Trump emerges from White House in first public appearance since losing to Biden to lay wreath on Veterans Day

Donald Trump emerged from the White House on Wednesday in his first public appearance since networks called the US presidential election for his Democratic opponent, Joe Biden.

The president appeared alongside Vice President Mike Pence at a memorial service at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia for Veterans Day, a federal holiday in the US.

He did not deliver any remarks.

Instead, Mr Trump saluted a wreath in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as a colour guard and band played sombre patriotic tunes.

Earlier in the morning, the president tweeted a link to the White House’s proclamation on Veterans Day 2020.

“America's veterans have fought to defend our country, its values, and its interests since the first days of our founding,” the proclamation read.

“I encourage all Americans to recognise the fortitude and sacrifice of our veterans through public ceremonies and private thoughts and prayers,” it read.

Mr Trump golfed over the weekend, as millions of Americans took to the streets in US cities — including Washington, DC — to celebrate Mr Biden’s projected victory.

And his campaign lawyers and surrogates continued fighting a legal and public relations battle against the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election, unleashing a volley of baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud and claiming, falsely, that Mr Trump had actually won the election.

But aside from tweeting, the president has not made any public comments.

Shortly before leaving for Arlington on Wednesday, fired off another tweet concerning unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud in Philadelphia, the city whose overwhelming support for Mr Biden helped Pennsylvania deliver the president-elect his Electoral College victory on Saturday.

“A guy named Al Schmidt, a Philadelphia Commissioner and so-called Republican (RINO), is being used big time by the Fake News Media to explain how honest things were with respect to the Election in Philadelphia,” Mr Trump tweeted at around 9am on Wednesday morning.

“He refuses to look at a mountain of corruption & dishonesty. We win!” the president wrote.

Mr Trump also tweeted about an ABC/Washington Post poll that was released prior to election day, which showed him 17 points behind Joe Biden in Wisconsin.

Despite the state being called for Mr Biden last week, Mr Trump claimed, falsely: “We are now preparing to win the state” and said the poll fell under the category of “voter suppression,” a spin that dubiously stretches the limits of the term.