Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn said he was “disgusted” by the violence on Jan. 6 on Capitol Hill and revealed that he even considered resigning from the agency.
Hahn, who has headed the Food and Drug Administration since December 2019, said Tuesday that he decided against resigning because he felt he needed to stay on and make sure that consistent leadership was provided for the FDA in the twilight of President Trump’s time in office.
“Now, with respect to Jan. 6 — I was horrified, and I was disgusted by what happened,” Hahn told Bloomberg News. “We live in a democracy. There is no place for what we saw, and those who are responsible for the actions that took place on the physical grounds of the Capitol should be held accountable.”
“We have a lot of things going on that are important from a public health point of view that required my attention and the senior leadership’s attention. Making a statement with a resignation certainly was a topic of consideration,” the doctor continued. “I think our public health mission and the need to provide leadership during a very critical time was more important.”
There was a wave of administration resignations in the days after the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. Among those who quit were deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, Stephanie Grisham, chief of staff to first lady Melania Trump, deputy press secretary Sarah Matthews, and White House social secretary Rickie Niceta.
Mick Mulvaney, envoy to Northern Ireland and former White House chief of staff, and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, who is the wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, also departed following the rioting.
