President Donald Trump's letter to the Prime Minister of Norway, in which he stated that there was no obligation to maintain peace due to territorial ambitions regarding Greenland, caused a new wave of discussions in Washington. Against the backdrop of aggressive rhetoric against NATO allies, Democrats in Congress again spoke about applying the 25th Amendment as an alternative to a lengthy impeachment process. This is stated in the Newsweek material, writes UNN.
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In his address to Jonas Gahr Støre, President Trump emphasized that the US needs "full control" over the Arctic island and expressed resentment towards Norway for not awarding him the Nobel Peace Prize. Since Denmark and the US are NATO members, threats of military seizure of Greenland jeopardize the existence of the Alliance and Article 5 on collective defense. Critics of the president point out that such statements indicate the leader's inability to adequately assess international security, which is a reason to consider his professional suitability.
The 25th Amendment mechanism: from medicine to politics
The 25th Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified after Kennedy's assassination, was created to address issues of presidential disability. It consists of four sections, with Section 4 being the most controversial.
- Sections 1 and 2: Regulate the order of succession for the president and vice president in case of death or resignation.
- Section 3: Allows the president to temporarily transfer power to the vice president (for example, during operations).
- Section 4: Allows the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to declare in writing that the president is "unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office." In case of dispute, the fate of the office is decided by Congress with a two-thirds vote in both houses.
Republicans begin to resist Trump's Greenland push - FT21.01.26, 10:33
Legal and political barriers
Experts interviewed by Newsweek are skeptical about the likelihood of this procedure succeeding. Law professor Mark Graber notes that the amendment was created for medical cases - for example, when the president is unconscious.
We can imagine a mentally ill president with fantastic beliefs, but Trump's rhetoric is rather a political platform that the American people supported in the elections
Currently, lawmakers such as Senator Ed Markey and Representative Yassamin Ansari insist that calls for a breach of peace in Europe are a sign of an inability to govern the country. However, as lawyers note, for Trump to be truly removed, it would require not only medical confirmation, but also an unprecedented agreement from his own Cabinet, which seems unlikely in the current political realities.