Trump Calls For Former Ally Kemp To Resign. Kemp Calls It A ‘Distraction’

Gov. Brian Kemp says President Donald Trump’s call for Kemp to resign over the November election is a “distraction.”

Emma Hurt / WABE

President Donald Trump called for Republican Gov. Brian Kemp to resign on Wednesday, calling him an “obstructionist.” The two Republicans were once close allies, but since the election, Kemp and other Georgia Republicans have drawn the president’s ire for refusing to overturn the state’s election, which three tallies confirmed President-elect Joe Biden won by nearly 12,000 votes. That ire has created a rift among Republican voters, as the state is days away from two Senate runoffs that will determine control of the chamber.

Kemp has repeatedly insisted he has no constitutional authority to intervene in the state’s election.

In response to a question about the calls to resign, Kemp said he was focused on the state’s coronavirus fight. “I think [that] is what the people of Georgia want me to be focused on,” he said. “Making sure if they need a hospital bed, they’re going to get one. We’re seeing our hospitalizations increase at an alarming rate right now.”