Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin reportedly held informal discussions with staffers on having President Donald Trump removed from office through the 25th Amendment after he instigated a violent insurrection by his supporters at the Capitol on Wednesday, according to CNBC.
However, the top Trump officials ultimately decided against invoking the constitutional provision reportedly due to concerns of angering the President’s base and that there wouldn’t be much time to carry out the proceedings before he has to leave office on January 20 anyway.
A formal official who was familiar with the discussions told CNBC that “the general plan now is to let the clock run out.”
“There will be a reckoning for this president, but it doesn’t need to happen in the next 13 days,” the person said.
Pompeo’s reported discussions on removing Trump strike a particularly ironic note given how he had initially helped the President try to delegitimize the 2020 election and claimed there would be “a smooth transition to a second Trump administration.”
Democrats have been pressuring Vice President Mike Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment ever since Trump inspired his supporters to attack and take over the Capitol building on Wednesday.
During a press conference on Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) warned of a potential second impeachment for Trump if Pence and Cabinet secretaries refuse to have the President removed.
“If the vice president and the Cabinet do not act, the Congress may be prepared to move forward with impeachment that is the overwhelming sentiment of my caucus and the American people,” Pelosi said.
