Mike Pence on the call for the 25th Amendment and the removal of Trump

Congressmen Ted Lieu, California, and Ayanna Pressley, Massachusetts, have led the express request to Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and replace Donald Trump due to the voluntary lack of reaction to what was happening on Capitol Hill.

Other important voices, also from the Republican Party, have joined this request, such as that of Phil Scott, the governor of Vermont, who has stated on Twitter that "Trump should resign or be removed by his cabinet and Congress". Other civil authorities and public figures linked to different sectors have joined this petition, which is not the first time it has been raised to remove Trump from office.
 

The US Constitution, in its 25th Amendment ratified in 1967, provides for the possibility of the US Vice President replacing the country's president with "incapacity" or "disqualification". Never before in American history had this amendment, which was introduced following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, been invoked.

However, although Donald Trump's own cabinet has been considering this possibility, it poses serious difficulties. The final decision on this dismissal would lie with the US Congress, so while approval by the House of Representatives would be plausible, that of the Senate, where nearly twenty Republicans would be required, seems complicated.

The same would apply to the other means of dismissal, impeachment, which, although it has also been proposed and used against Trump on another occasion, would require the support of the Republicans in the US Senate. In view of the seriousness of the situation and the fact that some figures of the Republican Party have already turned their backs on it-even if at the last minute-it cannot be ruled out that, depending on how the situation develops, the possibility of using some of these resources will gain strength.

Mike Pence has emerged as a figure to hold on to in the face of the latest, and most serious, ravings of Donald Trump. Despite the tension and the images witnessed yesterday on the Capitol, the president refrained from mobilising the National Guard in support of the security of the US Congress, even though it was completely overwhelmed. 

It was precisely the vice-president, Mike Pence, who was in charge of carrying out the request for their deployment. He did so, furthermore, and significantly, in collaboration with the current acting defence secretary, Christopher Miller, the chief of staff of the US armed forces, Mark Milley, and the congressional leaders, a Republican, Mitch McConnell, and three Democrats, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and Steny Hoyer. The decision was expressed in a statement on the Defence Department website which stated that "the National Guard has been activated to preserve the Constitution and our democratic form of government".