Trump's Iran post causes talk of his impeachment, removal to erupt among Hill Democrats

· Axios

Calls for President Trump's removal from office reached a fever pitch among congressional Democrats on Tuesday after he threatened that "a whole civilization will die tonight" in a post about Iran.

Visit syntagm.co.za for more information.

Why it matters: Lawmakers are openly floating impeachment or even removal via the 25th Amendment — a far cry from the strict taboo around such procedures at the start of Trump's second term.

  • With the Democratic grassroots increasingly raging at what they see as corruption and Constitutional violations by the Trump administration, their allies on Capitol Hill have warmed to more drastic methods.
  • Trump's strikes on Venezuela and now Iran this year have galvanized Democratic lawmakers around measures like impeachment.

Driving the news: Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.), the Iranian-American president of House Democrats' freshman class, was the first out of the gate on Monday following Trump's threat of "Hell" for Iran on Easter Sunday.

  • "The 25th Amendment exists for a reason; his Cabinet should use it. The fate of U.S. troops, the Iranian people, and the very foundation of our global system are at stake," she said in a statement.
  • Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said in a post on X: "This is not ok. Invoke the 25th amendment. Impeach. Remove. This unhinged lunatic must be removed from office."

Matters escalated on Tuesday after Trump posted on Truth Social: "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again."

What they're saying: Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) and Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.) all explicitly called to invoke the 25th Amendment to the Constitution.

  • So did Reps. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Julie Johnson (D-Texas) and Johnny Olszewski (D-Md.).
  • The amendment allows the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to temporarily remove a president who is "unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office."
  • The removal would then have to be sustained by a vote of two-thirds of each chamber of Congress.

Zoom in: Some House Democrats, including Omar and Reps. Nikema Williams (D-Ga.) and Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), re-upped longstanding calls for Trump's impeachment, as did Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.).

Many other lawmakers made clear references to the 25th Amendment in their statements on Trump's post.

  • Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.), the ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, said: "The President's cabinet should take notice."
  • "Trump must go—and Republicans, whether in the Cabinet or Congress, must join Democrats in using any and all constitutional powers at our collective disposal to end this illegal war," said Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.).
  • Said Rep. Seth Magaziner (D-R.I.) in a post on X: "The President's enablers must wake up to the fact that he is becoming increasingly erratic and dangerous, and our country needs new leadership."

What we're hearing: Rank-and-file lawmakers are coordinating on potential organized action, two senior House Democrats and a senior aide familiar with the matter told Axios.

  • One of the senior House Democrats told Axios there are "rumblings" about forcing an impeachment vote against Trump or sending a letter to the Cabinet urging them to invoke the 25th Amendment.
  • Those conversations have not yet reached the leadership level, according to the sources.
  • House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and other top Democrats have focused their attention on forcing an Iran war powers vote later this month.

The other side: "This is pathetic. Democrats have been talking about impeaching President Trump since before he was even sworn into office," White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told Axios.

  • "The Democrats in Congress are deranged, weak, and ineffective, which is why their approval ratings are at historic lows."

The intrigue: Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), a retiring centrist who often breaks with Trump but also advocates an interventionist foreign policy, told Axios the president is "negotiating Trump style."

  • "The Persian civilization will thrive again when from under the yoke of the Ayatollahs," he said.
  • Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), a onetime Trump stalwart who has increasingly broken with him on issues like Iran and the Epstein files, called for invoking the 25th Amendment in a post on X.

Reality check: None of this is happening without substantial support from congressional Republicans and a Cabinet filled with Trump loyalists, which even some Democrats acknowledge.

  • Said McBride: "We have to beat the drum that GOP members have the power to stop this. There are several ways. They need to choose one, but they could act now and stop all of this."
  • But "Republicans remain zombie-like acolytes," acknowledged Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee.

Read full story at source