25th Amendment time

September 6, 2018

Not since we were ruled by a late stage syphilitic monarch from across the ocean have we had a ruler so manifestly unfit for office and so single mindedly dedicated to rapaciously plundering our coffers for his own selfish gain.  The one-two punch of the release of Bob Woodward’s “Fear,” and the publication of the anonymous Op-Ed written by a cowardly conservative cowering in The West Wing, have confirmed beyond cavil that Trump is exactly as he appears—amoral, cruel, impulsive, ignorant and blisteringly stupid.

The question is, what are we to do in the face of this confirmation of our worst fears?  Should we be mollified that Trump’s dangerous impulses are allegedly being restrained by shadowy, unnamed officials, whose most fervent hope is to execute his tax-cutting, nativist agenda more competently?  The answer is a resounding “No!”

The fact is that the Constitution provides not one, but two, routes out of this crisis.  The most obvious one, suggested by the anonymous Op-Ed writer, is to invoke the 25th Amendment.  Section 4 of the Amendment provides that, “[w]henever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the office of Acting President.”  Anonymous claims that this option was considered and rejected for fear that it would “precipitate a Constitutional crisis,” a self-serving statement that ignores that we are already in one.

The other obvious mechanism for resolving this crisis is through impeachment.  Article II, Section 4 states that the “President, Vice President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”  Although we know that impeachment is a political question and that Mueller has yet to complete his investigation, Trump has committed enough acts in plain sight for Congress to at least consider the question.  From nakedly profiting from the office of the Presidency, to violating the Emoluments Clause, to admitting to obstruction of justice on the evening news, to the numerous convictions and guilty pleas of his campaign chair, National Security Advisor and personal lawyer, the mountain of evidence that Trump is guilty of impeachable offenses is harder to ignore than a ten car pileup on the 405.

Despite that, outside of the faint murmurs of disapproval from lame duck Senators, Congressional Republicans have been stunningly silent.  The reason is obvious — as long as Trump has a functioning right hand with which to sign executive orders and legislation unleashing unchecked corporate power, they will prop him up.  The sham hearing being conducted to confirm a baby-faced sociopath lacking in empathy to the Supreme Court is just the latest evidence of the Republicans’ bad faith lust for absolute power at any cost.  They know that the majority of Americans detest their agenda, so they aim to lock in a Second Redemption Court that will secure the reign of a white supremacist patriarchal minority for a generation. To a person, the Republican vision for this country is a demented mash-up of “Cry the Beloved Country,” and “The Handmaid’s Tale.”  They have forfeited every shred of legitimacy. We must never forget that they are the authors of this nightmare. If our democracy still has a pulse after November, never let a single one of them near elected office again.

#25thAmendment

#KavaNAH

#VOTE