The 25th Amendment: A Selective Annotated Bibliography

Abstract This selective bibliography is intended to assist legal researchers in researching the 25th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.1 In addition to Article II, Clause 6, and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947,2 the 25th Amendment is part of the fundamental law governing presidential succession in the United States. This bibliography compiles books, book chapters, and law review articles to facilitate legal research in this area.3 When ratified in 1967, the 25th Amendment culminated nearly 175 years of Congressional effort to resolve Constitutional vagueness on certain procedure involving the temporary or permanent incapacitation of the president. While the 25th amendment did not fundamentally change the constitutional procedure of presidential succession, it did significantly clarify areas of uncertainty with the purpose of complying with the apparent intentions of the Framers of the Constitution on presidential succession.4 Since Donald Trump became president in January 2017, there has been an ongoing public debate over his provocative rhetoric and actions, and his reportedly dysfunctional presidency. In 2017, for example, questions arose about his emotional stability when he apparently tweeted threatening language involving nuclear weapons in response to statements made by Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea.5 In addition, significant concerns arose after an anonymous letter to the editor appeared in the New York Times, allegedly sent by a high-ranking administration official, stating he or she was part part of the “resistance” within the White House, which was attempting to block some of President Trump’s allegedly more dangerous actions. The author reported that there was a group of similarly situated White House officials who believe that the president was unfit for office and that there was an effort to remove Trump under the Section 4 of the 25th Amendment.6 More recently, former FBI Director Andrew McCabe revealed that Justice Department officials had sought to discuss the possibility of invoking the 25th Amendment with cabinet officials. Because of the critical importance of the issues involved for the nation today, this article includes sources discussing when the 25th Amendment can be invoked and whether Donald Trump’s pattern of statements and behavior could give cause to invoke the 25th Amendment. As current events suggest, the issue of whether Trump should be removed under the 25th Amendment is likely to remain an issue of public concern for the foreseeable future.