Proposed team of experts to decide if Trump is fit for office

A top member of Congress has proposed a team of experts that would determine whether Donald Trump is fit to remain as president.

Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin has submitted legislation that would create an "independent commission on presidential capacity".

The commission would be tasked with deciding whether to activate the 25th Amendment, a law that allows for a president to be removed from office if they are no longer up to the job.

Jamie Raskin is a prominent Democrat and leading anti-Trump figure.

While the commission would apply to all future presidents, Raskin specifically cited the behaviour of Trump in motivating the legislation.

"Public trust in Donald Trump's ability to meet the duties of his office has dropped to unprecedented lows as he threatens to destroy entire civilisations, unleashes chaos in the Middle East while violating Congressional war powers, aggressively insults the Pope of the Catholic Church and sends out artistic renderings online likening himself to Jesus Christ," Raskin said in a statement.

"We are at a dangerous precipice.

"It is now a matter of national security for Congress to fulfill its responsibilities under the 25th Amendment to protect the American people from an increasingly volatile and unstable situation."

The bipartisan commission would consist of eight retired statespersons including former presidents, vice presidents and cabinet members, selected by both parties.

And party leaders would also select four doctors and four psychiatrists to serve on the body.

Donald Trump's fitness for office has been brought into question.

The commission would then select a 17th member themselves.

With the consent of the vice president, the commission could decide whether to activate the 25th amendment.

Raskin's legislation is likely not to pass into law because Democrats are in the minority in both chambers.

But fifty Democrats are cosponsoring the legislation nevertheless.

In recent weeks many prominent conservatives have begun publicly expressing concern about Trump's mental state."He's clearly not well," his former press secretary Stephanie Grisham said last week.

"This isn't 'just Trump being Trump'."

And Trump's former lawyer Ty Cobb said the president was "clearly insane".

"It highlights the level of his insanity and his depravity," Cobb said.

"I think he's gone."

Last week Raskin wrote to the White House doctor demanding Trump take a dementia test.

Raskin requested a comprehensive cognitive test, with the results to be shared with Congress.

He cited Trump's profane social media post on Easter Sunday in which he threatened to destroy Iranian civilian infrastructure, dropped the F-word and praised Allah.

Donald Trump has lashed out at world leaders for not involving themselves in his Iran conflict.

But the president's behaviour has become a talking point in American media in his second term.

In a cabinet meeting he spoke for several minutes about a conversation he had with the CEO of the company that makes Sharpies, which the company said never took place.

He spoke for eight minutes about poisonous snakes in Peru during a Christmas event.

He claimed to have ended a non-existent war between Cambodia and Armenia.

He also apparently concocted a long anecdote about his uncle's interactions at college with the Unabomber, even though his uncle died before the terrorist was identified.

And after posting an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus Christ this week, he later claimed he thought it showed him as a doctor.

The 25th Amendment has never been invoked to permanently remove a president from power.

NEVER MISS A STORY: Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.

Download the 9NEWS App here via Apple and Google Play
Make 9News your preferred source on Google by ticking this box here
Sign up to our breaking newsletter here