Trump Issues Statement Pledging ‘Orderly Transition’ to Biden Presidency
Written by SOURCE on January 7, 2021
In a statement released early Thursday, shared to Twitter by aide Dan Scavino, Donald Trump said there will be an “orderly transition” to Joe Biden’s presidency.
Trump has refused to concede since the results of the election were verified, and has been fighting to overturn the results in his favor ever since. It all reached a boiling point on Wednesday as Trump supporters broke into the U.S. Capitol, delaying the process of Congress certifying President-elect Biden’s electoral college victory. His new statement isn’t exactly him conceding, but he does suggest he won’t be putting up a fight on Jan. 20.
“Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” reads Trump’s statement. “I have always said we would continue our fight to ensure that only legal votes were counted. While this represents the end of the greatest first term in presidential history, it’s only the beginning of our fight to Make America Great Again!”
Trump did not share the statement himself because his social media accounts are currently locked after he continued to spew unfounded claims of election fraud amid Wednesday’s chaos, openly sympathizing with those breaking into the Capitol. “I know your pain,” he said in a video that has since been deleted. “There’s never been a time like this, where such a thing happened where they can take it away from all of us.” He said he “loves” his supporters in the clip, and told the “very special” people who took to the Capitol to “go home in peace.”
Prior to the violence, Trump had pressured Republicans to protest the results. In fact, he had urged Mike Pence in particular to reject certain state results, although Pence pretty much refused to do so and presided over the counting of the electoral votes once D.C. was secured. “To those who wreaked havoc in our Capitol today, you did not win,” said the VP. “Violence never wins. Freedom wins. And this is still the people’s House.”
In response to the events, the Guardian reports that Trump’s Deputy National Security Adviser Matt Pottinger, and former Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney resigned. Two further senior White House officials, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien and Deputy Chief of Staff Chris Liddell, are also reportedly considering resigning from their positions.
United States Rep. Ilhan Omar said she is drawing up Articles of Impeachment against Trump, while Rep. Cori Bush introduced legislation calling on those in Congress who have supported Trump’s unfounded claims of voter fraud to be investigated and potentially removed from their roles.
At least 52 arrests were made in Washington D.C. on Wednesday, while D.C. Metro Police Department chief Robert Contee said two pipe bombs were found. “26 of these 52 arrests were made on Capitol grounds,” said Contee. “Additionally, two pipe bombs have been recovered—one pipe bomb from the DNC, another pipe bomb from the RNC. A cooler from a vehicle with a long gun in it that also included Molotov cocktails, this also was on the grounds of the Capitol.”
