President Trump says he will not attend President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration in two weeks.
He made the announcement in a tweet Friday, as lawmakers consider ways to remove the president from office after a violent mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol Wednesday.
The House could take up articles of impeachment against the president as early as next week, if Mr. Trump’s Cabinet and Vice President Mike Pence don’t act to remove him from office, according to Democratic leaders. House Democrats are holding a call Friday afternoon to discuss impeachment.
The act which betrays the tenets of democracy has been condemned as the defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton attended Trump inauguration January 20, 2017.
“This was not the inauguration Hillary Clinton thought she would be attending. Some Democrats, still bitter about her election night defeat, grumbled privately that she should have skipped Donald J. Trump’s swearing-in, as 60 House Democrats did on Friday. But a groundswell of supporters praised her fortitude,” The NY Times reported.
In a video released Thursday evening, after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and at least one Republican called on Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Mr. Trump, the president acknowledged a new administration would take over on January 20.
“My focus now turns to ensuring a smooth, orderly and seamless transition of power,” the president said in a video, which he tweeted. “This moment calls for healing and reconciliation.”
Mr. Trump has been allowed back on Twitter after he was temporarily banned. But Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he is barring Mr. Trump from using Facebook or Instagram through the rest of his presidency.
“The shocking events of the last 24 hours clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power to his elected successor, Joe Biden,” Zuckerberg said Thursday.
Meanwhile, two members of Mr. Trump’s Cabinet resigned with days to go before the end of his term, citing the siege on the Capitol, and several other White House officials are leaving their jobs.
