House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called Donald Trump “unhinged president” and is seeking to bar him from gaining access to the country’s nuclear codes or starting any military action.
This was contained in a letter titled “Preventing an Unhinged President From Using the Nuclear Codes”, released just minutes before House Democrats meeting.
The Democrats were to meet to discuss whether to go ahead with a second impeachment of Trump.
Speaker Pelosi, who did not reveal the response she got, said she spoke to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Alexander Milley, on the subject.
Under U.S. law, a military aide travels with the president wherever he goes with the nuclear ‘football’ containing the nuclear codes and the president has control over the entire military.
Reading her letter to Democrats during the meeting on Friday, she said:
“This morning, I spoke to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley to discuss available precautions for preventing an unstable president from initiating military hostilities or accessing the launch codes and ordering a nuclear strike.”
Further, she said: “The situation of this unhinged President could not be more dangerous, and we must do everything that we can to protect the American people from his unbalanced assault on our country and our democracy.”
Her concerns about the safety of the nuclear codes with the president followed the recent instigation of a riotous crowd that invaded the Capitol on Wednesday by President Trump.
Madam Speaker said that they discussed precautions about accessing the launch codes and ordering a nuclear strike.
She said it is time for Republicans to call on Trump to resign, failure of which she will commence impeachment proceedings against him.
ElombahNews reported on Thursday that the Speaker had called for the removal of the president of the United States, Mr. Donald Trump.
Pelosi made the call while speaking with reporters live at the Capitol following yesterday’s assault on American democracy.
The House Speaker called for Trump’s immediate removal through the 25th Amendment, failure of which the lawmakers will initiate impeachment procedure against him.
She recalled how just yesterday American democracy came under attack, but stated “we refuse to be bullied into abandoning our duty to work for the people”.
She noted on Friday that Vice President Pence has not called her back after she reached out to him about the 25th Amendment.
According to the 25th Amendment, the Vice President and a majority of the Trump cabinet might move to strip Trump of power and make Pence the ‘acting president.’
The letter reads further: “As you know, there is growing momentum around the invocation of the 25th Amendment, which would allow the Vice President and a majority of the Cabinet to remove the President for his incitement of insurrection and the danger he still poses,’ she wrote.
“Yesterday, Leader [Charles] Schumer and I placed a call with Vice President Pence, and we still hope to hear from him as soon as possible with a positive answer as to whether he and the Cabinet will honor their oath to the Constitution and the American people.”
Citing a precedent involving President Nixon, she said: “Nearly fifty years ago, after years of enabling their rogue President, Republicans in Congress finally told President Nixon that it was time to go.
“Today, following the President’s dangerous and seditious acts, Republicans in Congress need to follow that example and call on Trump to depart his office – immediately.
“If the President does not leave office imminently and willingly, the Congress will proceed with our action.”