Trump is unfit; no good ways to remove him

Donald Trump has proved himself unfit to serve as president of the United States. His years of undermining our electoral process came to a head with his treasonous move Saturday to overturn the vote in Georgia and his deadly incitement of a mob Wednesday that temporarily shut down the nation’s representative government.

There’s legitimate fear about what he will do next in his remaining days — thankfully less than two weeks — in office. The question is, what do America’s leaders do about it? What do they do to ensure Trump doesn’t unleash further destruction on the nation?

Specifically, there have been calls for his removal, either through imposition of the Constitution’s 25th Amendment or impeachment. If either could be done easily without further tearing the country apart, we would be first in line supporting the effort. But neither is realistic. And both, especially impeachment, would make it harder for the nation to heal from the four years of division the president has fomented.

While most Americans are appalled by the deadly swarming of the Capitol on Wednesday, a not-insignificant portion still believe Trump’s lies that the election was stolen. Indeed, 147 members of Congress voted to overturn the Electoral College results. That’s a cancer metastasizing in our nation that we must find a way to cure.

Meanwhile, until Jan. 20, Trump is a real threat to our nation. For, as we’ve learned, the president’s dangerously impulsive behavior for his political benefit seems boundless.

He will lie about the dangers of a deadly pandemic. He will clear protesters from the streets so he can pose for a photo op. He will threaten election officials who won’t undermine voting results for his benefit. And he will incite a mob to storm the Capitol in support of his desperate attempt to hold onto power.

While Trump now says he will cooperate in a peaceful transfer of presidential power, it’s entirely possible he will shift course again in the days ahead. Indeed, he shows no remorse and continues to fuel the lies that he won the election — that only through fraud was it stolen from him.

On Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called on Vice President Mike Pence and cabinet members to invoke the 25th Amendment, which provides for the vice president to take over if he and a majority of the cabinet determine that the president is “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.”

Trump could appeal that decision to Congress, but getting his post back would probably take longer than the days he has left to serve. Having the 25th Amendment as an option could serve as a deterrent to Trump acting on his wildest fantasies. If Pence and a cabinet majority do act, it would be a signal of just how dangerous things have become inside the White House. And, in that case, Congress should uphold the decision.

But it’s unlikely that a group of primarily Trump loyalists in the administration will try to take away his power — and the chances were reduced even further by the resignation Thursday of Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.

Which brings us to impeachment, a process Pelosi and Schumer said they were prepared to launch if Pence and the cabinet don’t move quickly. Are Trump’s offenses impeachable? Absolutely. But House impeachment, and a subsequent Senate trial, would be nearly impossible in the time remaining.

Yes, there is a legitimate legal question about whether Trump could be impeached after he leaves office to ensure he could not serve again. But that’s a separate issue from the protection of the country until the Jan. 20 transfer of power.

For those who said before his 2016 election that Trump would mellow and behave more presidential once he assumed office, we now see that was fantasy. In less than two weeks, he will be gone. Until then, realistically, we can only hope that he does no more harm.