Trump regrets committing to a peaceful transfer of power and will not resign: report
09 January 2021
Trump's recent behavior 'would meet criteria for an involuntary mental health hold': mental health expert
One day after President Donald Trump released a video committing to a peaceful transfer of power, he was banned from Twitter—his strongest form of communication with his base. As expected, the new directive did not go over well with Trump and now, according to The New York Times, he regrets committing to a peaceful transition.
Amid calls for Trump's resignation or impeachment, the isolated lame-duck president is reportedly seething behind closed doors at the White House and has made it clear that he will not resign.
The publication reports:
At the White House, Mr. Trump struck a defiant tone, insisting that he would remain a potent force in American politics even as aides and allies abandoned him and his post-presidential prospects turned increasingly bleak. Behind closed doors, he made clear that he would not resign and expressed regret about releasing a video on Thursday committing to a peaceful transition of power and condemning the violence at the Capitol that he had egged on a day before.
The latest report comes shortly after Trump's commitment to a peaceful transfer of power. In a perplexing video message, the president offered a tone completely different from his typical attacking rhetoric. While he did not make any apologies for his involvement in the siege on the U.S. Capitol, he called for calm as he finally admitted that a new administration would be taking over on Jan. 20.
"Like all Americans, I am outraged by the violence, lawlessness, and mayhem," Trump said in the video. He also claimed: "the demonstrators who infiltrated the capitol have defiled the seat of American democracy."
He added, "To those who engaged in the acts of violence and destruction, you do not represent our country. And to those who broke the law, you will pay."
As Inauguration Day nears, lawmakers are on edge as they are concerned about more potential damage an unpredictable Trump could cause in his final days at the White House.