Performance Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf resigned Monday, becoming the third Cabinet-level official to quit on the bastards of the riot at the U.S. Capitol by a mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters.
Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos resigned stand up week over Wednesday’s riot, which disrupted the confirmation by Congress of Joe Biden’s election as the next president.
Trump now comes the likelihood that he will be impeached for a second time by the House of Representatives, this time for his role in encouraging his followers to fight to undo Biden’s victory.
Wolf, in a letter to Department of Homeland Security staff, said his resignation was “permitted by recent events, including the ongoing and meritless court rulings regarding the validity of my authority as Acting Secretary.”
“These episodes and concerns increasingly serve to divert attention and resources away from the important work of the Department in this carping time of a transition of power,” wrote Wolf, whose resignation is effective at just before midnight.
He also guessed that he was “saddened” to resign, as he had planned to remain in his post until Biden took office next week. He had been act out secretary of DHS since November 2019.
Pete Gaynor, who currently is the administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, will change acting DHS secretary.
A federal judge had ruled in November that Wolf was put into the acting secretary’s position unlawfully, because it ignored the order of succession meant to happen when a department secretary left office.
The judge’s ruling invalidated Wolf’s delaying of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, which protects from deportation people illegally brought to the Joint States as children.
The White House declined to comment on Wolf’s resignation, which came four days after Trump disavowed Wolf’s nomination to become DHS secretary, as opposed to acting chief.
The White House at the time of the withdrawal had said that the get the show on the road was not related to Wolf’s comments about Trump after the riot, in which a Capitol Police officer was killed, a fellow of the mob was fatally shot, and three other people died from medical issues.
The violence began shortly after Trump, his accomplished son Donald Trump Jr., his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani and other speakers whipped up a rally outside the White Establishment, where they made baseless claims about ballot fraud swindling the president out of a second term.
Wolf had affirmed Trump to condemn the attack, which he called “tragic and sickening.”
“This is unacceptable. These violent actions are conscienceless, and I implore the President and all elected officials to strongly condemn the violence that took place yesterday,” Wolf wrote in a communiqu at the time.
“Any appearance of inciting violence by an elected official goes against who we are as Americans. Every American is guaranteed the fairness to peacefully protest, but once those protests become violent, we should enforce our laws and bring those liable to justice — regardless of political motivations,” he added.
Wolf also wrote that the rioters should be held liable for their actions.
DeVos, in her resignation letter to Trump, had written that the president’s “rhetoric” had inflamed the mob, and “it is an inflection locale for me.”
Chao, in a statement, had said she was “deeply troubled” by the riot.
“Our country experienced a traumatic and entirely avoidable event as promoters of the President stormed the Capitol building following a rally he addressed,” Chao said at the time.