Calls grow for Donald Trump's removal from office as rioters face potential sedition charges

"This president must not hold office one day longer," said Senator Chuck Schumer

Trump supporters storm US Capitol. The rioting mob has been widely condemned. Picture: AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta

The top prosecutor for the District of Columbia has said “all options are on the table” for charging members of the pro-Trump mob that stormed the US Capitol — including sedition.

Michael Sherwin, acting US attorney for Washington DC, said prosecutors plan to file 15 federal cases on Thursday for crimes including unauthorised access and theft of property, and investigators are combing through reams of evidence to bring additional charges.

“All of those charges are on the table. We will bring the most maximum charges we can,” he said.

More than 90 people have been arrested by police in Washington and more arrests are likely.

US attorneys from across the country have vowed to find and bring to justice any residents who participated in the insurrection aimed at thwarting the peaceful transfer of power.

Experts say some could face the rarely used seditious conspiracy charge.

President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a rally Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Picture:AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

As federal prosecutors step up their pursuit of violent perpetrators, a West Virginia lawmaker who filmed himself and supporters of Donald Trump storming into the US Capitol has been widely condemned. 

State Delegate Derrick Evans was among several Republican lawmakers from across the country who travelled to Washington DC for demonstrations rooted in the baseless conspiracy theory that Democrat Joe Biden stole the presidential election.

Wearing a helmet, Mr Evans ultimately joined a screaming mob as it pushed its way into the Capitol building, and livestreamed himself joyfully strolling inside.

It is unclear if Mr Evans was the only elected official to participate in what Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and many others called a “failed insurrection”.

Pennsylvania state Senator Doug Mastriano said he helped organise a bus trip to the demonstrations but left the US Capitol area after the eruption of violence, which he called “unacceptable”. 

A Democratic colleague called for his resignation nonetheless.

Meanwhile, the chief of the US Capitol Police says the violent mob that stormed the building wielded metal pipes, chemical irritants and other weapons against law enforcement.

Steven Sund issued a statement saying the rioting protesters “actively attacked” police officers and “were determined to enter into the Capitol Building by causing great damage”.

A Capitol Police officer shot and killed one person, who Mr Sund identified as Ashli Babbitt.

Mr Sund did not identify the officer but said they would be placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.

Mr Sund defended his agency’s response from criticism that officers did not stop the incursion.

He says his agency “had a robust plan” for what he anticipated would be peaceful protests, but what occurred Wednesday was “criminal riotous behaviour”.

He said more than 50 Capitol and Washington police officers were injured and several Capitol Police officers were taken to hospital with serious injuries.

District of Columbia police later identified the three people who had medical emergencies and died during the storming of the Capitol.

Nancy Pelosi threatens to impeach Donald Trump after ‘armed insurrection against America’

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said President Donald Trump should immediately be removed from office or Congress may proceed to impeach him.

Ms Pelosi joined those calling on the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment to force Mr Trump from office.

It came a day after a violent mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol, forcing the building into lockdown. Mr Trump called them “very special” people and said he loved them.

Ms Pelosi said at the Capitol: “The president of the United States incited an armed insurrection against America.” 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made the announcement after Democrats and Republicans called for his removal from office. Picture: PA

She warned he could do further harm to the country: “Any day can be a horror show for America.” 

Democrats and some Republicans want Mr Trump removed before his term ends on January 20 with Democrat Joe Biden’s inauguration.

The 25th Amendment allows for the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to declare the president unfit for office. The vice president then becomes acting president.

Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger and top Democrat Chuck Schumer have also called for the 25th Amendment to be invoked.

In another blow to Mr Trump, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said she is resigning, becoming the highest-ranking member of the administration to quit in protest after the insurrection at the Capitol.

Ms Chao, who is married to Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, said the violent attack on the Capitol “has deeply troubled me in a way that I simply cannot set aside”.

'Insurrection': Donald Trump vows orderly transition but calls mount for him to be ousted

President Donald Trump for the first time acknowledged his defeat in the November 3 election and announced there would be an “orderly transition” on January 20 but there were calls from both sides of the political divide for him to be removed from office under the provisions of the 25th Amendment.

