Can Donald Trump Fire Mike Pence?: Can President Donald Trump really fire Vice President Mike Pence? Let’s delve into this very provocative question and see what we come up with.
Well, according to the Constitution of the United States – Article II, Section 1, which speaks to the Office and Term of the President and Vice President, reads thus:
The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows:-
Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector.
This section clearly explains how the President and Vice President are appointed to their offices.
Also in Article II, Section 4, with reference to the Removal of the President or Vice President, it states that:
The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
The US Constitution only allows the Vice President to be forcibly removed from office via impeachment due to a high crime or misdemeanor, just like the President. Therefore, only Congress can forcibly remove a Vice President from office, as we have read excerpts from Article II of the Constitution above.
Impeachment is solely the responsibility of Congress, so the President cannot unilaterally impeach the Vice President, or any other elected official in the federal government.
In other words, the House of Representatives has the power to start impeachment proceedings and the Senate has the power to perform the impeachment trial. If the Senate rules to convict the elected official, they are removed from office.
Therefore, in light of the above information and clarification, according to the Constitution, President Donald Trump cannot fire Vice President Mike Pence.
Contributed by Nichola Panton