how the constitution defines the presidency of Donald Trump

how the constitution defines the presidency of Donald Trump

Rise of Donald Trump to power as the president of the USA in 2016 came as a shock to the majority of the Americans. The favorite of the Americans even as per the polls leading to the election predicted Clinton’s victory. After assuming the office of the president in 2017, President Donald Trump and other members of his government that he appointed have occasionally have made statements, acted in several ways that are considered antithetical as compared to the previous presidents and governments. Some people have alleged that some of these administrators’ words violate the constitution and the fundamental principles of the American constitutional tradition. This paper will discuss how the constitution defines the presidency of Donald Trump, considering all issues around him.

There are efforts made towards the removal of President Donald Trump from office. To remove the president from office should be guided by the constitution. Two probable grounds can be used to get rid of the president from the power, which is the use of 25th amendment and impeachment. The 25th amendment deals with presidential succession. It was adopted in 1967. The bill contains a provision that permits suspension of the president from office. Section 4 of this amendment states that “when the vice president and a majority of the principal executive or any other body like the congress may by law provide, transmits to the President Pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written affirmation that the President is incapable of executing the powers and roles of his office, the Vice President shall right away take over the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.”

The power to bring about the suspension of the president from office because of his incapability to carry out the powers and duties of his office rests with the vice president and a more significant part of the principal officers of the administrative departments. This section has never been invoked. Many people wonder if the section can be used to suspend Donald Trump; however; it is not likely to happen because of two reasons. The first reason is that section 4 contemplates the physical and mental incapacity of the president that can bar him from carrying the duties of his office. The section can only be applied when the president is unable to carry out his duties, and he is unable or not ready to give the written declaration called for by section 3. Section three provides that the president may willingly suspend his powers while he is incapacitated. On recovery, the president is free to resume his powers by writing to the president pro tempore of the Senate and the speaker of the house.

The 25th amendment can’t be invoked unless Donald Trump suffers a physical incapacity even if his conduct continues to be somewhat erratic and inappropriate as people accuse him of being. Because of this conduct, some people argue that he has some mental imbalance. Their argument cannot bring Mr Trump to the confines of section 4 of the amendment. Removing Donald Trump from office may appear very political, and it is unlikely that his current vice president and cabinet would seek to transmit his power to the vice president. Should they do so, Trump may not be ready to take the matter to the Congress whose majority are from the republican. The Republican voters fully support the president. The support may make the republican members of Congress reluctant to go against him.

The second way is through impeachment. The house of the legislature is mandated to remove the president from office after committing, “High crimes and misdemeanors” followed by trial and conviction in the Senate by a two-thirds vote.

As per article I, section 2, the House of Representatives is vested with the sole authority to impeach. The Senate enjoys the sole authority to try all impeachments. Both houses shall only do that after taking an oath or affirmation. The chief justice should preside the trial of the president, and the trial should be done after two-thirds of members concur. The judgement made on impeachments is limited to elimination from office and barring to hold any honorable office in the USA. However, the person is accountable and subject to condemnation, trial and reprimand as provided by the law.

When dealing with Donald Trump’s presidency, impeachment would be the last resort. While for the president to be impeached requires that he must have committed high crime and misdemeanors, the phrase is legally ambiguous. Practically, the impeachment process is political rather than legal. As per constitution, high crimes and misdemeanors are actions that derail and weaken the liberty and equality of individuals and the capacity of other branches of government. Additionally, to impeach, try and remove the president is entrusted to political institutions but not the legal ones. This makes it hard for the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

Historically, there have been three attempts of impeachment. Those who faced impeachment trials are President Johnson (1868), President Nixon (1974), and President Bill Clinton (1998). President Johnson faced impeachment for violating the congregational statute. Although he had violated the act, the context in which the impeachment arose was very political same as with Donald Trump’s case. President Johnson was impeached by the House of Representatives, but not convicted by the required two-thirds vote of the Senate. He survived by only one vote margin. With Donald trump enjoying the majority of the political class support, he is not likely to be removed from power on observing the right process.

Concerning the projected impeachment of Donald Trump, if the political will to embark on that course is there, several grounds can make it possible. Some of the reasonable grounds could be; violation of emoluments clauses of the constitution, Violation of his oath of office and of the Take Care Clause of the Constitution by intentionally sabotaging the Affordable Care Act. Obstruction of justice for impeding investigations into the alleged interference of Russia in the 2016 presidential election, possible collusion by the Trump campaign or by Trump himself in that interference, and other potential crimes related to Russia (like money laundering and influence peddling). Continuous attacks on the democratic process, democratic institutions, and democratic values as embodied in the constitution, such as the integrity of the electoral process, independence of the judiciary, equality, and freedom of the press. However, with this twist taking a political stance, Trump is likely to survive the shocker. The members of the Republican are likely to protect him because of political affiliation.

In conclusion, in my perspective, it will be not easy to remove President Trump from office because his presidency is legally supported by the constitution. There are grounds to initiate the process of impeaching the president, but it is subject to confirmation by the final jurisdiction recognized by the constitution. The sole power to impeach the president lies with the House of Representatives. The Senate tries the impeachment. It can only be executed upon support by two-thirds of the members of Senate. Because Donald Trump has massive support in the houses, it will be difficult for him to be ousted from office. He enjoys enough support from the republicans. Therefore, according to me, it is not a smooth ride to oust President Donald Trump because the constitution is supporting his presidency.