Even if he serves out his term, the president will leave office on Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day, after Congress concluded the electoral vote count early on Thursday certifying the president-elect’s victory.

But Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger and top Democrat Chuck Schumer called for the 25th Amendment to be invoked which, if implemented, would see outgoing Vice-President Mike Pence and Cabinet colleagues evict Mr Trump from the Oval Office.

Calls are growing to remove US President Donald Trump from office. Picture: AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Mr Trump’s acknowledgment came after a day of chaos and destruction on Capitol Hill as a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol and unleashed unprecedented scenes of mayhem in hopes of halting the peaceful transition of power.

Members of Congress were forced into hiding, offices were ransacked, and the formal congressional count of Electoral College votes was halted for more than six hours.

“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 20,” Mr Trump said in a statement posted to Twitter by his social media director.

Mr Trump’s account had been locked by the company for posting messages that appeared to justify the assault on the seat of the nation’s democracy.

Mr Trump added: “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!” 

Baseless allegations

The president has spent the past two months refusing to concede and making baseless allegations of widespread voter fraud, even though his own Justice Department, federal courts, including the Supreme Court, and state governments have said repeatedly the vote was carried out freely and fairly.

Mr Trump’s refusal to accept reality and his incendiary rhetoric reached a breaking point on Wednesday when loyalists violently occupied the Capitol in one of the most jarring scenes ever to unfold in the nation’s capital. Authorities said four people died during the violence, including one woman who was shot by an officer outside the House chamber.

Mr Trump had encouraged his supporters to march on the Capitol to protest politicians’ actions, and he later appeared to excuse the violent occupation by the mob.

“These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously and viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long,” Mr Trump wrote in a message that was later deleted by Twitter.

He added: “Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!” Mr Trump spent much of Wednesday afternoon watching the insurrection on television from his private dining room off the Oval Office.

Instead, a White House official said, most of Mr Trump’s attention was consumed by his ire at Mr Pence, who defied Trump’s demands by acknowledging he did not have the power to uniliterally reject the electoral votes that determine the next president.

Mr Trump only reluctantly issued the tweets and taped a video encouraging an end to the violence.

The posts came at the insistence of staff and amid mounting criticism from Republican politicians begging him to condemn the violence and tell his supporters to stand down, according to the official.

Unfit and unwell

On Thursday Mr Kinzinger, describing the president as unfit and unwell, called for the 25th Amendment to be used.

Mr Kinzinger said: “It’s with a heavy heart I am calling for the sake of our Democracy that the 25th Amendment be invoked.” 

His call was echoed by Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer who said, if the Cabinet failed to act, Congress then should.

Mr Schumer tweeted: “The quickest and most effective way—it can be done today—to remove this president from office would be for the Vice President to immediately invoke the 25th amendment.

“If the Vice President and the Cabinet refuse to stand up, Congress must reconvene to impeach President Trump.” 

Even as authorities struggled to take control of Capitol Hill after protesters overwhelmed police, Mr Trump continued to level baseless allegations of mass voter fraud and praised his loyalists as “very special”.

“I know your pain. I know your hurt.

“But you have to go home now,” he said in a video posted more than 90 minutes after politicians were evacuated from the House and Senate chambers.

“We can’t play into the hands of these people. We have to have peace.

“So go home. We love you. You’re very special.” The violence, coupled with the president’s tepid response, alarmed many in the White House and appeared to push Republicans allies to the breaking point after years of allegiance to Mr Trump.

Mass resignation

A number of White House aides were discussing a potential mass resignation just two weeks before Mr Trump’s term ends.

Stephanie Grisham, first lady Melania Trump’s chief of staff and a former White House press secretary, submitted her resignation.

Deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, White House social secretary Rickie Niceta and deputy press secretary Sarah Matthews also resigned, according to officials.

Mick Mulvaney, Trump’s former chief of staff-turned-special envoy to Northern Ireland told CNBC Thursday that he had called Secretary of State Mike Pompeo “to let him know I was resigning. … I can’t do it. I can’t stay.” Other aides indicated they planned to stay to help smooth the transition to the Biden administration.

Some harboured concerns about what Mr Trump might do in his final two weeks in office if they were not there to serve when so few remain.

