scorecard
  1. Home
  2. Politics
  3. world
  4. news
  5. Lindsey Graham threatened to seek to invoke 25th Amendment to kick Trump out of office during the Capitol riot, new book says

Lindsey Graham threatened to seek to invoke 25th Amendment to kick Trump out of office during the Capitol riot, new book says

Tom Porter   

Lindsey Graham threatened to seek to invoke 25th Amendment to kick Trump out of office during the Capitol riot, new book says
  • Details of a call Sen. Lindsey Graham made to the White House on January 6, 2021 feature in a new book.
  • Graham threatened to seek to invoke the 25th Amendment, the book, "This Will Not Pass," says.

Sen. Lindsey Graham in a call to the White House during the Capitol riot said he'd seek to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove President Donald Trump from office if he didn't condemn the protesters, according to a new book.

Details from "This Will Not Pass," a new book by New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns were published by Axios Wednesday.

The book chronicles the final days of the Trump presidency, and President Joe Biden's first year in office.

The authors claim that Graham — a key congressional ally of Trump — furiously called White House counsel Pat Cipollone as pro-Trump rioters attacked the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Graham said in the call that he would be "asking you for the 25th Amendment" if Trump did not do more to stop the rioters, the book said.

Graham was among the lawmakers who had gathered in the Capitol for the ceremony certifying Biden's victory in the 2020 election, and was taken to safety as rioters breached Capitol security.

As rioters battled police officers and gained access to the Capitol, Trump remained silent for 40 minutes before eventually calling on the rioters to disperse, but also repeating the election fraud lies that fueled the attack.

According to the book, Graham had expressed hope that the shock of the attack could help to bring Americans together.

"People will say, 'I don't want to be associated with that.' ... There will be a rallying effect for a while, the country says: 'We're better than this,'" Graham said.

The 25th Amendment of the US Constitution gives the cabinet and vice president the power to remove a president if he or she is unable to "discharge the powers and duties" of the presidency.

It was created so officials close to the president could intervene and transfer the president's powers if he or she is incapacitated by mental or physical illness.

Graham in the wake of the riot suggested that his alliance with Trump was over, remarking "count me out", in a speech in the Senate the day after the riot.

But when Trump was impeached in January 2021 for allegedly inciting the riot, Graham did not vote to convict.

As Trump's grip over the party has remained firm and he stirs rumors of another bid for the presidency, Graham's stance has further softened and he has said that Trump is essential to the future success of the GOP.

READ MORE ARTICLES ON



Popular Right Now



Advertisement