In late April, a group of 36 U.S. mental health experts and physicians, in a statement, has called for the immediate, lawful removal of President Donald Trump from office, citing 'objectively observable' signs of serious cognitive decline and dangerous mental instability. The experts argue his condition poses a 'clear and present danger' to national security and the world.
The bipartisan group, which includes psychiatrists and neurologists and two Nobel Prize recipients, reported observing alarming cognitive deterioration, impaired judgment, impulse control issues, and delusional beliefs.
They are among a growing number of medical and legal professionals concerned about the president’s mental status.
The statement referenced Trump’s bizarre and impulsive behavior, rambling digressions, factual confusions, abrupt changes on national and international issues and deeply impaired judgement.
In the letter they said: “... we are compelled to warn of a President of the United States who is increasingly a danger to the public. We do not take our statement, and the responsibility that comes with making it, lightly.”
The experts highlighted his sole authority to launch nuclear weapons as a primary risk factor, arguing that his mental state is a danger to public safety, emphasizing urgent 25th Amendment action. The statement was entered into the Congressional Record to the Congressional Record (Vol. 172, No. 76) on April 30, 2026.
A forensic psychiatrist, Dr. Brandy Lee, who has previously questioned Trump’s fitness for office stated he needs “immediate, even hospital-level, care.” He said that the president’s grandiose, wishful fantasies and images “are signs of a psychotic spiral and a desperate attempt to counteract the total helplessness one feels when one is losing one’s mind. He will not accept limits, and his expectations will always exceed reality’s ability to meet them. Hence, we have the perfect setup for a catastrophic, rageful, uncontainable explosion.”
Since the statement was released, she noted in her Substack that Trump has “exhibited even more signs of grandiosity, e.g., posting images of himself on social media shaking hands with God, acting like Jesus and dressing as a pope. And he has continued nocturnal bingeing on social media posts that are filled with accusations of multiple conspiracies against him, as often as 150 times a night.” Concerning Trump’s lack of sleep, Lee said a pattern of sleeping four hours or fewer can harm executive function, impulse control and the ability to make life-or-death decisions, and lack of sleep will worsen any diminished capacity in a person, including executive function, impulse control and critical decision-making.
On May 11, the constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein wrote an open letter to Congress together with lawyer and former presidential candidate Ralph Nader, also urging it to enact legislation under the 25th Amendment, which clarifies the transfer of power if a president is incapacitated.
“Everyday Mr. Trump remains in office is a roll of the dice with the survival of the species,” Fein and Nader wrote. “President Trump might employ nuclear weapons against Iran in a fit of rage … which would not be ignored by China, Russia and Pakistan. Vice President J.D. Vance and principal officers of the executive departments have displayed spinelessness in response to Mr. Trump’s dictator-like rants, disqualifying them from fairly appraising his ability to discharge the powers and duties of the White House.”
Earlier in May, The Daily Beast explored Trump’s latenight and early-morning social media habit, showing there were only five days in April when he could have had a full night’s sleep, with a third of his social media output now coming during the night. The outlet said it “must raise questions over at least his physical health, and possibly his mental health, too.” One documented overnight spree from 9:49pm. through 4:10am, included the AI-generated image of himself as Jesus and Trump Tower on the Moon. Others openly starting concerns include retired 4star Navy Admiral and former Navy SEAL William H. McRaven, who oversaw the bin Laden raid and has expressed severe concerns about Trump's leadership and character, at times describing his behavior as similar to a '[disturbed] 15-year-old boy'. McRaven has argued that Trump's actions and rhetoric violate key principles of leadership, threaten democracy, and harm America's standing.
Retired four-star General Barry McCaffrey has also warned that Trump's 'erratic decision-making' and 'impulsivity' make him fundamentally unfit to hold office, treating his behavior as a strategic vulnerability.