第25修正案：罷免總統(tǒng)是可能的，但也很艱難

The anonymous author of an Op-Ed article in The New York Times wrote this week that there were “early whispers” among President Trump’s advisers about trying to remove Mr. Trump from the presidency by invoking Section 4 of the 25th Amendment, which provides a process to declare that the president is unfit for office.

《紐約時報》一篇觀點文章的匿名作者于本周寫道，在特朗普總統(tǒng)的顧問中間，“早有人悄悄談起”援引憲法第25修正案的第四款，把特朗普趕下總統(tǒng)之位，該修正案提供了一種程序，可以宣布總統(tǒng)無法履行職務。

Such a move would be unprecedented, and the author of the essay writes that the discussions did not move forward because “no one wanted to precipitate a constitutional crisis.”

這樣的舉動將是史無前例的，文章的作者寫道，討論沒有向前推進，因為“沒有人想引發(fā)憲法危機”。

The amendment, adopted by the states 51 years ago, provides a complex, difficult process for the removal of a sitting president. Here is a brief history of the 25th Amendment and an explanation of how it operates.

該修正案在51年前由各州通過，它為撤銷現(xiàn)任總統(tǒng)提供了一個復雜而艱難的過程。以下是第25修正案的簡要歷史及其運作方式的解釋。

What is the 25th Amendment?

什么是第25修正案?

The 25th Amendment to the Constitution is primarily designed to clarify the presidential order of succession.

憲法第25修正案主要是為了澄清總統(tǒng)的接替順序。

The first section of the amendment explains what should happen if the president dies, resigns or is removed from office: The vice president becomes president immediately.

修正案的第一款解釋了如果總統(tǒng)去世、辭職或被免職將會發(fā)生什么：副總統(tǒng)即刻成為總統(tǒng)。

The second section makes it clear that when there is “a vacancy in the office of vice president,” the president shall nominate a replacement, who will take office once he or she is confirmed by majorities in both houses of Congress.

第二款明確指出，當“副總統(tǒng)職位出現(xiàn)空缺”時，總統(tǒng)應提名一名替代者，一旦他或她被國會兩院的多數(shù)人確認，就可以上任。

The third section allows the president to temporarily delegate his responsibilities to the vice president, who then operates as acting president until the president informs congressional leaders that he is able to resume his duties.

第三款允許總統(tǒng)暫時將其職責委托給副總統(tǒng)，副總統(tǒng)隨后擔任代總統(tǒng)，直到總統(tǒng)通知國會領(lǐng)導人他能夠恢復職責。

The fourth section provides a multistep process for the vice president and a majority of the officials who lead executive agencies — commonly thought of as the cabinet — to declare that the president is “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.” That process ultimately requires a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress.

第四款為副總統(tǒng)和領(lǐng)導行政機構(gòu)的大多數(shù)官員(通常被視為內(nèi)閣)提供了一個有很多步驟的過程，可以宣布總統(tǒng)“無法履行其職務的權(quán)力和職責”。這一過程最終需要國會兩院的三分之二投票通過。

How did the 25th Amendment come about?

第25修正案是如何產(chǎn)生的?

In the aftermath of John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, there was some confusion about how to choose a new vice president after Lyndon B. Johnson became president. And there was concern about what might happen if Johnson fell ill or was incapacitated before his replacement was found. Congress formally proposed the 25th Amendment in the summer of 1965, and the amendment became part of the Constitution in February 1967, after 38 states ratified it. (Nine more states later ratified it. Three — Georgia, North Dakota and South Carolina — have never ratified it.)

1963年，約翰·F·肯尼迪(John F. Kennedy)遭到暗殺，在林登·B·約翰遜(Lyndon B. Johnson)擔任總統(tǒng)后，就如何選擇新的副總統(tǒng)出現(xiàn)了一些混亂。有人擔心，如果約翰遜在找到替代者之前生病或喪失工作能力，可能會發(fā)生問題。國會在1965年夏天正式提出了第25修正案，經(jīng)38個州批準后，于1967年2月成為憲法的一部分。(另有9個州后來批準了它。喬治亞、北達科他和南卡羅來納這三個州從未批準過。)

Has it been used before?

以前它曾被使用過嗎?

Since its adoption in 1967, the first three sections of the 25th Amendment have been used several times.

自1967年通過以來，第25修正案的前三款已多次使用。

The first and second sections were used in 1974, when Richard M. Nixon resigned the presidency and was replaced by Gerald Ford, his vice president. Mr. Ford subsequently nominated Nelson Rockefeller to be vice president, and Mr. Rockefeller was confirmed by the House and the Senate.

