After Coup Attempt, LGBTQ+ Politicians, Orgs. Call for Trump's Removal

After a mob of terrorists provoked by President Trump attacked the U.S. Capitol Wednesday, many LGBTQ+ organizations and politicians are calling for an immediate end to the Trump presidency with an invocation of the 25th Amendment or impeachment.

Rep. David Cicilline of Rhode Island was one politician leading calls for Trump to be removed immediately. "Vice President Pence can help put down this attempted coup if he wants to," Cicilline tweeted Wednesday. "I'm circulating a letter urging him to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office. If he doesn't, then Congress should go ahead and impeach the President." He and the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Pence urging him to invoke the 25th.

Thursday he, along with Rep. Ted Lieu and Rep. Jamie Raskin, introduced Articles of Impeachment. Rep. Mondaire Jones, who just became one of the first out Black men elected to Congress, also signed on to the articles in support.

In a statement, Rep. Jones said, "We must ensure that this is Donald Trump's last opportunity to do harm. That's why I'm proud to join my colleagues in calling for impeachment. Hundreds, if not thousands, of Donald Trumps in the Republican Party seek to ascend to higher office, and we must send them a message that no one is above the law."

Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin also joined in support for impeachment. "The @VP and the Cabinet have a duty to this nation to invoke the 25th Amendment & remove the President," he tweeted. "If he doesn't, Congress will have to impeach @realDonaldTrump, again."

Several prominent LGBTQ+ organizations are also calling for Trump to be removed from office immediately. Alphonso David, president of the HRC, issued a statement that read in part, "The Human Rights Campaign urgently calls for the immediate removal of President Donald Trump from office. President Trump bears responsibility for Wednesday's insurrection at the United States Capitol and the attempted coup of our government in which four people died.

"In the months since the free and fair presidential election, President Trump has advanced knowingly false claims to undermine and overturn the election results, a shameful violation of his sworn duty to uphold the Constitution of the United States and an interference with the peaceful transfer of power," his statement continued.

Other groups calling for impeachment or the use of the 25th Amendment include The National LGBTQ Task Force and Lambda Legal. Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey said in a statement that "We are better than this. To move forward we must begin by making the strongest statement possible and remove Trump from office using the power of the 25th Amendment."

Kevin Jennings, CEO of Lambda Legal, added in his own statement that "our democratic processes must be defended and we call upon our leaders to utilize any and all processes available to them, including the 25th Amendment, to ensure an orderly transition of power in accordance with the will of the American People."

The National Center for Lesbian Rights has also joined in the call to remove Trump. In a statement, Executive Director Imani Rupert-Gordon said that "given the gravity of the President's role in inciting yesterday's violent attack on our nation's Capitol, we urge immediate action both to remove President Trump pursuant to the 25th Amendment and to initiate impeachment proceedings to ensure that he is held accountable for his seditious actions and can never again hold elected public office."

And now more than 25 LGBTQ+ organizations have signed on to a letter spearheaded by GLAAD calling for Trump's immediate removal from office.

"As LGBTQ organizations and movement leaders, we call for the immediate and unequivocal removal of Donald Trump as President of the United States via the invoking of the 25th Amendment or by impeachment if necessary," the letter reads. "Our nation's security and the personal security of every American is in grave danger, and we cannot afford to sustain even another day with this destructive and seditious man in the White House."

GLAAD is also calling for Twitter and Facebook to ban Trump permanently. Former First Lady Michelle Obama has done so as well.