Donald Trump mounting health fears could see him removed from office
Donald Trump's administration is facing mounting calls to invoke the 25th amendment to remove the president from office as concerns over his cognitive health grow
Donald Trump's administration is under increasing pressure to invoke the 25th Amendment to oust the president from office amid growing worries about his mental state.
Following the president's suggestion during remarks to senior military officials last week that cities like Chicago should serve as "training grounds for our military," Illinois Governor J. B.
Pritzker branded him as suffering from dementia while publicly demanding Trump's ouster for the first time. "It appears that Donald Trump not only has dementia set in, but he's copying tactics of [Russian President] Vladimir Putin," Pritzker declared last Wednesday. The news emerges as Trump’s approval ratings are at an all-time low as Americans express their frustration with the disastrous government shutdown.
"Sending troops into cities, thinking that that's some sort of proving ground for war, or that indeed there's some sort of internal war going on in the United States is just, frankly, insane and I'm concerned for his health," Pritzker continued.
"There is something genuinely wrong with this man, and the 25th Amendment ought to be invoked," he added. California Rep. Eric Swalwell backed the demand, posting on social media: "25TH AMENDMENT!", reports the Irish Star.
This isn't the only recent comment from Trump that has triggered demands for the 25th Amendment. On Sunday, the president incorrectly stated that he alerted officials they needed to handle Osama bin Laden the year prior to the September 11, 2001 terror attacks.
Speaking to a gathering of sailors marking the US Navy's 250th anniversary, Trump declared: "And please remember, I wrote about Osama bin Laden exactly one year ago."
He swiftly corrected himself, stating, "One year before he blew up the World Trade Center. And I said, 'You've got to watch Osama bin Laden.'"
Critics have labeled the bogus assertion a "dementia rant". One X user posted: "I'm asking once again, will Pete Hegseth confirm that Trump warned him about Osama bin Laden a year before 9/11 and that Trump tried to prevent 9/11 if this was another dementia rant from Trump there is only one thing to do 25th amendment now."
Another commented: "Trump once again falsely claims that his pre-9/11 book warned about Osama bin Laden. Its time to invoke the 25th Amendment, people .."
On Monday, Trump faced accusations of being "legitimately senile" when he appeared to forget who sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell is during questioning in the Oval Office. "Posters here are genuinely asking whether Trump is lying or senile in relation to Ghislaine Maxwell. It's quite simple - he is a senile pathological liar," one X user posted.
Meanwhile, the president's online conduct has grown increasingly unstable, as he continuously shares AI-generated videos that have been described as "ridiculous" and "racist".
With Republicans confronting mounting pressure to trigger the 25th amendment following Trump's strange conduct, here's everything you need to understand about it.
What is the 25th amendment?
The 25th amendment permits the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to declare a president unable to serve in office.
If a president is permanently ousted from office under the 25th amendment, then the vice president becomes acting president. Nevertheless, the section of the amendment specifically covering this process has never been used.
Trump's Cabinet and then-Vice President Mike Pence encountered similar calls to oust Trump from office following the January 6 assault on the US Capitol, when a crowd of the president's supporters invaded the halls of Congress after the president alleged the 2020 election had been stolen.
Why was the 25th amendment passed?
The drive for an amendment that would establish procedures in the event of a president's incapacity or death emerged after the 1963 killing of President John F. Kennedy.
During his 1965 State of the Union, President Lyndon B. Johnson pledged to "propose laws to insure the necessary continuity of leadership should the President become disabled or die."
The amendment was approved by Congress that year and ratified in 1967.
Has the 25th amendment ever been invoked before?
The 25th amendment has been used before. Presidents have temporarily relinquished power under the 25th amendment, however, those cases have generally been short and voluntary, for example when the president was undergoing a medical procedure.
President George W. Bush became the first to use the amendment's Section 3 in 2002.
He temporarily transferred power to Vice President Dick Cheney while he was anesthetized for a colonoscopy.
Section 4 of the amendment, which allows the Cabinet to declare the president unfit, has never been invoked.
How could Trump be removed from office under the 25th amendment?
Section 4 of the 25th Amendment outlines what occurs if the president becomes incapable of carrying out his responsibilities but does not hand over power to the vice president himself.
Under these conditions, Section 4 permits the vice president and majority of the Cabinet to pronounce the president incompetent. They would then forward a letter to the speaker of the House and president pro tempore of the Senate stating this.
The vice president then assumes the role of acting president.
The president can submit his own letter claiming he is capable of serving. However, if the vice president and majority of the Cabinet object, they can forward another letter to Congress within four days.
Congress would then need to vote. The president returns to his responsibilities unless both chambers of Congress by a two-thirds vote determine the president is not prepared.
Section 4 of the amendment also grants Congress the authority to create a "body" that can, with the backing of the vice president, announce that the president is incapable of performing the job. If they conclude the president is incompetent, the vice president would assume control.
But Congress has never established the body.