TechFreedom head Berin Szóka announced Friday that he is going on an "indefinite sabbatical" to write a book, according to Politico.

The move comes after Szóka received huge backlash for a tweet on Monday, which he has since deleted, fantasising about Trump's death from coronavirus.

"Serious question: could there possibly any greater poetic justice in the universe than for Trump to die of the #CPACvirus," Szóka tweeted.

The CPAC reference stemmed from one person who attended the Conservative Political Action Conference having tested positive for the virus. Trump gave a speech at the same conference in February.

Szóka's TechFreedom group describes itself as 'libertarian-leaning'. It has financial ties to Charles Koch, who has frequently voiced opposition to Trump's China policy. The think tank has also been funded by Google.

As soon as Szóka realised what a monumental idiot he sounded like in the tweet, he started walking it back, further tweeting "I'd never wish death upon anyone but I get why people read it that way. For that, I'm sorry."

"Like many, I've been distraught at systematic downplaying of this crisis. My tweet came not from a place of malice but from deepest concern. It doesn't express my organization's opinion." he added.