Donald Trump Followers Push Plan To Unseat Joe Biden And Kamala And Reclaim The Presidency Without An Election

Former President Donald Trump is knee-deep in his efforts to reclaim the White House in 2024. But his followers have

Tristan Green

Oct 6, 2023

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Former President Donald Trump is knee-deep in his efforts to reclaim the White House in 2024. But his followers have come up with a different plan that could involve restoring him to the Presidency without waiting for the election. It involves legally unseating President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

But what is this plan, and can it work? Here’s what we know about the “backdoor” tactic being pushed by many Trump supporters.

Donald Trump Followers Push Bizarre ‘Backdoor’ Plan To Restore Him To Presidency

Followers of Donald Trump are looking for any way to restore their favorite politician to his position of power. And they think they have come up with a way to make it work: through establishing him as Speaker of the House.

As Speaker of the House, Trump would then be third in line for the Presidency if the President and Vice President were to vacate, be removed, or be otherwise incapacitated in their roles. The House is the chamber that drafts and approves articles of impeachment. Therefore the idea is that Trump could impeach the duo. Then, all that would be left is for the Senate to convict. And Trump would become the President by default.

It’s a scenario that has gained popularity over the past few days as people mull a replacement for Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Trump has already declared his support for Jim Jordan to succeed McCarthy. But that doesn’t mean that his followers are giving up on their roundabout strategy to restore Trump to the Presidency without waiting for the 2024 election.

But Can It Work?

Of course, the question remains: can Donald Trump regain the Presidency through the Speakership?

Theoretically, the pathway is possible. As third in line for the Presidency, the Speaker is considered a natural heir to the role if the President and Vice President are removed or otherwise incapacitated. And there are currently impeachment inquiries in the House against Biden.

However, a few things are standing in the way of this unlikely scenario. First, in order to remove Biden and Harris from their roles, they would have to be impeached by the House. As a theoretical Speaker of a highly divided House, this would be a tough sell for a Speaker Trump. And beyond that, the Senate would have to convict in an impeachment trial. Since the Senate is currently controlled by a narrow Democratic majority, that scenario is vanishingly unlikely.

But perhaps more important, there is no path to Speakership for Trump the way things currently stand. While Republicans are pushing hard to bring the Washington outsider in for the newly vacated role of Speaker, their own rules stand in the way. The Republican Conference Rules for the 118th Congress were voted on by all current sitting Republicans. One rule states, “A member of the Republican Leadership shall step aside if indicted for a felony for which a sentence of two or more years’ imprisonment may be imposed.”

Trump is facing 91 felony charges, most of which carry significant prison sentences if he were to be found guilty. On that rule alone, he is ineligible to become Speaker. The Republicans could theoretically find a way to change that rule. But with the House as divided as it is, it’s unlikely. This means any chance of getting Donald Trump into the White House through the backdoor is slim to none.