Homeland Security chief, Chad Wolf, resigns after Capitol riots; concerns over security in Washington rise
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His resignation has come a few days before the President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration week, which has raised serious concerns about the security as worries about Trump supporters attempting another riot
A few days after the infamous Capitol riots in the US, the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Chad Wolf, has resigned from his post a few days before the President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration.
Wolf is the third person to resign from the soon-to-be-impeached US President Donald Trump's administration, after the attack at one of the most secure buildings in the US — Capitol building.
Although he had been an ally of the President, the resignation from Wolf did not come as a surprise to many as he had openly criticised the attack on Capitol by Trump supporters and had labelled it as "tragic and sickening".
"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," Wolf said.
Wolf, who said he was stepping down for procedural reasons, named Pete Gaynor, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to replace him.
His resignation has come a few days before the President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration week, which has raised serious concerns about the security as worries about Trump supporters attempting another riot — as is being predicted by many experts. As of now, the Pentagon has authorised 15,000 National Guard troops to take over Washington to assure security during the inauguration week.
Wolf's resignation has also come a day before Trump is scheduled to travel to the US-Mexico frontier near Alamo, Texas to inspect the border wall he has had built. Wolf has usually accompanied Trump to such trips and has also appreciated his efforts. "President Trump took office with the promise to build the wall and secure our southern border -- a promise he has kept," Wolf has said in the past.
He will be serving his position till the end of the Trump administration, i.e. January 20, meaning he will continue overseeing numerous federal law enforcement bodies including the Secret Service.