The 25th Amendment:

The fourth series of the The West Wing opens with President Jed Bartlet writing to Congress, invoking the 25^th Amendment and stating he is unable to fulfil his duties because of the capture of his youngest daughter, Zoe, by terrorists hostile to America. When Zoe is rescued, Bartlet signs another letter saying he will resume his duties. As one of the actor’s opposed to the ruling Party says, “You can’t fault Bartlet. He did everything right.”

The 25^th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in the aftermath of President Kennedy’s assassination. It sets out procedures to replace a President or Vice-President in the event of the death, removal, resignation or incapacitation of the incumbent. The Amendment has been applied twice in real life, both in the 1970s: first when Gerald Ford replaced Vice-President Spiro Agnew and second when Ford replaced Nixon as President and Nelson Rockefeller filled the Vice-Presidential vacancy.

The Amendment is specific on process. If the President is unable to discharge his powers and duties, the declaration must either be in writing signed by the President himself, or the VP and a majority of the principal executive officers (i.e. the cabinet) or other body specified by Congress, declaring that the President is unable to discharge his powers and duties. If the President steps aside, he may resume his duties by written declaration that no such inability continues to exist. To date, no President has declared himself or been declared unable to fulfil his office.

President Trump’s fitness for office has been the subject of press speculation, not to mention Washington gossip, since his election. Former President Bush (43) recently commented how the hostility of party politics in Virginia is damaging to the people of the state but the implication of criticism of Trump was clear. Later, both Bush and Obama repudiated President Trump for his brand of politics and his approach to the world.

Senator John McCain has also lambasted Trump. In a speech in Philadelphia, he said, “To fear the world we have organized and led for three-quarters of a century, to abandon the ideals we have advanced around the globe, to refuse the obligations of international leadership and our duty to remain ‘the last best hope of Earth’ for the sake of some half-baked, spurious nationalism, cooked up by people who would rather find scapegoats than solve problems, is as unpatriotic as an attachment to any other tired dogma of the past that Americans consigned to the ash heap of history.”

This was no side-swipe at Trump. It was a right hook. No doubt, President Trump will fire back a volley of abuse at these senior politicians. I can’t wait for the tweets to start. It’s a pity Trump refuses to listen to these experienced politicians and mend his ways but that just will not happen.

I have often written that there is no prospect of Trump’s impeachment at present, unless Robert Mueller’s Russian investigation discloses serious wrongdoings by the President. Even so, impeachment is far more political than legal and there would have to be 67 Senate votes to convict the President and remove him from office. Instead, there is now mention amongst the chattering political classes of invoking the 25^th Amendment. I see no valid, legal grounds for this. Nothing about this President’s behaviour has been surprising, given the style of last year’s campaign. For example, evidence of Trump’s molestation of women and insulting the parents of a dead soldier did not deter voters. Since the inauguration, none of the Trump and family-related scandals have morphed into potential high crimes and misdemeanours. Perhaps a high degree of incompetence can be alleged but if you go back a century, how competent was Warren Harding? To use the 25^th on grounds of incompetence would be one heck of a stretch.

I strongly believe the Presidency is not simply another office. Since Roosevelt’s days, it has been the centre of American political power and sometimes the last resort for life and death decisions. The powers of Congress, as envisaged by the Framers, have been usurped by the executive branch. So, Americans are entitled to expect their President to use intellectual rigour, sound management and morality and not to govern by political ideology. After all, the chief executive is President for all the people. I consider Trump has failed in every department. He is like a spoiled child, not wanting to share toys, vicious in his treatment of others he considers inferior, a man who clearly despises blacks and Asians. He is a person riddled with complexes that would need a psychiatrist to name. Put simply, in my opinion he is unqualified for the job.

However, millions of people voted for him and I detect no sign that a vast majority of those voters have changed their minds. Currently, he has an overall approval rating of 37% but in Trumpland he has an 88% approval rating. Trump voters want him to annoy the Washington establishment, show belligerence to North Korea, force European allies to fund NATO, remove Obamacare and lower taxes. Trump has another trump card – excuse the pun. Congress’s approval rating is at an all-time low of 16%.

The 25^th Amendment is not the proper vehicle to seek removal of a President in the current circumstances. It is not a substitute for impeachment. America and the rest of the world will have to await the outcome next year’s mid-term elections to see if Trump gets a bloody nose. If Republicans lose their House and Senate majorities, we have a new ball game where almost every Presidential move can be blocked. Until then, those who cannot stand the current administration will have to suck it up.