US lawmakers call for Donald Trump’s immediate removal after his ‘incitement’ of Capitol attack
- Democratic leaders say Congress should move quickly with impeachment if Vice-President Mike Pence and cabinet do not act – and Pence reportedly says he won’t
- Administration officials start to submit their resignations, including Trump’s leading China adviser and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao
US President Donald Trump faced growing calls for his urgent removal from office on Thursday, one day after thousands of his supporters attacked the Capitol building in an attempt to stop the vice-president and a joint session of Congress from formalising Trump’s loss in the November presidential election.
“What happened at the US Capitol yesterday was an insurrection against the United States, incited by the president,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, released hours after Congress finished certifying Trump’s loss. “This president should not hold office one day longer.”
“If the vice-president and the cabinet refuse to stand up, Congress should reconvene to impeach the president,” Schumer added.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for Vice-President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment of the Constitution – which provides a procedure to remove from office a president who can no longer carry out his duties – “immediately”. She said Congress should impeach the president if Pence and the cabinet would not act. Her call for removal and potential impeachment suggests Congress may move quickly to try to oust Trump, as the speaker controls the agenda of the House.
“In calling for this seditious act, the president has committed an unspeakable assault on our nation and our people,” Pelosi said.
Schumer said he and Pelosi placed a call Pence on Thursday morning — a sign of how quickly they are trying to move — but were left on hold for 25 minutes and then told that the vice-president would not come to the phone.