A group of 36 leading US doctors with expertise in mental health has issued a statement calling for Donald Trump's removal from office, citing alarming signs of cognitive decline. The doctors, including two Nobel Prize recipients, warned that the president is 'increasingly a danger to the public' and entered their statement into the Congressional Record.
Forensic psychiatrist Dr Bandy X Lee, who first raised concerns about Trump's mental health in 2016, told The Independent: 'I believe it is no longer difficult for even the layperson to see that he is in need of immediate, even hospital-level, care.' The doctors' intervention follows a series of incidents, including Trump sharing AI-generated memes of political opponents and appearing to nod off during televised briefings.
An analysis by The Washington Post of a televised cabinet meeting found that Trump's eyes were closed for extended periods on nine occasions. The White House dismissed the observation, with its Rapid Response account posting: 'He was blinking, you absolute moron.' The Daily Beast also reported that Trump's late-night social media activity meant he could have had a full night's sleep on only five days in April.
On 11 May, constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein and former presidential candidate Ralph Nader wrote an open letter to Congress urging legislation under the 25th Amendment, which allows for the transfer of power if a president is incapacitated. They wrote: 'Every day Mr Trump remains in office is a roll of the dice with the survival of the species.'
