Trump ‘silenced’

President Donald Trump, already facing mounting calls to step down or risk impeachment, suffered further ignominy Friday when Twitter permanently suspended his account, saying the US leader is too dangerous to use the platform. 

After a "close review" of tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account, "we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence," Twitter said.

The move comes three days after Trump exhorted thousands of supporters to march on the Capitol as Congress met to certify his defeat to Democrat Joe Biden.

The resulting chaos, viewed with shock around the world, left a police officer and four others dead in its wake.

Trump's frequent use of Twitter was a key part of his campaign as he overhauled the Republican Party and beat Democrat Hillary Clinton to win the presidency in 2016. Since then he has used it to fire up his political base, attacking those who opposed him. 

It could also prove an insurmountable hurdle should the brash Republican choose to mount a political comeback in 2024, as he has hinted he could do on multiple occasions.

Trump later used the official @POTUS government to lash out at Twitter, addressing the 75 million "great patriots" who voted for him: "We will not be SILENCED!" Trump said he was considering building his own social media platform.

Twitter quickly deleted those posts and soon after suspended the Trump campaign account.

In a blog post, Twitter explained that the suspension was based on factors such as evidence that plans for future armed protests were proliferating on and off the platform, "including a proposed secondary attack on the US Capitol and state capitol buildings on January 17, 2021."

The suspension came a day after a subdued Trump denounced Wednesday's violence in a video in which he also vowed to ensure a smooth transition of power.

It also came after he said he will not attend Biden's inauguration on January 20. Biden welcomed the decision," branding Trump an "embarrassment."

However, Biden showed how wary he is of the growing rush to impeach Trump -- and deepen the nation's political divisions -- over his incitement of crowds.

"That is a judgment for the Congress to make," Biden said, adding that the "quickest" way to get Trump out was for him and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris to take over in 12 days.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday that if Trump did not resign, she had instructed the House Rules Committee to move ahead with a motion for impeachment and legislation on the US Constitution's 25th Amendment, which provides for removal of a president who is unable to discharge his official duties.

In a jaw-dropping moment, Pelosi revealed she had spoken Friday with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley about "preventing an unstable president from initiating military hostilities or accessing the launch codes and ordering a nuclear strike."

House Democrats, who already impeached Trump in a traumatic, partisan vote in 2019, said the unprecedented second impeachment of a president could be ready next week.

"We can act very quickly when we want to," Representative Katherine Clark told CNN.

A draft impeachment resolution being circulated would charge Trump with a single article: "incitement of insurrection."

Whether Republican leaders of the Senate would then agree to hold a lightning-fast impeachment trial before the transition is another matter.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell sent a memo to Republican senators detailing a possible timetable for an impeachment trial. He noted the Senate will hold its next work session on Jan. 19 and needs the consent of all 100 senators to convene sooner - meaning a trial would not begin until Trump was out of office, a source familiar with the document said.

In the House, top Republican Kevin McCarthy said: "Impeaching the president with just 12 days left in his term will only divide our country more."

A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted Thursday and Friday found 57%of Americans want Trump to be removed immediately from office following the violence.

However, Trump's role in encouraging Wednesday's chaos has opened a growing rift within the Republican Party.

Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska, a frequent Trump critic, told CBS News he would "definitely consider" impeachment because the president "disregarded his oath of office."

It is unclear whether lawmakers would be able to remove Trump from office, as any impeachment would prompt a trial in the Senate, where his fellow Republicans still hold power and two-thirds of the 100 members must vote to convict for his removal.

For the 25th Amendment to be invoked, Vice President Mike Pence and the majority of Trump's Cabinet would need to declare Trump is unable to perform the duties of the presidency. Pence is opposed to the idea of using the amendment, an adviser said.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Friday for the first time with Biden's nominee to be his successor, Antony Blinken, promising a smooth transition.

While Biden's team has already had contact with the State Department, the process had earlier been limited with Pompeo saying after the election, "The United States has one secretary of state at a time."