POLITICO Playbook: To dine, or not to dine

THIS WAS THE SCENE LATE Friday afternoon in the Capitol, courtesy of the great LEIGH ANN CALDWELL of NBC News. Check out the pic

TABLES SCATTERED THROUGHOUT Statuary Hall, just off the House floor, for a dinner for newly elected Democrats. Yes, a dinner inside in the middle of the pandemic. Dem leadership said they had a new air filtration system up and running in the Capitol — and we heard the hum much of the latter part of this week. PLUS: They said the attending physician said it was OK — the same attending physician that has said it’s OK for Congress to gather without being tested.

DREW HAMMILL, PELOSI’S deputy chief of staff and spokesman, first tweeted: “Our office strictly follows the guidance of the Office of Attending Physician, including for this dinner. To be a further model for the nation, this event has been modified to allow Members-elect to pick up their meals to go in a socially-distanced manner.” HE THEN tweeted: “Members-elect are now picking up their boxed meals and departing the Capitol. There is no group dinner. Members-elect are in DC already for orientation.”

HOUSE MINORITY LEADER KEVIN MCCARTHY has a dinner scheduled for the large class of newly elected Republicans Sunday night. They have not yet decided whether to cancel it.

LAST NIGHT, MCCARTHY’s staff took the newly elected Republicans to the White House. Masks were mandatory — even MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE wore it for most of the time. Utah GOP candidate BURGESS OWENS had his race called in his favor during the White House tour.

INTERESTING TO NOTE: President DONALD TRUMP did not come down to meet the group. He did send his well wishes.

IT HAS BEEN ONE WEEK since news organizations called the 2020 presidential election for JOE BIDEN. SINCE THEN, the president has largely been in hiding (while regularly tweeting) before making a brief appearance Friday afternoon in the Rose Garden to give an update on the coronavirus vaccine progress.

WAPO’S ASHLEY PARKER: “For a moment Friday, President Trump seemed to acknowledge — however fleetingly — the reality of his electoral defeat. Offering an update on coronavirus vaccine progress from the Rose Garden late Friday afternoon, the president first asserted that ‘this administration will not be going to a lockdown.’ But then he faltered. ‘Hopefully the — the,’ Trump said, seeming poised to blurt out what has long been unthinkable to him: the Biden administration.

“‘Whatever happens in the future,’ he continued, muscling ahead. ‘Who knows, which administration it will be — I guess time will tell — but I can tell you this administration will not go to a lockdown.’ … Friday’s news conference marked Trump’s first public comments after a full week of near-hibernation — and the first faint public hint that he understands his time in the White House is waning.”

OF COURSE, TRUMP has still not conceded the race. And, he continues to tweet baseless allegations of voter fraud. TRUMP’S attorneys continue to plug away in a series of legal cases as they try to fruitlessly challenge the results in multiple states.

THE PRESIDENT has nothing on his public schedule this weekend.

PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN and JILL BIDEN were bicycling this morning in Cape Henlopen State Park, according to pooler Brittany Shepherd of Yahoo News.

Good Saturday morning.

PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION: “D.C. braces for rallies by Trump supporters who falsely claim he won election,” by WaPo’s John Woodrow Cox, Marissa J. Lang and Emily Davies