Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar speaks at George Washington University Hospital on December 14, 2020 in Washington, DC. | Jacquelyn Martin-Pool/Getty Images

The HHS secretary warns Trump against inciting more violence but obscures the reality of his own legacy.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar this week warned President Donald Trump that, despite what he described as achievements by HHS under his watch, Trump’s “actions and rhetoric following the election … threaten to tarnish these and other historic legacies of this administration.”

“The attacks on the Capitol were an assault on our democracy,” Azar said in a letter released this week ahead of his departure from the government on January 20. “I implore you to continue to condemn unequivocally any form of violence … and continue to support unreservedly the peaceful and orderly transition of power.”