The website claims that “Donald J. Trump’s term ended on 2021-01-11 19:49:00” and that “Michael R. Pence’s term ended on 2021-01-11 19:44:22.”
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says that an investigation will be launched after a disgruntled State Department employee changed the biography pages of President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence to say that their terms have already ended, Buzzfeed reports.
The website claims that "Donald J. Trump's term ended on 2021-01-11 19:49:00" and that "Michael R. Pence's term ended on 2021-01-11 19:44:22."
Both the President's and the Vice President's terms are scheduled to end at noon on January 20 when Joe Biden and Kamala Harris take over their respective positions.
Pompeo has since ordered an investigation, beginning with outgoing employees and interns of the State Department. The investigation into who changed the dates could be difficult, however, as many people have administrative access to the State Department's content management system.
The changes sparked concerns online that the State Department's website may have been hacked. However, one of the diplomats who spoke to Buzzfeed said that the system is "nearly impossible to hack," and that the change was likely made by a disgruntled employee.
The false changes come amid calls for Trump to resign from the presidency following the deadly riot by his supporters at Capitol Hill. Some Democrats have called for Trump to be impeached for "inciting" the rioters, a call which has been joined by some Republicans. Trump never told any of his supporters to storm the Capitol Building, and told those who were doing so to "go home" in a video address made during the riot.
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