Pelosi questioning medicated Trump’s mental capacity

WASHINGTON: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to unveil legislation today that would task a commission of psychiatrists with reviewing whether President Donald Trump is mentally fit to remain in office — the first step of a neverused removal process spelled out by the fourth section of the 25th Amendment to the Constitution.

A brief notice released by the speaker’s office yesterday said Pelosi (California, Democrat) would roll out the extraordinary

Bill with Representative Jamie Raskin (Maryland, Democrat) during a news conference on Capitol Hill.

The speaker’s focus on Trump’s mental health came as sources said she had privately voiced concern this week that the coronavirusinfected president might not be of sound mind.

According to sources, Pelosi was especially concerned by Trump telling his team on Wednesday to pull out of all coronavirus stimulus talks with Democrats before the election, only to spend the same night sending out a storm of tweets calling for more stimulus talks.

Since being hospitalised last weekend with Covid19, Trump has been on a cocktail of experimental drugs, including dexamethasone, a strong steroid that’s generally only administered to critically ill coronavirus patients. Possible side effects from the powerful steroid include mania, psychosis and delusions.

In an interview after her news conference, Pelosi confirmed she believed the 74yearold president might be mentally compromised.

‘‘The president is, shall we say, in an altered state right now,’’ she told Bloomberg TV. ‘‘I don’t know how to answer for that behaviour.’’

She added, ‘‘There are those who say when you are on steroids or have Covid19, there may be some impairment of judgement.’’ — TCA