These Mass Staffer Resignations Are Actually an Act of Loyalty To Donald Trump

At least 11 high-profile members of Donald Trump’s administration have resigned in recent days, following the MAGA-led riots inside the Capitol building Wednesday. With less than two weeks to go before Trump is ejected from the White House and their replacements start coming in, what could be driving these people to leave now? Did they suddenly develop consciences and realize they couldn’t stand by a man who encouraged an insurrection against their own government?

No, of course not.

The much more realistic explanation is that their resignation is actually an act of loyalty to Trump while still giving the illusion of taking a stand—it’s win-win! (For them. It’s lose-lose for the rest of us.) By stepping down now, all of these people get to avoid having a hand in removing him from office.

Section four of the 25th Amendment allows for a president who is unfit or unwell to be removed from office. It requires the Vice President (who would then become Acting President) and a majority of “the principal officers of the executive departments” to sign off on the decision. So when you see department heads like Elaine Chao (transportation) and Betsy DeVos (education) leaving their posts, it is very likely because invocation of the 25th is being discussed and they don’t want to act one way or the other.

Section four also allows for the majority of another body such as Congress to sign along with the VP instead of the cabinet, but the House appears instead to be looking at impeachment (again!) as their approach.

Once again, it would be nice if they hurried up a bit.

(image: Brendan Smialowski / AFP)

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Vivian Kane

Vivian Kane (she/her) is the Senior News Editor at The Mary Sue, where she's been writing about politics and entertainment (and all the ways in which the two overlap) since the dark days of late 2016. Born in San Francisco and radicalized in Los Angeles, she now lives in Kansas City, Missouri, where she gets to put her MFA to use covering the local theatre scene. She is the co-owner of The Pitch, Kansas City’s alt news and culture magazine, alongside her husband, Brock Wilbur, with whom she also shares many cats.

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