Facebook block's US President from own account for 'at least two weeks'

US President Donald Trump has been blocked from using Facebook and Instagram “indefinitely and at least for the next two weeks”, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has said.

“We believe the risks of allowing the President to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great,” Mr Zuckerberg wrote in a statement.

He wrote: “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.

“His decision to use his platform to condone rather than condemn the actions of his supporters at the Capitol building has rightly disturbed people in the US and around the world.

“We removed these statements yesterday because we judged that their effect — and likely their intent — would be to provoke further violence.”

Earlier: Trump pledges orderly transition after supporters storm Capitol Hill

Donald Trump has been forced to commit to an orderly transition of power to Joe Biden through a statement from an adviser after the US president was locked out of his social media accounts.

The president’s deputy chief of staff for communications tweeted a message from Mr Trump which said he “totally disagrees” with the election result but conceded that there would be a smooth transfer to a Biden administration.

Quoting Mr Trump, White House adviser Dan Scavino tweeted: “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.

...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!”

— Dan Scavino Jr.🇺🇸🦅 (@DanScavino) January 7, 2021

“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!”

Mr Trump has previously used his own Twitter account to announce a number of major political decisions, including policy changes and the hiring and firing of senior government officials.

The statement came after the US Congress formally validated Joe Biden’s presidential election victory.

Social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, temporarily locked Mr Trump’s accounts after he addressed supporters who stormed the US Capitol.

The president earlier posted a video to protesters, urging them to go home, while also repeating claims of election fraud and telling them “We love you”.

Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. Picture: AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Twitter responded by locking his account for the first time and demanded he remove tweets excusing violence, while also threatening him with “permanent suspension” from the platform.

Facebook also announced that it had assessed two “policy violations” on Mr Trump’s page and had blocked him from posting for 24 hours.

The president’s supporters attacked the US Capitol building on Wednesday and clashed with police.

Twitter Safety posted: “As a result of the unprecedented and ongoing violent situation in Washington DC, we have required the removal of three @realDonaldTrump tweets that were posted earlier today for repeated and severe violations of our civic integrity policy.

(Twitter/@realDonaldTrump)

“This means that the account of @realDonaldTrump will be locked for 12 hours following the removal of these tweets. If the tweets are not removed, the account will remain locked.

“Future violations of the Twitter Rules, including our civic integrity or violent threats policies, will result in permanent suspension of the @realDonaldTrump account.”

Twitter had earlier added a warning to the outgoing president’s video, which read: “This claim of election fraud is disputed, and this tweet can’t be replied to, retweeted, or liked due to a risk of violence.”

This is an emergency situation and we are taking appropriate emergency measures, including removing President Trump's video. We removed it because on balance we believe it contributes to rather than diminishes the risk of ongoing violence.

— Guy Rosen (@guyro) January 6, 2021

Mr Trump’s since-deleted video was viewed more than 10 million times in less than an hour on Twitter.

Facebook said in a statement posted on Twitter: “We’ve assessed two policy violations against President Trump’s page which will result in a 24-hour feature block, meaning he will lose the ability to post on the platform during that time.”

Smoke fills the walkway outside the Senate Chamber as supporters of President Donald Trump are confronted by U.S. Capitol Police officers inside the Capitol, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington. Picture: AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta

Facebook’s vice president of integrity Guy Rosen, meanwhile, tweeted that Mr Trump’s video had been removed entirely from the platform.

“We removed it because on balance we believe it contributes to rather than diminishes the risk of ongoing violence,” he said.

YouTube said it had also removed the video from Mr Trump’s account for violating its policies on election integrity, and confirmed it would begin issuing “strikes” against the president’s channel if any further breaches occurred.

The Google-owned video platform operates a three-strike system where channels are suspended for an increasing duration at each strike until they are eventually permanently removed.

YouTube spokesperson Farshad Shadloo said: “We removed a video posted Wednesday afternoon to Donald Trump’s channel that violated our policies regarding content that alleges widespread fraud or errors changed the outcome of the 2020 US election.

“We do allow copies of this video if uploaded with additional context and sufficient educational, documentary, scientific, or artistic (EDSA) value.”

In further action against him, a Snapchat spokesperson confirmed the platform had “locked President Trump’s Snapchat account”, having stopped promoting the account to users last year.