Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Piers Morgan says Donald Trump is ‘mentally unfit’ to be president in wake of Capitol riots: ‘I never thought he was capable of this’

‘Trump’s gone mad,’ Morgan said

Isobel Lewis
Monday 11 January 2021 08:58 GMT
Comments
Piers Morgan says Trump has 'lost his mind' after Capitol riots
Leer en Español

Piers Morgan has admitted to regretting his previous support of Donald Trump following last week’s Capitol riots.

Appearing on Good Morning Britain on Monday (11 January), Morgan and co-host Susanna Reid discussed the “horrendous” incident in Washington DC last Wednesday (6 January), in which Trump supporters stormed the Capitol building in an attempt to disrupt Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s election win.

“What we witnessed in America last week was one of the saddest things I’ve ever had to see, in a country that I love,” Morgan said.

"It was a mob of insurrectionists attempting a coup, encouraged to fight down at the Capitol by their own President… Trump’s gone mad. I think the pandemic and the realisation [that he] cost them the election have sent him nuts and now it’s a very dangerous situation.”

The pair then turned their attention to Trump’s potential removal from office, which vice president Mike Pence is reportedly still considering.

The 25th Amendment states that the vice president would take over if a sitting president is removed, resigns, or dies while in office. Invoking the amendment requires approval from the vice president and a majority of the president’s Cabinet.

“He could be removed under the 25th amendment if he is deemed to be mentally unfit, [and] I think there is a good argument for that,” Morgan said.

“Let’s be clear what happened here... This mob, if they had got into the chamber itself, they were chanting that they wanted to hang Mike Pence, they wanted to attack Nancy Pelosi... this could have been unbelievably awful."

Asked by Reid whether he now questioned his former support of the president, Morgan replied: “No question, I never thought he was capable of this.

Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free
Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free

"He has played down to the very worst expectations of his worst critics… But I never imagined the person I had known for 15 years would incite a mob to attack the Capitol in America and attack democracy itself. He didn’t just cross a line, he trampled all over that line.

Morgan added: “To hose who warned this was what was going to happen with Trump, you’ve been proven right. It’s a sobering moment."

Five people, including one Capitol police officer, died in the riots.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in