House Democrats File Bill to Form 25th Amendment Commission to Assess Trump’s Mental Fitness

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Fifty House Democrats led by Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) have sponsored a bill that would form a commission to assess President Donald Trump’s mental fitness for office, pursuant to the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Earlier this month, Raskin sent a letter formally requesting Capt. Sean P. Barbabella, physician to the president, to “conduct a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment” of Trump and send the results to Congress. In the letter, Raskin mentioned multiple examples of recent “incoherent, volatile, profane, deranged, and threatening” comments by Trump that he argued exhibited what experts said were “signs consistent with dementia and cognitive decline.”

Among the incidents Raskin cited were recent Truth Social posts that made alarming threats about Iran and the White House Easter Egg Roll, during wheich he talked about the war in front of the children.

Axios Congress reporter Andrew Solender reported on Raskin’s bill Tuesday, pointing out the obvious fact that it was a “long shot” because Republicans still have the majority control of both the House and Senate “and Trump could simply veto it.”

The text of the 1o-page bill spells out how a commission, as authorized by the 25th Amendment, would be created from a bipartisan group of appointees. As Solender reported:

The details: The body would have two members each appointed by the Senate Majority and Minority Leaders, the House Speaker and the House Minority Leader.

It would include four former “high-ranking executive branch officials” — specifically vice presidents, secretaries of state, defense and treasury, attorneys general and surgeons general — appointed by Democrats and another four appointed by Republicans.

Those 16 commissioners would then vote to appoint another person — either another high-ranking former official or a physician — to serve as chair.

This commission would “carry out a medical examination of the President to determine whether the President is mentally or physically unable to discharge the powers and duties of the office,” the text of the bill says.

Raskin issued a statement highlighting the constitutional authority behind the bill.

“The Constitution explicitly vests Congress with the authority to create a body that will guarantee the successful continuity of government by responding to presidential incapacity to discharge the powers and duties of office,” he said. “We have a solemn duty to play our defined role under the 25th Amendment by setting up this body to act alongside the Vice President and the Cabinet.”

“Public trust in Donald Trump’s ability to meet the duties of his office has dropped to unprecedented lows as he threatens to destroy entire civilizations,” Raskin added.

The White House fired back with a similar retort as it had for Raskin’s original letter to the White House physician.

“Lightweight Jamie Raskin is a stupid person’s idea of a smart person,” said White House spokesperson Davis Ingle. “President Trump’s sharpness, unmatched energy, and historic accessibility stand in stark contrast to what we saw during the past four years when Democrats like Raskin intentionally covered up Joe Biden’s serious mental and physical decline from the American people.”

Solender’s report concluded by emphasizing the “[r]eality check” that “[e]ven in the unlikely event the bill passed, removing Trump would still be a long shot,” because “Vice President [JD] Vance — a Trump loyalist — would have to sign off on the commission’s findings and remove the president temporarily.”

If that did happen, Congress would then be able to vote after 21 days had passed to make Trump’s temporary removal a permanent one if at least two-thirds majorities in both the House and Senate voted in support.

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