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(CNN) – President Donald Trump on Tuesday fired the Department of Homeland Security official who had rejected Trump’s claims of widespread voter fraud.
Trump announced on Twitter that he was firing Chris Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and linked it directly to Krebs’ statement that said that “there is no evidence that any voting system has eliminated or lost votes, has exchanged votes or has in any way compromised “.
“Chris Krebs’ recent statement on the security of the 2020 elections was very inaccurate as there were massive fraud and misconduct,” Trump said in a tweet that also echoed other unfounded conspiracy theories about the election that Twitter marked as ” disputed.”
“Therefore, with immediate effect, Chris Krebs has been fired as Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.”
CNN reported that Krebs, who ran the cyber arm of the Department of Homeland Security, expected to be fired. A source close to Krebs told CNN that he knew he could get in trouble for telling the truth, but realized his firing could come soon when media organizations friendly to the president began attacking him.
He learned of Trump’s tweet that he had been fired, the source said, and replied himself on Twitter shortly after: saying, “It is an honor to serve. We did well. Defend today, secure the future. # Protect2020.”
CISA deputy director Matt Travis, the agency’s second official, resigned in the wake of Krebs’ firing, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. Travis resigned after the White House made it clear that he would not take over CISA.
In a letter seen by CNN, CISA chief of staff Emily Early informed staff that Tuesday was Krebs’ last day at the agency and said the president had appointed CEO Brandon Wales as interim director.
“A change in leadership is not a change in mission and it is essential that we do not lose sight of the important work that we collectively undertake on behalf of the American people,” the letter said. “Fortunately, we have the best workforce in the entire government and I know we can count on each of you to continue the excellent work that you do every day as we all work together to defend today and secure tomorrow.”
One source described Wales as a “former career chief of staff and advisor, highly respected by all.”
Krebs’ firing underscores the lengths Trump is willing to go to punishing those who do not embrace his conspiratorial view of the election. Since CNN and other outlets called the race for President-elect Joe Biden, Trump has refused to accept the results, instead promoting unfounded conspiracies that he is being robbed of his second term.
This includes falsely claiming during an election night speech that he had already won re-election, that he had won states that were actually still on the air at the time, and that his opponents were perpetuating fraud.
In the run-up to the elections, Krebs had often quietly disputed the president’s repeated false claims about mail ballots, but did his best not to criticize his boss for spreading lies.
But in the days that followed, Krebs took a more forceful approach by posting regularly to Twitter, often with strident red siren emojis, fact checks of claims, and conspiracy theories pushed by Trump, his allies and supporters across the country.
While his rejection of the president’s falsehoods had frustrated some at DHS, Krebs was responsible for a widely praised revamp of the department’s cybersecurity efforts and greater coordination with state and local governments, as the first director of CISA.
He served as one of the top federal national security officials overseeing an election that by all accounts went smoothly.
Foreign opponents were unable to affect any of the votes, CISA said, and it was “the safest election in US history,” according to them and the broadest group of public and private election officials. That was the statement by which the president decided to fire Krebs on Tuesday night.
News of his dismissal sparked rapid outrage among elected officials and election security experts.
Senator Angus King, independent of Maine and co-chair of the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, said in a statement: “By firing Mr. Krebs for simply doing his job, President Trump is inflicting severe harm on all Americans, who depend on the CISA. defenses, even if they don’t know it. “
“If there is any silver lining to this unfair decision, it is this: I hope President-elect Biden will acknowledge Chris’s contributions and consult with him as the Biden administration charts the future of this critically important agency,” King said.
In a remarkably blunt reprimand, Rep. Adam Schiff, Democratic chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, called Trump’s decision “pathetic.”
“Instead of rewarding this great service, President Trump is retaliating against Director Krebs and other officials who did their duty. It is pathetic, but sadly predictable that defending and protecting our democratic processes is grounds for termination,” Schiff said.
Former DHS general counsel John Mitnick also criticized Krebs’ firing as “outrageous but not surprising.”
“@realDonaldTrump has a habit of firing those who are highly competent, have integrity and courage, and stand up for #RuleOfLaw. For @CISAKrebs: It was an honor to serve with you @DHSgov, and you should wear this as a badge of honor,” he tweeted.
Ben Hovland, Trump-appointee and chairman of the US Election Assistance Commission, praised Krebs during an interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett on “OutFront” as a “great director” who “showed a lot of leadership, particularly in the electoral space. “.
When asked about the president’s false claims of massive voter fraud, Hovland explained: “When speaking to election officials across the country, they are confident in the safety of this election. They are confident in the outcome of the election, that this was a fair election and for Americans to make their voices heard, and we have to respect the will of the people and public servants who helped make this election and make all of this possible. “
Krebs’ firing also drew notable pushback from Republicans.
Ohio Senator Rob Portman, a member of the Senate Committee on Government Affairs and National Security, defended Krebs’ work to CNN shortly after his firing.
“I know Chris. I have worked well with him. I think he is a true professional,” said the Republican.
When asked if he wished Trump hadn’t fired Krebs, Portman said: “Yeah, I think it was very good. I think what he was trying to do in an unprecedented way was connect with every state in the country and give them what they needed to protect themselves and have a firewall to guard against cyber attacks. “
Krebs maintained fact-checking of the president’s conspiracy until the last hours of his term, tweeting early Tuesday that claims of manipulation of electoral systems “have either been unsubstantiated or are technically incoherent.”
He cited a letter signed by 59 election specialists that also said that “anyone who claims that an American election was ‘rigged’ is making an extraordinary claim” and called them “alarming claims.”
Firing Krebs, a US official previously told CNN, would “cross a red line” and set off alarms throughout the national security apparatus.
Marcus Fowler, a former CIA officer who now works as director of strategic threats at cybersecurity firm Darktrace, described Krebs to CNN as “a Dr. (Anthony) Fauci-like figure for elections and cybersecurity, who it speaks truth to power about the security of the election based on the facts on the ground and the analysis of its experts in the field. “
“His forced departure at this critical time will absolutely degrade our national security, send a horrible message and expose vulnerability to our adversaries, and put the credibility of the fundamental democratic value of the vote at risk of being undermined, manipulated and hijacked,” Fowler said.
Still, his firing comes after several of the Pentagon’s top civilian officials were replaced by officials perceived as loyal to the president, and reports of Trump’s growing frustration with CIA Director Gina Haspel.
This story has been updated with additional news on Tuesday.
This story was first published on CNN.com, “Trump fires the director of the Homeland Security agency who had rejected the president’s electoral conspiracy theories.”
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