Several Trump administration officials have announced that they are stepping down after a crowd of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Wednesday and temporarily disrupted Congress as it certified the victory of the electoral college of Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Officials included people in prominent positions in the White House, as well as employees who have served in the Trump administration since the president began serving in 2017. Some of the resignations came hours after President Trump openly encouraged his supporters to go to the Capitol to protest what he falsely claimed was a stolen election. The moves are made with less than two weeks remaining in Mr. Trump’s tenure.
Here is a list of the resigned administration officials.
Education Secretary
Betsy DeVos
Ms. DeVos, the education secretary, filed a resignation letter to President Trump on Thursday, saying she would resign on Friday.
In the letter, Ms. DeVos called the mob that disrupted Congress when it confirmed the election results on Wednesday “incomprehensible to our country”.
“There is no doubt about the impact your rhetoric had on the situation and it is the turning point for me,” she wrote.
In her letter, Ms. DeVos announced plans to resign as the second cabinet member after violent protesters overwhelmed the police and stormed through the Capitol.
Ms. DeVos, a Republican billionaire donor, was confirmed as Secretary of Education in a landmark Senate vote by Vice President Mike Pence in February 2017.
Transport Secretary
Elaine Chao
Ms. Chao, the transportation secretary, announced her resignation on Twitter Thursday and became the first cabinet member to do so. The riots in the Capitol, she wrote, “troubled me deeply in ways that I simply cannot put aside.” Ms. Chao, whose resignation will take effect Monday, is married to Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader.
Special Envoy for Northern Ireland and Former Chief of Staff
Mick Mulvaney
Mr Mulvaney, the former acting chief of staff to Mr Trump, resigned as Special Envoy for Northern Ireland on Wednesday night, saying he could not stay after watching the president encourage the mob overtaking the Capitol complex.
The transition of the president
Updated
Jan. 8, 2021, 1:53 AM ET
In an interview with CNBC Thursday morning, Mr Mulvaney said he called Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday evening and said, “I can’t do it. I can not stay. “
Mr Mulvaney commended administrative officials who defended Vice President Mike Pence, who, despite pressure from Mr Trump, oversaw the counting of votes confirming Mr Biden’s victory. Mr. Mulvaney said he anticipated further resignations. “Those who choose to stay, and I have spoken to some of them, choose to stay because they fear the president might make someone worse,” he said.
On Wednesday afternoon, Mr Mulvaney, who was appointed Acting Chief of Staff in 2018, wrote on Twitter: “The President’s tweet is not enough. He can stop that now and must do just that. Tell these people to go home. “
Deputy National Security Advisor
Matthew Pottinger
Mr. Pottinger has been Mr. Trump’s Deputy National Security Advisor since 2019. He was formerly the Asia director of government on the National Security Council and was best known for his field experience in China, where he advised Mr. Trump during his tenure meeting with President Xi Jinping in 2017. Mr. Pottinger has resigned, a person with is familiar with the events on Thursday.
deputy assistant secretary in the commercial department
John Costello
Mr. Costello, one of the country’s top cybersecurity officials, resigned on Wednesday, telling staff that the violence on Capitol Hill was his “breaking point” and what he hoped would be a “wake up call”.
Council of Economic Advisers of the White House
Tyler Goodspeed
Mr Goodspeed, the acting chairman of the White House Economic Advisory Council, resigned Thursday, citing Mr Trump’s instigation of the mob that stormed the Capitol. “The events of yesterday made my position unsustainable,” he said in an interview after informing White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows of his decision.
First Lady Chief of Staff
Stephanie Grisham
Ms. Grisham, the former White House press secretary who served Melania Trump, the first lady, as chief of staff, resigned Wednesday following the violence in the Capitol. She had worked for the Trumps since the 2016 campaign and was one of their longest-serving aides.
deputy press officer
Sarah Matthews
White House deputy press secretary Ms. Matthews filed her resignation Wednesday, saying in a statement that she was “deeply concerned by what I saw today.”
Coverage was contributed by Maggie Haberman, Annie Karni, Christine Hauser and Michael Levenson.
Comments are closed.