President Donald Trump has withdrawn his nomination of Chad Wolf to take over permanently as secretary of homeland security after the acting secretary called on Trump to condemn the violence in the Capitol on Wednesday.
"What transpired yesterday was tragic and sickening," Wolf said in a statement on Thursday. "While I have consistently condemned political violence on both sides of the aisle, specifically violence directed at law enforcement, we now see some supporters of the President using violence as a means to achieve political ends. This is unacceptable. These violent actions are unconscionable, and I implore the President and all elected officials to strongly condemn the violence that took place yesterday."
He added, "Any appearance of inciting violence by an elected official goes against who we are as Americans. Every American is guaranteed the right to peacefully protest, but once those protests become violent, we should enforce our laws and bring those responsible to justice — regardless of political motivations."
The White House announced that his nomination was withdrawn just three hours later but denied that it was due to his statement.
“The withdrawal occurred yesterday and was not related at all to Wednesday’s events or the acting secretary’s comments this morning,” White House spokesman Judd Deere told CNBC. “Acting Secretary Wolf remains the acting secretary and continues to perform the duties of his office.”
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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