Trump Demands Georgia Gov. Kemp to Resign

Yesterday President Donald Trump demanded on Twitter that Georgia Governor Brian Kemp resign. Kemp earned the President’s ire because of his continual refusal to overturn election results in the state. The tweet is Trump’s harshest rebuke yet of a fellow GOP member. 

RELATED: Georgia Will Recount All Presidential Votes by Hand

Trump’s missive stemmed from a Georgia election report that didn’t find any irregularities in more than 15,000 audited voter signatures in Cobb County. The findings contradict Trump’s allegations that massive voter fraud and widespread cheating happened in states, including Georgia. Previous tallies confirmed that Biden won the state by a slim margin of 12,000 votes. 

Kemp is an Obstructionist

Trump’s tweet last December 30 read: “Hearings from Atlanta on the Georgia Election overturn now being broadcast. Check it out. @OANN @newsmax and many more. @BrianKempGA should resign from office. He is an obstructionist who refuses to admit that we won Georgia, BIG! Also won the other Swing States.”

Asked to comment on Trump’s tweet, Kemp referred to his efforts containing the coronavirus outbreak in Georgia. He told reported he needs to “stay focused on the issues of the day in Georgia, not what someone’s tweeting.” Kemp added that he “did not forget what I told Georgians back on January 14, almost two years ago, that whether they voted for me or not, I would be their governor and I would be working hard for them every single day. I believe right now they would rather me be focused on making sure we have enough hospital beds in the state and we’re getting the vaccine distributed.”

Trump’s Backers Should Give Up 

Also, Kemp said that Trump’s backers should give up trying to overturn the Georgia elections’ outcome. Rather, they should focus on the crucial Senate runoffs. The governor noted that “There’s a constitutional and legal process that’s playing out. And I’m very comfortable with that process playing out. But that horse has left the barn in Georgia and it’s headed to D.C. right now.” 

D.C. refers to the GOP’s planned challenge to Biden’s Electoral College confirmation. Instead of pushing for Kemp to resign, he advised Republicans to focus on the senate runoff.  “The next vote is going to be there, not here. So people need to focus on the vote that is happening here,” he added.

Georgia Runoff

The timing couldn't come at a worse time for the GOP, as the Senate runoff in Georgia happens in a few days. Control of the Senate rests on which party wins the January 5 elections.  Also, it shows the widening rift within the Republican party. On one side are those who support Trump’s refusal to concede amid allegations of voter fraud. On the other side are senior Republicans who saw the writing on the wall and are anxious to move on to the incoming Democratic administration. 

Meanwhile, Republican Senate candidates Senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue are gearing for the fight of their lives to retain their seats. At the same time, they are trying very hard to portray the Republican party as a united front. Trump is set to visit Dalton on Monday, the day before the elections. During the same day, President-elect Joe Biden will campaign for the Democrat candidates Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossof in Atlanta.

Internal Conflict

With the tweet, Trump sends another signal that Kemp’s 2022 reelection won’t be uneventful. Even with his exit from the White House, the President remains a party stalwart that wields considerable clout. As such, he might endorse somebody who would like to take on the Governor in the primaries. This somebody might just be representative Doug Collins, who Trump endorsed during a Valdosta rally. In previous fits, Trump called Kemp a clown and predicted his loss in the next primary. 

Also, he admitted he now feels ashamed endorsing Kemp in 2016. Meanwhile, Kemp refuses to back down. He assured Georgia residents that he “can handle me.”. He called on his detractors to come out from their keyboards and “we can have a little conversation if they would like to.” Kemp remains on guard on what he says, though. “All of these things are a distraction. I’ve supported the president. I’ve said that many times,” he said. “I worked as hard as anybody in the state on his re-election up through November 3, I’ve supported the legal process that he and any other campaign can go through in this state, but at the end of the day I also have to follow the laws and the Constitution.”

Watch the 11Alive news report where Governor Brian Kemp responds to calls from President Trump to resign:

Do you agree with President Trump’s demand for Governor Kemp to resign? Or, do you find the Governor staying true to his office’s duties even at the risk of alienating party members? Also, do you think Trump and Kemp can patch things up once things cool down? Let us know what you think by sharing your thoughts in the comment section below.