Trump Fired DHS Official For Cybersecurity

President Trump fired DHS official Chris Krebs over a disagreement over election fraud. Krebs is the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). He got into Trump’s bad side by contradicting his boss’ claims of voter fraud. Together with other Administration officials, they issued a statement that there is no evidence of compromise of the US voting system. The statement runs counter to President Donald Trump's claims of election fraud conspiracies.

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Over Twitter, Trump announced the firing of Krebs. He tweeted: “The recent statement by Chris Krebs on the security of the 2020 Election was highly inaccurate, in that there were massive improprieties and fraud.” Then, he announced that: “Therefore, effective immediately, Chris Krebs has been terminated as Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.” 

‘Most Secure Election’

On Thursday, the Election Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council and the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Executive Committees issued a statement. They said: “The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, election officials are reviewing and double-checking the entire election process prior to finalizing the result.” 

The group consisted of Trump administration officials concerned with voter issues. They said that “There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised.” In the end, the group urged Americans to keep the faith with the system.

Defend Today, Secure Tomorrow

Krebs knew that attaching his name to the statement can endanger his job. While he knew he might get in trouble, his dismissal came sooner. Soon after, media outlets in support of Trump started attacking him. Afterward, he learned about his firing from the President's Twitter feed. Accordingly, he used Twitter to react to the firing as well. Krebs tweeted: “Honored to serve. We did it right. Defend Today, Secure Tomorrow (sic). #Protect2020.” 

CISA chief of staff Emily Early sent a letter to staff informing them of Krebs' last day with the agency. It stated “A change in leadership is not a change in mission and it is essential that we do not lose focus on the important work we collectively undertake on behalf of the American people. Fortunately, we have the best workforce in all of government and I know we can count on each of you to continue the excellent work you do every day as we all work together to Defend Today and Secure Tomorrow,” it added. 

Twitter Fact Checks and Rebutting Rumors

Krebs stayed subtle as he disputed the President's repeated claims of fraud. Specifically, he took extra care to not antagonize the President in a direct way. However, Krebs became more upfront in contradicting Trump’s claims after the elections. Thus, he started to increased his Twitter activity. He began posting fact checks of the claims and conspiracy theories pushed by Trump. 

Krebs led a CISA campaign to target foreign powers’ attempts at interference. While Trump continued to claim massive election fraud, the agency had to address the claims. The CISA spent the time to rebut the accusations of cheating. Many of these come directly from the White House.

Reactions to the Firing

An anonymous DHS official told NPR that Krebs' firing would rock the agency. “Chris has earned the trust of staff all across the agency,” the official said. “He's easily been the most competent and able of any political appointee I've worked with.” 

Democrat lawmakers questioned why Trump fired the DHS official. For example, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called it a “dangerous and shameful charade.” Meanwhile, Senator Ben Sasse thought Krebs “did a really good job” and therefore should not be terminated. Finally, Senate Intelligence Chair Mark Warner said Krebs was an “extraordinary public servant.”

Watch this as CNN reports that President Donald Trump fires DHS official Chris Krebs:

Do you agree with the firing of CISA director Chris Krebs? Or, do you think he brought this upon himself for contradicting the President in public? Let us know what you think about Krebs and election fraud. So, why not share your thoughts in the comment section below?