‘We need you more than ever’: Senator Graham urges Trump officials to ‘stay on’ during Biden transition

Senator and ally of the president describes pro-Trump rioters as ‘domestic terrorists’

Senator Lindsey Graham (R—SC) rebuked President Donald Trump’s conduct during the violent mobs that attacked the Capitol while calling for national security officials to “stay on” during the transition of power, saying in a press conference on Thursday: “We need you now more than ever.”

Mr Graham described the present’s actions during the riots as “the problem, not the solution” and called President-elect Joe Biden the “legitimate president of the United States” come Inauguration Day.

He then spoke directly to several members of the president’s national security team, urging them to stay in office despite Mr Trump’s behavior.

The president was suspended from social media platforms and condemned by world leaders for continuing to promote flagrant lies about a rigged election as his extremist supporters clashed with police and breached security measures on Capitol Hill.

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The riots erupted after Mr Trump’s fiery speech, as lawmakers convened to certify Mr Biden’s victory in the 2020 elections. 

Mr Graham said he did not “at this moment” believe invoking the 25th Amendment — in which a majority of the Cabinet would remove the president from power — was an appropriate move, despite his actions.

“The president was frustrated, he thought he was cheated — nobody is going to convince him otherwise,” he said while explaining his reasoning. But he noted that he “spoke to people this morning” surrounding the president and felt “we were moving in the right direction.”

He added: "It breaks my heart that my friend, a president of consequence, would allow yesterday to happen."

But he said the president’s demands for Mr Pence to overturn the election certification were wrong, calling them “over the top, unconstitutional, illegal and would have been wrong for the country."

Democrats have called for the president to be impeached a second time ahead of Inauguration Day if the Cabinet does not invoke the 25th Amendment. It remains unclear whether there have been any conversations among Cabinet members about invoking the 25th Amendment.

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, announced her resignation from the Cabinet on Thursday after the riots.