What Is The 25th Amendment? Donald Trump & Mike Pence Would Likely Not Be Friends If This Happened
The 2016 Election has been a roller coaster of emotions and scandals for everyone involved. But if Donald Trump somehow gets elected and if the early days of his presidency look anything like his campaign, he may find himself becoming particularly familiar with the 25th Amendment to the U.S Constitution. So what is the 25th Amendment?
Ratified and adopted in 1967 following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the 25th Amendment lays out the rules of succession in the case of a president's death, resignation, removal, or incapacitation. The key part of the 25th Amendment for a Trump presidency is Section Four, which gives the vice president, backed by the majority of the executive cabinet, the power to declare the president unable to serve and assume the role of acting president. In such a case, we would all be waving bye-bye to President Trump and hello to President Mike Pence.
If Trump were to object to this action, the decision would be left up to a two-thirds vote in Congress. Considering the number of senators and representatives who opposed a Trump presidency, the odds of Trump winning a congressional vote are unlikely.
Pence invoking the 25th Amendment would be a move straight out of a political thriller, and though the first three sections of the amendment have been cited before, the fourth never has. The last time the 25th Amendment was used, in 2007, President George Bush cited Section Three to temporarily transfer his powers to Vice President Dick Cheney before undergoing a colonoscopy. Bush reassumed his powers only a couple hours later.
Possible reasons for Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment could include anything from a classic Trumpian outburst in which he (if elected) threatens to act against the wishes of his party to yet another revelation of Trump's sexual misconduct. In any case, the moment the 25th Amendment comes into play after a Inauguration Day is the moment Trump and Melania should start getting ready to move out of the White House (if they make it there).