Krebs "most upset" he didn't get to say goodbye to team after Trump firing
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Christopher Krebs. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call
Christopher Krebs, the former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, tells CBS' "60 Minutes" he is most upset that he "didn't get a chance to say goodbye" to his team after President Trump announced his termination in a tweet earlier this month, according to an excerpt from the upcoming episode.
Driving the news: Trump tweeted Nov. 17 that he had fired Krebs, who had drawn bipartisan praise for his handling of the election and debunking of misinformation.
The exchange: In the excerpt, CBS correspondent Scott Pelley reads part of a statement that was released by Krebs' former agency...
PELLEY: ''The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history ... There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes or changed votes or was in any way compromised.'"
KREBS: "Yeah, I stand by that."
PELLEY: "The president tweeted after that statement, quote, 'The recent statement by Chris Krebs on the security of the 2020 election was highly inaccurate in that there were massive improprieties and fraud.' Do you remember what the president said at the end of that tweet?"
KREBS: "Oh, I was terminated? Is that -- yes. I recall that."
PELLEY: "Were you surprised?"
KREBS: "I don't know if I was necessarily surprised. It's not how I wanted to go out. I think ... the thing that upsets me the most about that is I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to my team. And I'd worked with them for three and a half years, in the trenches. Building an agency, putting CISA on the national stage. And I love that team. And I didn't get a chance to say goodbye, so that's what I'm most upset about."
What we're watching: The full "60 Minutes" episode in which Krebs also addresses Trump's baseless election fraud claims is set to air Sunday night following NFL coverage on the network.
