Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House, called on Thursday for President Trump to be removed from office over his role in spurring on a violent mob that stormed the Capitol and broke into the House floor a day earlier.
Ms. Pelosi called on Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment, which allows him and the Cabinet to take the power of the presidency from Mr. Trump. Her remarks echoed a similar statement made earlier by Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader.
If Mr. Pence did not move to do so, Ms. Pelosi said that she and other members of Congress “may be prepared” to move forward with impeaching the president for a second time.
“The president of the United States incited an armed insurrection against America,” Ms. Pelosi said at a news conference in Washington. “In calling for this seditious act, the president has committed an unspeakable assault on our nation and our people.”
Mr. Trump has just 13 days left in his presidency. Since Wednesday’s attack on the Capitol, a number of Democrats and a few Republicans have publicly stated that Mr. Trump should not be allowed to finish his term.
During the siege, Ms. Pelosi’s office was invaded and vandalized. Intruders in her suite overturned desks and smashed photos, and at least one person ripped a piece of a wooden plaque that marked the entrance to the speaker’s office off a wall.
Ms. Pelosi, a frequent target of Mr. Trump’s, described the events as “horrors that will forever stain our nation’s history, instigated by the president of the United States.”
She said that she was calling for the resignation of the chief of the Capitol Police, which has been criticized over its response to the mob. Officers appeared to be easily overwhelmed by the crush of people outside the Capitol.
Ms. Pelosi also said that the House’s sergeant-at-arms, Paul Irving, who is responsible for security in the chamber and its office buildings, would be resigning from his position.