Congress affirms Biden’s victory after U.S. Capitol violence

• Trump blocked by Twitter, Facebook
• Democrats contemplate invoking 25th Amendment
• Ex-CoS Mick Mulvaney resigns as special envoy

The United States Congress has certified Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election, hours after President Trump’s supporters stormed the building in an attack that saw four people dead.

Lawmakers resumed the session after police managed dislodge the mob, which had been encouraged by the American leader in a bid to overturn his defeat.

During a speech, Trump had asked his supporters to march towards the Capitol in protest. They breached the building while Congress was certifying Biden’s win.

The certification clears the way for Biden to be sworn on 20 January 20.

Finally, Trump pledged an “orderly transition” of power. Democrat Biden’s victory was confirmed at about 03:30 local time yesterday by a joint session presided over by Vice President Mike Pence, who said the violence had been a “dark day in the history of the United States Capitol.”

Wednesday’s chaotic scenes followed months of escalating rhetoric from Trump and some Republican allies that sought to undermine result of the November 3,2020 election.

The American president has, however, been suspended from Twitter and Facebook after tweeting to followers who initiated the attacks.
In a social media message to protesters he had said: “I love you” before telling them to go home. He also repeated false claims about election fraud.

Twitter said it required the removal of three tweets for “severe violations of our Civic Integrity policy”.The company said the president’s account would remain locked for good if the tweets were not removed.

MEANWHILE, calls are growing in the country for Trump to be removed from office after he failed to condemn action of his supporters.

Broadcast network ABC News, citing multiple sources with direct knowledge of the move, reported that some members of Trump’s cabinet were discussing an unprecedented move to invoke Section 4 of the 25th Amendment of the constitution, as several Democratic members of Congress urged Vice President Mike Pence to lead the charge in declaring Trump as “unfit” to remain as president.

“President Trump revealed that he is not mentally sound and is still unable to process and accept the results of the 2020 election,” they wrote in a letter that was signed by all Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee.

In another development, former White House Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney, has resigned from his position as U.S. special envoy to Northern Ireland, becoming the fourth White House staff to leave their position in the wake of protests and rioting on Capitol Hill.

He told CNBC in an interview that he called Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, Wednesday night, to inform him he was resigning.