Hubbell: Trump Is Unfit for Office. He Should Be Removed ASAP.
We should normalize through repetition the proposition that he can and should be removed as president, even though it's unlikely, just as he has normalized threats of war crimes.
By Robert B. Hubbell /Today’s Edition Newsletter
On Easter Sunday morning, Trump posted the following message on his social media platform:
Following his Easter morning social media post, Trump gave a number of interviews that repeated and extended the threat. He told ABC News that a peace deal was near, but that if it didn’t happen soon, there would be “very little” that was off-limits if a deal was not in place soon.
Trump said,
If it happens, it happens. And if it doesn’t, we’re blowing up the whole country.
Trump told the Wall Street Journal,
If they don’t do something by Tuesday evening, they won’t have any power plants and they won’t have any bridges standing,
Individually and collectively, these comments demonstrate that Trump is unfit for office. He should be removed ASAP.
War crimes, full stop. The only reasonable interpretation of Trump’s comments is that he is threatening to wage war against civilian populations and infrastructure, actions that constitute war crimes under international law. A threat to “blow up the whole country” has no military objective and should reasonably be interpreted as a threat against the Iranian people.
Moreover, Trump mocked Islam by punctuating his threat to commit war crimes with a blasphemous invocation of Islam’s core expression of gratitude to God, “Praise be to Allah.”
Finally, Trump’s use of the obscenity in “fuckin’ Strait of Hormuz” illustrates a lack of self-regulation that is incompatible with holding the office of President of the United States.
In a healthy democracy, Trump would be impeached by the House and convicted and removed by the Senate, or replaced under the procedures of the 25th Amendment.
Will either remedy happen? Not likely, but that does not mean we should refrain from stating the obvious: No other president would remain in office for a week after issuing such lunatic, reckless statements.
Media fails. The initial reporting of the American newspaper of record, the New York Times—like other major media outlets—did not publish Trump’s social media statement in full, even though the statement itself was news.
Failing to quote Trump’s statement was a serious error of judgment borne of . . . what? Lack of confidence in the ability of their readers to handle the truth? A double standard that applies uniquely to Trump? The normalization of Trump? The failure to appreciate the significance of a threat to commit war crimes, combined with an obscenity-laced mockery of Muslims?
Answer: All of the above.
(In mitigation, the NYTimes recovered its journalistic instincts by Sunday evening with a news analysis article on the front page that not only quoted the statement in full but identified the statement as threatening possible war crimes and put the statement in context of similar statements.
But major newspapers were not alone in failing to call out the precise words and dire nature of Trump’s theat. The response (so far) from congressional leadership has ranged from non-existent to milquetoast. Republican leadership has ignored the statement, while Senator Chuck Schumer issued the strongest condemnation (as of Sunday evening), which stated:
Happy Easter, America. As you head off to church and celebrate with friends and family, the President of the United States is ranting like an unhinged madman on social media. He’s threatening possible war crimes and alienating allies. This is who he is, but this is not who we are. Our country deserves so much better.
While it is true that our country deserves better, that is not the same as declaring Trump unfit to remain in office and demanding his removal.
This is not normal. I understand that it is unlikely that Trump will be removed, but just as Trump has normalized threats of war crimes through repetition, we should normalize the proposition that Trump can and should be removed as president.
The day may soon come when we must invoke the Constitution to remove or replace Trump. When that day arrives, it should not be the first time that the major media outlets and congressional leaders introduce that notion to the American public.
In the moment, it can sometimes be difficult to see obvious answers. Imagine, twenty years hence, when your children or grandchildren ask you how you reacted to Trump’s call to commit warm crimes against the Iranian people.
Unacceptable answers include, “Nothing,” “I don’t recall,” and “I criticized his statement to anyone who would listen.” Compare, “I called for his immediate removal as president and did everything I could to make that happen.”
Bottom line. Trump is unfit to hold the office of president, dangerously so. We should say so, preferably in words of one syllable. No artifice, no euphemisms, no double standards, no defeatism, no learned helplessness.
If we don’t call for his removal, what will our elected leaders think? We got a fair view of what they are (or are not) thinking on Sunday.
In fairness, Trump made his comment on a weekend that saw the overlap of three major religious observances. Let’s hope that Monday brings greater moral clarity. Trump has said he will destroy all bridges and power plants in Iran by Tuesday evening. There is time on Monday for members of Congress to make clear that such actions will result in his impeachment and removal from office.
Retired corportate attorney Robert B. Hubbell has been writing the “Today’s Edition Newsletter” since Feb. 2017. Subscribe here.
Image: Politico.