'This cannot go on in a democracy': Kentucky politics professors call for Trump removal

Louisville Courier Journal

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —Following armed rioters violently storming the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, a group of Kentucky political science professors are calling for the removal of President Donald Trump from office.

An open letter from political scientists, which started circulating Wednesday and had roughly 150 pages of signatures by Thursday afternoon, called on Congress to impeach Trump again and remove him from office or for Vice President Mike Pence and the Cabinet to remove Trump by invoking the 25th Amendment of the Constitution.

The 25th Amendment, ratified in 1967, outlines succession for when a president dies, resigns, is removed or becomes incapacitated. The amendment also states a president can be removed if the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet finds they are “unable to discharge the powers and duties” of the office.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., both said Thursday that Pence must invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office. The call has been reiterated by myriad Congress members, including GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois.

One of the signatories of the open letter, University of Kentucky politics professor Emily Beaulieu Bacchus, told The Courier Journal on Thursday she put her name on the document because Trump is using presidential powers to "actually undermine U.S. democracy and democratic institutions."

Beaulieu Bacchus said she has been reticent to weigh in given university professors' reputation as "liberal indoctrinators." But as a comparative politics expert who has researched democracies and elections across the world, she said she felt it was important to speak up.

"I have just felt increasingly like it is irresponsible for me as someone who is actually an expert in the things that are happening to not make people aware, to the extent I can, of what is wrong with what is happening," Beaulieu Bacchus said.

Jason Gainous, a professor who serves as the chair for the University of Louisville's political science department, also signed the open letter. He told The Courier Journal on Thursday that "what happened (Wednesday) is a direct result of (Trump's) rhetoric."

For Gainous, Trump's refusal to deploy the D.C. National Guard — according to some reports, Pence facilitated the move — to assist Capitol Police and quell the riots that exemplify why he needs to be removed.

"If you're not able to use your authority as commander in chief to stop these terrorists from putting the lives of our elected officials in danger, then you are not capable of executing and performing the duties of the office," Gainous said.

The rioters remained in the Capitol for hours Wednesday afternoon with both chambers of Congress being forced to go into recess and lockdown. In the early hours of Thursday morning, Congress finished certifying the Electoral College vote for President-elect Joe Biden, who is set to be inaugurated on Jan. 20.

A woman was shot inside the Capitol and taken to a hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.

Trump and his allies have repeatedly and falsely claimed that there was widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election and that the election was rigged.

And after fanning the flames of the riots and being temporarily suspended from his social media accounts, Trump finally said there will be an "orderly transition" on Jan. 20, while also saying: "I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out."

Outside of those who signed the letter, Josh Douglas, a University of Kentucky College of Law professor who specializes in election law, also called for Trump's removal.

"Generally, a president should be allowed to serve out his term," Douglas wrote in a statement Wednesday night. "But these are not normal times and Trump has shown that he is incapable of bringing the country together to uphold American democracy."

Gainous said that while he worries about what potential negative consequences would come from Trump's removal, allowing him to stay in office could cause greater harm.

"If I believed that he was not going to incite more violence between now and Jan. 20, then I would say don't invoke the 25th (Amendment) because doing that in itself might invoke more violence," Gainus said. "But on the other hand, I can't say I trust that he won't."

Meanwhile, Beaulieu Bacchus said it is imperative to set a precedence now of not allowing presidents inspire an insurrection with impunity.

"If the only consequence from these kinds of actions is that they're not successful, other political actors will absolutely employ them," Beaulieu Bacchus said. "And so, to me, no matter what potential backlash we face, someone has to step up right now and say this cannot go on in a democracy."

Contact Ben Tobin at bjtobin@gannett.com and 502-377-5675 or follow on Twitter @Ben__Tobin.