Mace calls on Harris to invoke 25th Amendment after Biden exits presidential race

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD)- U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) called on Vice President Kamala Harris to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove President Biden from office, arguing Biden lacks the “cognitive ability” to finish out his term.

It comes as Biden, 81, announced Sunday that he would not seek reelection amid escalating pressure from Democratic colleagues to step aside following a disastrous debate performance last month.

Mace said she plans to introduce a resolution on Monday urging Harris and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment and for Harris to take over duties as acting president immediately.

“If Joe Biden does not have the cognitive ability to seek reelection, he does not have the cognitive ability to serve the remainder of his term,” Mace wrote in a post on social media.

According to the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the vice president and a majority of Cabinet members can vote to declare the president “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.” The vice president then assumes the president’s duties in an acting capacity.

“We can’t do it as Congress, and so, my resolution is simply expressing the sentiment of encouraging [Harris] to do so because Joe Biden, I believe, is a national security risk,” Mace told reporters on a call Monday morning. “This is common sense. If you’re unable to run for reelection, you’re unable to run the country.”

Biden has not given any indication that he would resign from the presidency before his term ends on January 20, 2025.

In his letter withdrawing from the race, Biden said he would now focus “solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”

He has endorsed Harris to become the Democratic Party’s nominee.