Trump sparks confusion after announcing press conference at small landscaping firm

President initially said the briefing would be held at major hotel — before correcting himself

Donald Trump has sparked confusion after announcing three times on Twitter that there will be a “big press conference” held in Philadelphia — he just couldn’t decide on where. 

“Lawyers Press Conference at Four Seasons, Philadelphia. 11:00 A.M.” the president tweeted on Saturday morning, apparently in reference to the four-star hotel in the centre of the city.

Mr Trump quickly corrected his mistake, following up the first tweet with:  “Four Season’s Landscaping!", then another which read: “Big press conference today in Philadelphia at Four Seasons Total Landscaping — 11:30am!”

Minutes later, he sent a fourth tweet, saying: “Lawyer’s Press Conference at Four Season’s Landscaping, Philadelphia. Enjoy!”

An online search shows that Four Seasons Total Landscaping is a local business on the outskirts of Philadelphia that was established in 1992. 

It is not clear why the Trump campaign is holding a press conference there, but it comes amid efforts by Mr Trump and his advocates to cast doubt on an election that he has now lost to Joe Biden.

Read more: Trump watch live - latest updates as family maintains silence following election result

Shortly before the press briefing began, the Associated Press called Pennsylvania for Mr Biden, taking the Democratic nominee above the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the presidency.

It took until Saturday to announce the results there due to delays in vote counting following a surge in mail-in ballots amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

Mr Trump’s press conference announcement triggered confusion among journalists.

“Just arrived at the location for the big news conference announced by President Trump,” tweeted Sky News’ Mark Stone.

“Slightly surreal location ... not the Four Seasons Hotel but a landscaping business in an industrial estate on edge of Philadelphia.”

Jeremy Roebuck, a reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, tweeted: “There's a big difference between the first-announced venue the Four Seasons hotel in Center City and what he quickly changed it to ... this similarly named building in the Northeast.”

Shortly after making the press conference announcement, Mr Trump falsely tweeted: “I WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT!”

In fact, Mr Trump has lost the election — though he will contest the result in court — and is trailing in the popular vote by more than 4 million people.