Who Is Calling for the 25th Amendment Against Trump?

The calls to invoke the 25th Amendment against President Donald Trump in April 2026 came from a strikingly broad coalition: more than 50 House Democrats, several Senate Democrats, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, the NAACP, the watchdog group Common Cause, and a number of prominent conservative voices including Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, and Alex Jones. The trigger was a series of Truth Social posts over Easter weekend in which Trump threatened to destroy Iranian power plants, bridges, and civilian infrastructure if Tehran did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

What Set Off the Calls

On Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026, Trump posted a message renewing his threat to bomb Iranian infrastructure, telling Tehran to “Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell — JUST WATCH!”¹ A follow-up post read, “Praise be to Allah.”²

Two days later, Trump escalated. He wrote that “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again” if Iran did not meet an 8 p.m. deadline, and declared that “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran.”³⁴ Legal experts and lawmakers characterized the threats as potential war crimes under the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit collective punishment of civilians and attacks on infrastructure essential to civilian survival.⁵

Democrats in Congress

Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut was among the first, posting on X on Easter Sunday: “If I were in Trump’s Cabinet, I would spend Easter calling constitutional lawyers about the 25th Amendment. This is completely, utterly unhinged.”² Sen. Ed Markey called on the House to begin impeachment proceedings.⁵

Within hours of the April 7 posts, more than 50 House Democrats publicly demanded either the 25th Amendment or impeachment. Rep. Diana DeGette of Colorado said “25th Amendment proceedings must begin immediately,” citing threats of “war crimes against the entirety of Iranian civilization.” Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin wrote, “25th Amendment RIGHT NOW! Trump is too unhinged, dangerous, and deranged to have the nuclear codes!” Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan said, “It’s time to invoke the 25th Amendment. This maniac should be removed from office.” Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico described the threats as potential crimes and said, “It’s time to invoke the 25th.”³

House Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark, and Pete Aguilar issued a joint statement calling the threats “reckless” and demanding an immediate congressional session. Rep. Nancy Pelosi cited Trump’s “instability” and called on the Cabinet to act.⁵ On April 8, Rep. John B. Larson sent a formal letter to Vice President JD Vance calling Trump’s rhetoric “nihilistic egomania” and urging Vance to “take immediate action to rein in the President and invoke the 25th Amendment.”⁶

Gov. JB Pritzker

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker was the most prominent state executive to join the calls. On April 7, he wrote on X: “It’s past time. The 25th Amendment must be invoked,” describing Trump as “a deranged man threatening to wipe out an entire country.”⁴ It was not his first such call. In October 2025, Pritzker had urged invocation after Trump posted what was described as a fake AI video, writing at the time: “There is something genuinely wrong with this man.”⁷

The NAACP and Common Cause

On April 7, the NAACP took what it called an unprecedented step in its 117-year history, formally asking Vance and the Cabinet to invoke Section 4. NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson said, “This president is unfit, unwell, and unhinged,” and the organization cited “alarming signs of President Trump’s deteriorating health and increasingly delusional behavior.”⁸⁹

Common Cause launched a parallel campaign the same day, releasing a formal position paper and a petition. President and CEO Virginia Kase Solomón said Trump “no longer possesses the mental faculties required to faithfully execute his duties,” pointing to “profanity-laced rants on social media,” an inability to “speak coherently,” and an announced “intent to commit war crimes.” The group also urged military leaders to “refuse any illegal order” and said Congress should move to impeachment if the Cabinet did not act.¹⁰¹¹

Conservatives and MAGA Figures

What set April 2026 apart from earlier criticism was the involvement of figures from Trump’s own political base. Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, once one of Trump’s most vocal defenders, posted: “25TH AMENDMENT!!! Not a single bomb has dropped on America. We cannot kill an entire civilization. This is evil and madness.”¹² She also urged administration officials who claimed to be Christian to “fall on their knees and beg forgiveness from God.”¹

Conservative podcaster Tucker Carlson told Trump’s military aides on his show to “reject any plan to slaughter Iranian civilians, including through the potential use of a nuclear weapon,” and said, “Now it’s time to say no, absolutely not, and say it directly to the president, no.” Carlson wrote on X that “desecrating Easter was the first step toward nuclear war.”¹³

