POLLS SHOW 51% OF AMERICANS WANT PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP REMOVED FROM OFFICE. IF THAT HAPPENS, WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS? PENCE SHOULD BE WORRIED. . .

Opinion by Mona Austin

By all indications for the impeachment hearing thus far, Republicans have started a fight they can't finish. The American people are exhausted and want to see action on impeachment once and for all. Moving forward is going to be rocky for the nation. When the walls come tumbling down in Washington as they soon will, the impact will be felt all over the nation among all parties.

The nation is literally split down the middle on the prospect of removing Pres. Donald Trump from office. Withe the impeachment proceeding underway, there is If impeached, does the president go or does he stay? Is VP Pence next in line? Surprisingly, the answer to that question is, "not necessarily." There are many technicalities surrounding these questions.

Usually, the Vice President is next in line to lead the nation in the case of death or removal of the president, but under other circumstances, when the POTUS is alive, such as impeachment, and both the President and Vie President are simultaneously removed, the process may be different and more complicated. A governmental professor said if implicated in the impeachment and Pence is removed along with the Pres. Trump (that is, IF Trump is removed), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is the next in line. This obviously would be an objectionable scenario for the GOP. This is a real consideration since House Democrats have alleged the VP Pence and several others in the upper ranks of the Trump Administration were privy to the Ukraine phone cal incident that set off the impeachment hearing. This is a real consideration since House Democrats have alleged the VP Pence and several others in the upper ranks of the Trump Administration were privy to the Ukraine phone call incident that set off the impeachment hearing.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE: The Vice President is not an elected official -- he is a selected official. The president chooses who he/she desires as a running mate. That is the reason why the president has authority to replace the the Vice President. (The idea of naming former U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley Vice President in a second Trump term hit media currents last year before she resigned as Sec. of State.)

The 25th Amendment deals with the process of replacing a president after removal in the case of impeachment.

The 25th Amendment to the Constitution specifies the process for presidential succession thusly:

"Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principle officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office."

This procedure was applied during the Watergate Scandal when when Gerald Ford replaced Spiro Agnew as vice president, then when he replaced Richard Nixon as president. They were both able to perform the their duties satisfactorily and remained in office.

Whether the GOP fully embraces Pence and approve of him fully would be a guiding factor in what happens next. Does her have the buy-in of the party and the conservative public? Pence was a much lesser known entity when he entered the race, has been a faithful champion of Trump's and upholds religious freedom and traditional family values --all traits that tend to resonate with Republicans and should work in his favor. However, a 2018 Gallup poll reflects passive interest in Pence. the Americans remain as likely to view Vice President Mike Pence favorably (43%) as unfavorably (42%), while 16% have no opinion of him -- a trend that hasn't changed since Pence took office in January 2017.

In the vent that Vice President Pence is not "keepable" the Republicans will likely put up another agreeable choice for a confirmation vote, our source explained.

The system is designed so that a joint Congress will vote for the successor. However, Republicans will do everything within their power to keep a Republican in leadership at the White House. They may opt to have another Republican via a vote to prevent Pelosi from being the president in the event matters get that far.

Pres. Trump isn't the only one who should be worried about getting ousted. Pence should be too.

This is a perspective to keep our readers wise to how the strange game of politics is played.