After the riots in the U.S. Capitol, President Trump encountered unprecedented doubts, and allies and his men “draw the line”.
On the afternoon of January 11th, local time, many social network users suddenly noticed that on the website of the U.S. State Department, on the bio page of Trump and Pence, the term of office of Trump and Pence was changed to around 7:40 p.m. on the same day.
Although some people suspect that the website of the State Council has been hacked, people familiar with the matter told the media that the change was actually the work of a “disgruntled” employee.
At present, these pages have been removed. Trump and Pence’s terms will officially end on January 20, but the House of Representatives has launched impeachment, and some Republicans have also asked Trump to resign.
Within the State Department, diplomats also called on Pompeo to condemn Trump.
According to Forbes News Network on January 11, the profile page of Trump and Pence on the State Department website was suddenly tampered with. The resume on the Trump page was changed to “His term of office has ended at 7:49:00 p.m.
on January 11th”, while Pence’s resume has been changed to “His term has ended at 7:44:22 p.m. on January 11.”.
Soon, social users noticed the page and triggered speculation and heated discussion. For example, a Twitter celebrity named Steve Hofstadt speculated that “it is either Trump’s resignation, the 25th amendment to the Constitution, or a social media intern who happens to be fired.”
Andrew Feinberg, a White House correspondent for the British newspaper The Independent, also said: “This…
It’s interesting. The State Department website says Trump’s term ends today.”
Someone has already “can’t wait” to ask the State Department: “The important question is 7:49 Eastern Time or Pacific Time? When can I open champagne (celebration)?
American writer Zack Bornstein linked this matter to the recent Twitter ban on Trump: “Obviously Trump did not tweet clarify the announcement of the State Department website.”
After the incident, Buzzfeed reporter Christopher Miller followed up in time to report that a source revealed to him that behind the tampered with Trump and Pence profile pages was a “disgruntled employee”. Pompeo has ordered an internal investigation, and employees who leave before handover this week and next week will be the subject of preliminary investigation.
As for the Trump and Pence profile interface, it is not open at present.
Although major media and social network users are puzzled about the “7:49” time, the House of Representatives has opened impeachment against Trump on the same day. Around 11 a.m. that day, House Democrats officially announced the impeachment resolution of Trump, accusing him of “sedition” in last week’s congressional riots.
House Democrats are also preparing to give Vice President Pence an ultimatum on the 11th, asking him to use the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to remove Trump from office within 24 hours.
But CBS quoted sources as saying that Trump has no plan to resign at present. At the same time, impeachment also has many difficulties. On the one hand, the next session of the U.S. Senate is January 19, the day before Trump leaves office.
Therefore, even if the House of Representatives initiates a second impeachment against Trump, the Senate will not accept it until the 19th at the earliest, and the inauguration ceremony of the new president will be held on January 20.
On the other hand, under the impeachment procedure, the impeachment clause can be passed by a simple majority of more than half of the House of Representatives, but a two-thirds majority is required in the Senate to convict the president.
That means that at least 17 Republican senators will need to support impeachment before Trump can be convicted. Although more and more Republicans have joined in condemning Trump, it is still unknown whether they will support it.
But after the Capitol riots, Trump’s situation undoubtedly worsen.
In addition to a number of close allies including Lindsay Graham, who have “drawing the line” with him, several government officials have resigned, including Transport Secretary Xiaolan Zhao, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, and, most recently, Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolff (Cha). d Wolf) etc.
In addition, several U.S. media, including CNN, reported on the 9th that several State Department diplomats have called on Pompeo to condemn Trump’s “play-play” in congressional events.
