House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that the House will take up a resolution on Monday calling on Vice President Mike Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment and “declare the President incapable of executing the duties of his office.”
In a letter to members, Pelosi said that Majority Leader Steny Hoyer will request unanimous consent to bring up the 25th Amendment resolution, authored by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD). If members object, it will be brought up in a floor vote on Tuesday.
“We are calling on the Vice President to respond within 24 hours,” Pelosi wrote.
Then, if Pence does not act, House members plan to bring an impeachment resolution to the floor, citing Donald Trump with inciting the mob attack on the Capitol on Wednesday.
“In protecting our Constitution and our Democracy, we will act with urgency, because this President represents an imminent threat to both,” Pelosi wrote in her letter. “As the days go by, the horror of the ongoing assault on our democracy perpetrated by this President is intensified and so is the immediate need for action.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has already signaled that there is not enough time left in Trump’s term to hold a Senate trial if the president is impeached for the second time in his term.
But a number of Republicans have called on the president to resign, including Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA). Chris Christie, the former New Jersey governor and Trump supporter, told ABC News on Sunday that if he were in Congress, he would vote to impeach Trump for inciting the insurrection.
Pelosi’s full letter is below:
Dear Democratic Colleague,
On this Sunday, as we pray that God will continue to Bless America, I write to inform you of our next actions, which will be made with the great solemnity that this moment requires.
I want to call to your immediate attention the action to be taken tomorrow morning, when Majority Leader Hoyer will request Unanimous Consent to bring up the Raskin resolution. This resolution calls on the Vice President to convene and mobilize the Cabinet to activate the 25th Amendment to declare the President incapable of executing the duties of his office, after which the Vice President would immediately exercise powers as acting President. The text of the resolution can be found here.
If we do not receive Unanimous Consent, this legislation is planned to be brought up on the Floor the following day. We are calling on the Vice President to respond within 24 hours.
Next, we will proceed with bringing impeachment legislation to the Floor.
In protecting our Constitution and our Democracy, we will act with urgency, because this President represents an imminent threat to both. As the days go by, the horror of the ongoing assault on our democracy perpetrated by this President is intensified and so is the immediate need for action.
I look forward to our Caucus call tomorrow. I am grateful to all Members for the suggestions, observations and input that you have been sending. Your views on the 25th Amendment, 14th Amendment Section 3 and impeachment are valued as we continue. I am answering your communications in chronological order and will do so into the night.
Thank you for your patriotism.
Prayerfully,