The Democratic chairman of the House Armed Services Committee called Thursday for removing President Trump from office a day after pro-Trump rioters breached the Capitol.
“President Trump incited & encouraged this riot,” Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) tweeted. “He & his enablers are responsible for the despicable attack at the Capitol. VP Pence and the Cabinet should invoke the 25th amendment to remove Trump, otherwise Senate Republicans must work with the House to impeach & remove him.”
Smith joins a growing number of lawmakers calling for Trump’s removal through either the 25th Amendment or impeachment after the president urged supporters to march on the Capitol while Congress was certifying Joe Biden’s presidential victory.
The breach forced lawmakers to halt their counting of Electoral College votes and shelter in secure undisclosed locations, and led to violent confrontations including Capitol Police fatally shooting one woman participating in the mayhem.
Calls for Trump’s removal in the aftermath have mostly come from Democrats, but Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), an Air Force veteran who serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, on Thursday became the first Republican lawmaker to call for invoking the 25th Amendment.
Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (N.Y.) on Thursday became the highest-ranking Democrat to throw his support behind removing Trump from office with roughly two weeks left in his administration. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has so far not weighed in on using the 25th Amendment.
Under the 25th Amendment, a majority of Cabinet officials plus Vice President Pence would have to declare to Congress that Trump is unable to fulfill his duties as president in order to remove him from office.
A source confirmed to The Hill on Wednesday night that administration officials have started discussing the possibility of invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office.