic.