'Elaine Chao is woke': Transportation secretary appears to back impeachment-obsessed Rep. Maxine Waters

Brett T. | 6:48 PM on March 22, 2017

California Rep. Maxine Waters on Tuesday told her Twitter followers to “get ready for impeachment,” but President Trump’s removal from office has been a fantasy of hers for a while now; in early February, she said leading Trump to his impeachment was her “greatest desire.”

For a short time Wednesday, Waters seemed to have found an enthusiastic but unlikely cheerleader: Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.

Uhhhhhhh https://t.co/fXWPEJ9JNW

— Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) March 22, 2017

Meanwhile: pic.twitter.com/S9NoIPIM92

— David Wright (@DavidWright_CNN) March 22, 2017

https://twitter.com/trashcantropic/status/844651954835902468

@LouiseMensch Wait what?! Is this real?

— Veronica (@JustMeSillyV) March 22, 2017

I guess some DOT social media intern is getting a stern talking-to as we speak. https://t.co/ah04Uz5vSr

— Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) March 22, 2017

Now that’s a solid prediction. The Hill reports that the since-deleted tweet was neither a Photoshop mockup nor the result of hacking, Russian or otherwise.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) said in a statement that “an employee with access to the account” was responsible for the tweet, and the department would be “taking appropriate action” in response.

“The employee took action outside of his scope of work and duties and without any approvals,” a DOT spokesperson said. “We regret that this transpired and have taken steps to prevent any future occurrence.”