By Robert Simels
Originally published in amNewYork on
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Robert Simels asks whether the country has reached the point where removing President Trump from office is necessary to protect democracy. He opens with the 1954 Army McCarthy hearings, when attorney Joseph Welch asked Senator Joseph McCarthy whether he had any sense of decency, a moment that marked the beginning of the end of McCarthyism. He sets that against a statement he attributes to the President on October 7, 2026: "I can do what I want, if I want."
Simels argues that the institutions meant to check a president have not done so. He criticizes lifetime appointments to the Supreme Court and the confirmation testimony that justices gave about Roe v. Wade. He faults Republican leaders in Congress, pointing to the fight over releasing the Epstein files, and he criticizes law firms and business leaders who, in his view, have bowed to the administration. He describes the clemency process as appearing to be a "cash and carry business."
The commentary also points to the cost of the attack on Iran, which Simels writes has taken the lives of at least 19 American soldiers and injured almost 1,000, and to the President's reported remarks that Iran could "take out" Los Angeles or San Diego. He notes that the President's core base is about 35 percent of the country.
Simels concludes that Cabinet members know their duty under the 25th Amendment, which lets the Vice President and a majority of the Cabinet declare a president unable to serve, and that they have failed to act.
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This page is a summary prepared for robertsimels.com. The full commentary was published by amNewYork and remains on amNewYork's site.
Robert Simels. Robert Simels hosts the podcast Injustice for All and serves as a consultant on criminal justice matters. He is no longer practicing law.
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