Candace Owens posted a screenshot of one of Trump’s Truth Social messages and wrote, “It may be time to put Grandpa up in a home.” She called the administration’s Iran policy “satanic” and urged Congress to “have the Mad King Trump removed.” Radio host Alex Jones, a longtime Trump ally, publicly called for the 25th Amendment and said on his show: “Trump’s mad that he’s wrong. He’s mad that he got set up by Israel. Once a man, twice a child. This is dementia.”¹⁴ Trump responded on April 9 by calling Jones, Owens, and others “losers” and questioning their intelligence.¹⁵

Rep. Jamie Raskin’s Procedural Push

Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, took the campaign in a formal direction. On April 10, he sent a letter to the White House physician demanding a “comprehensive neuropsychological assessment of the President, including a formal cognitive screening instrument,” along with a report on any medications Trump was taking and their possible cognitive side effects. Raskin said the country had “indisputably entered the realm of profound medical difficulty and concern.”¹⁶ He also cited Trump’s conduct at the White House Easter Egg Roll, where the president reportedly gave a “disjointed and graphic account of military operations” to an audience of children and appeared to struggle physically.¹⁷

On April 14, Raskin introduced H.R. 8275, the Commission on Presidential Capacity to Discharge the Powers and Duties of the Office Act. The bill would create a 17-member independent commission under Section 4 to evaluate a president’s mental and physical fitness, though any finding for temporary removal would still require the vice president’s agreement.¹⁸ The bill launched with 65 original co-sponsors and had grown to 84 by June 2026.¹⁹

Why the Calls Don’t Translate Into Removal

None of the people calling for the 25th Amendment can invoke it. Section 4 requires the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to sign a written declaration that the president cannot serve; the vice president then becomes acting president. If the president contests it, Congress must decide, and removal takes a two-thirds vote in both chambers.²⁰

Vice President JD Vance has shown no indication of willingness to act, and Trump’s Cabinet members are widely described as loyalists. Even if invocation occurred and Trump contested it, removal would require two-thirds votes in a Congress where Republicans hold the majority.² Section 4 has never been invoked in American history. Common Cause acknowledged that fact but argued the amendment was “ratified specifically to ensure continuity and accountability in the executive branch” during exactly this kind of crisis.²¹

The White House dismissed the campaign. Spokesperson Davis Ingle called the Democrats’ remarks “pathetic” and “deranged” and said “President Trump is working tirelessly on behalf of the American people.”²

1
France 24. Trump Draws Criticism With Fiery Easter Message on Iran
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PolitiFact. Trump Iran Truth Social 25th Amendment Vance
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The Hill. Democrats Call for Trump Removal via 25th Amendment or Impeachment
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Chicago Sun-Times. JB Pritzker Calls for 25th Amendment Over Trump Iran Threats
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The Guardian. Trump Iran Threat Truth Social
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Office of Congressman John B. Larson. Larson Letter Regarding 25th Amendment
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WBEZ. JB Pritzker Calls for 25th Amendment Over Trump Iran Threats
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NAACP. Unprecedented First: NAACP Calls for President Trump to Be Removed From Office Under 25th Amendment
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BET. NAACP Calls for 25th Amendment Removal of Trump in Historic First
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Common Cause. Watchdog Group Calls for Trump Cabinet to Invoke 25th Amendment
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Common Cause. Invoke the 25th Amendment and Remove President Trump From Office
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The Hill. Greene Calls for 25th Amendment Over Trump Iran Threat
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NBC News. Trump MAGA Allies Push Back on Iran War
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NBC News. President Bashes MAGA Media Figures Over Iran War Criticism
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ABC News. Trump Blasts MAGA Influencers Over Iran Split
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Axios. Raskin Demands Trump Cognitive Test in 25th Amendment Push
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House Democrats Judiciary Committee. Ranking Member Raskin Demands White House Physician Evaluate Trump’s Cognitive Fitness
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Axios. Trump 25th Amendment Impeachment Iran Democrats
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Congress.gov. H.R. 8275 Cosponsors
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Legal Information Institute. Twenty-Fifth Amendment
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Common Cause. Trump Is Unfit to Serve