Washington, DC, United States of America

US Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos resigned on Thursday, joining a list of officials quitting President Donald Trump's administration in protest at the storming of the Capitol by his supporters.

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Chao, the wife of Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, said in an email to staff that the mob attack "has deeply troubled me in a way that I simply cannot set aside." She said her resignation will take effect on Monday.

In a letter to Trump, DeVos said the attack on the Capitol was unconscionable. "There is no mistaking the impact your rhetoric had on the situation, and it is the inflection point for me," she wrote, adding her resignation would be effective Friday.

With less than two weeks left of Trump's presidency, many aides were already heading for the door, but the sudden exodus suggested revulsion among some over his encouragement of supporters who brought chaos to the Capitol on Wednesday in an ultimately futile bid to prevent formal certification of Democrat Joe Biden's election victory.

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Deputy national security advisor Matt Pottinger, a leading aide on Trump's China policy, quit abruptly on Wednesday, said a senior administration official.

He was followed by Ryan Tully, senior director for European and Russian affairs at the National Security Council, said a second senior official.

US Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund also announced he would resign this month after he faced criticism for failing to prevent supporters of Trump from storming the building.

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Sund's resignation came hours after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Senator Chuck Schumer on Thursday demanded his resignation and said that he would be fired if he did not resign.

"It has been a pleasure and a true honour to serve the United States Capitol Police Board and the Congressional community alongside the men and women of the United States Capitol Police," Sund said in a letter to Capitol Police Board. Other members of the Board are also resigning from their positions.

"As discussed, I will transition into a sick leave status effective January 17, 2021, until I exhaust my available sick leave balance of approximately 440 hours," he said.

Mick Mulvaney, a former White House chief of staff, resigned as special envoy to Northern Ireland, telling CNBC: "I wouldn't be surprised to see more of my friends resign over the course of the next 24 to 48 hours."

John Costello, deputy assistant secretary at the Commerce Department, announced his departure in a blistering tweet, writing, "yesterday's events were an unprecedented attack on the very core of our democracy - incited by a sitting president."

Further departures were likely at the NSC, one of the officials said. It coordinates foreign policy and maintains contacts with other governments, so loss of key staff could raise questions about national security as the new administration takes over.

Sources told Reuters that the officials who stepped down on Thursday, in a growing exodus of Trump aides, were: Erin Walsh, senior director for African affairs; Mark Vandroff, senior director for defense policy; Anthony Rugierro, senior director for weapons of mass destruction; and Rob Greenway, senior director for Middle Eastern and North African affairs.

In an unprecedented assault on democracy in the US, thousands of supporters of outgoing President Trump stormed the Capitol building on Wednesday and clashed with police, interrupting a constitutional process by Congress to affirm the victory of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in the election.

Meanwhile, Trump -- for the first time -- openly acknowledged that Joe Biden will be the next president.

Trump, who as recently as Thursday morning had continued to claim falsely that the election had been stolen from him, said his focus would now turn to ensuring a smooth transition to a Biden administration in a video released in the evening. 

His exhortation on Wednesday to thousands of supporters that they march to the Capitol to protest the election results whipped up a mob that overran police officers and invaded the Capitol building, forcing members of Congress into hiding for their own safety.

To this end, the threat of a second impeachment loomed over Trump.

The 25th Amendment allows a majority of the Cabinet to remove a president from power if he is unable to discharge the duties of the office.

(with inputs from agencies)