Colin Powell: I wish Trump would ‘do what Nixon did’ and step down

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell says he wishes President Trump would resign from office amid growing calls for his removal after a mob of his supporters raided the Capitol.

“I wish he would just do what Nixon did and that’s step down,” Powell said in an interview on NBC’s “Today” show. “Somebody ought to go up there and tell him ‘it’s over. The plane’s waiting for you, you’re out.’ ”

“That way, he would not only step down, he would in addition sort of cut the guts out from underneath this group of people he has working for him.”

“I wish he would just do what Nixon did and just step down.”

Watch @SavannahGuthrie’s full interview with former Secretary of State Colin Powell about Wednesday’s siege on the U.S. Capitol and why he thinks President Trump should resign. pic.twitter.com/1jo9giKJO2

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 8, 2021

The comments come amid growing bipartisan support for either impeaching Trump or removing him from office via the 25th Amendment over his work casting doubt on the November election and inciting his supporters to march on the Capitol.

Vice President Pence has indicated he is against going through with the latter, though House Democrats have indicated that if he doesn’t, they’ll move forward with impeachment.

Powell said that both of these options would be “time-consuming” and that instead Trump should resign “as quickly as possible.”

“What he is responsible for is the most disgusting thing I have seen in all my years as a government employee here in the United States of America and in Washington, D.C.,” Powell said. “He should be totally ashamed of himself, and he should turn that shame into a resignation as quickly as possible.”