第一款和第二款于1974年使用，當時理查德·M·尼克松(Richard M.Nixon)辭去總統(tǒng)職務，由副總統(tǒng)杰拉爾德·福特(Gerald Ford)取代。福特隨后提名納爾遜·洛克菲勒(Nelson Rockefeller)擔任副總統(tǒng)，洛克菲勒得到了眾議院和參議院的確認。

Section 3, which allows presidents to temporarily shift their powers and duties to the vice president, was used by Ronald Reagan in 1985 when he underwent a brief cancer surgery. President George W. Bush also invoked the 25th Amendment in 2002 when he underwent a brief medical procedure and transferred his duties to Vice President Dick Cheney for a few hours. Mr. Bush did the same thing again in 2007.

第三款允許總統(tǒng)暫時將其權(quán)力和職責轉(zhuǎn)移給副總統(tǒng)，羅納德·里根于1985年因癌癥接受了一次簡短的手術(shù)，期間曾經(jīng)援引過它。喬治·W·布什總統(tǒng)在2002年也援引了第25修正案，當時他接受了短暫的醫(yī)療程序，將自己的職責移交給副總統(tǒng)迪克·切尼(Dick Cheney)數(shù)小時。布什在2007年又做了同樣的事情。

The fourth section of the 25th Amendment — the one contemplated by the anonymous author of the essay in The Times — has never been used.

第25修正案的第四款——也就是時報文章的匿名作者所設(shè)想的那部分——從未被使用過。

How would it actually work, if invoked now?

如果現(xiàn)在援引它，它將如何發(fā)揮作用?

The first step would be for Vice President Mike Pence and a majority of the cabinet to provide a written declaration to the president pro tempore of the Senate (currently Senator Orrin G. Hatch of Utah) and the speaker of the House (currently Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin) that Mr. Trump “is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.” That would immediately strip Mr. Trump of the powers of his office and make Mr. Pence the acting president.

第一步將是由副總統(tǒng)邁克·彭斯(Mike Pence)和大多數(shù)內(nèi)閣成員向參議院臨時議長(現(xiàn)為猶他州參議員奧林·G·哈奇[Orrin G. Hatch])和眾議院議長(目前為威斯康辛州眾議員保羅·D·瑞安[Paul D. Ryan])提供書面聲明，稱特朗普“無法履行其職務的權(quán)力和職責”。這將即刻剝奪特朗普的權(quán)力，并使彭斯成為代總統(tǒng)。

But the 25th Amendment would allow Mr. Trump to immediately send a written declaration of his own to Mr. Hatch and Mr. Ryan saying that he is in fact able to perform his duties. That would immediately allow him to resume his duties, unless Mr. Pence and the cabinet send another declaration to the congressional leaders within four days restating their concerns. Mr. Pence would take over again as acting president.

但是，第25修正案還允許特朗普立即向哈奇和瑞安發(fā)出自己的書面聲明，稱他實際上能夠履行其職責。這將即刻讓他恢復職責，除非彭斯和內(nèi)閣在四天內(nèi)向國會領(lǐng)導人發(fā)出另一份聲明，重申他們的擔憂。屆時彭斯將再次擔任代總統(tǒng)。

That declaration would require Congress to assemble within 48 hours and to vote within 21 days. If two-thirds of members of both the House and the Senate agreed that Mr. Trump was unable to continue as president, he would be stripped permanently of the position, and Mr. Pence would become president. If the vote in Congress fell short, Mr. Trump would resume his duties.

該聲明將要求國會在48小時內(nèi)集會，并在21天內(nèi)投票。如果眾議院和參議院三分之二的議員同意特朗普無法繼續(xù)擔任總統(tǒng)，那么他將被永久剝奪這一職位，彭斯將成為總統(tǒng)。如果國會的投票沒有通過，特朗普將恢復其職責。

Would that ever happen?

這種事這會發(fā)生嗎?

The authors of the 25th Amendment intended it to be a difficult process that would make it exceedingly rare. They succeeded.

第25修正案的作者意圖把它設(shè)計為一個非常困難的過程，令這種事非常罕見。他們做到了。

To put it in context, it is even more difficult to remove a president under the 25th Amendment than it is under the impeachment process. A president can be impeached by a simple majority in the House and removed from office by a two-thirds vote in the Senate. Removal under the 25th Amendment requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers.

在這個背景之下，根據(jù)第25修正案罷免總統(tǒng)比按彈劾程序罷免總統(tǒng)更加困難。只要有眾議院的簡單多數(shù)就可以彈劾總統(tǒng)，如果參議院以三分之二的票數(shù)通過，就可以將總統(tǒng)免職。根據(jù)第25修正案，罷免總統(tǒng)要求兩院都以三分之二的票數(shù)通過。