Republicans have been “furious” with their party leader for “fomenting” what they see as “an attack on American democracy”, Axios reported, citing discussions held by GOP aides, lobbyists and political consultants.
According to the media, the GOP members are outraged at the President for undermining the party’s integrity, as they allegedly blame him for the storming of the Capitol Building, which occurred several hours after POTUS told the crowd in Washington that he would “never” concede November's vote to Joe Biden.
Some Republicans have also reportedly expressed fury at their own Senators, particularly Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, for challenging the electoral vote count in a number of key states and effectively giving “oxygen” to the beliefs of violent Trump supporters and the idea that “Congress could be used to overturn the will of voters".
US President Trump has been calling on Capitol Hill demonstrators to remain peaceful, until his Twitter, Instagram and other social media platforms were banned by the companies over “repeated and severe violations".
At least four people were reported dead at the scene after clashes with law enforcement agents as the Make America Great Again crowd entered the US' key legislative body.
Trump ‘Not Listening’ to Anyone
According to the media, Trump’s “long-time confidants” have been struggling to make the US President listen to them. The commander-in-chief was “simply not engaging” with many of his faithful allies who were not willing to mislead POTUS about the real state of events, Axios suggested.
“He doesn't want to hear that he lost the election to Biden, that Pence can't overturn the results, that he should help rather than hurt the Republican Party, or that he should tell his protesters to stand down,” the media organisation - known for its links to Capitol Hill insiders - claimed.
Pence, Trump’s long-devoted ally, has reportedly emerged as one of the President’s key targets for failing to support his claims about the “rigged” election and “stolen” votes.
The US President previously urged Pence to show “courage” and send Electoral College votes back to the state for correction. As it became clear that the vice-president was not willing to break the law by hampering a vote-certification procedure, Trump unleashed his fury.
It was previously suggested by sources cited by Axios that Pence’s eventual decision to validate the election results would signal an “ultimate betrayal” for Trump.
Impeachment or 25th Amendment?
Some White House aides and political consultants have now reportedly been at talks about the invocation of 25th Amendment that would enable Vice-President Mike Pence to take over Donald Trump’s post if he is declared unable to perform his duties – either by himself or by a majority of the Cabinet.
The 25th Amendment call has been penned in a letter by House Judiciary Committee Democrats. Others, including Democrat Representative for Minessota, Ilhan Omar, have been publicly urging a more time-consuming option as impeachment.
With just 13 days left of Trump in the office, it is unlikely that there would be enough time or support to proceed with any of these options.
Meanwhile, Trump has indicated that there will be an “orderly transition” of power to Biden on 20 January, even though he “totally” disagrees with the results of the 3 November vote.
