A letter in the desk drawer in the Oval Office, where the outgoing president traditionally leaves a congratulatory message to his successor, with instructions on how to proceed in the event of Donald Trump's death, writes the Italian news agency Ansa.
The tycoon left it to his deputy, JD Vance, according to the US administration's counterterrorism chief, Sebastian Gorka, in an episode of the “Pod Force One” podcast that aired ahead of the historic trip to China.
“There is a letter in the drawer of the Resolute Bureau, addressed to the vice president, in case anything happens to him,” the senior official said, but specified that he could not make the contents of the letter public. “We have protocols, believe me. They're not protocols I can discuss, but we have them.” Gorka also pointed out that this planning is part of a strategy to “project force towards adversaries such as China, Iran and Russia”.
Vance is first in line to succeed Trump should he die of natural causes, be assassinated or leave the White House for other reasons. He is followed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, currently Mike Johnson, and the President of the Senate, a position also held by Vance.
In January the tycoon, who had already escaped two assassination attempts, revealed that he had left “very precise instructions” on how to “blow up Iran” should Tehran assassinate him. However, he did not mention any letters for Vance in the Oval Office. “I left a message. If anything happens to me, we're going to blow up Iran,” Trump told “NewsNation.”
A few months later, at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, the third assassination attempt took place. Meanwhile, there has been much speculation about the health of the 79-year-old commander-in-chief: from swollen ankles to bruised hands and sudden sleep attacks.
And with news of the letter to Vance, conspiracy theories about the mogul have resurfaced, this time with a twist from right-wing commentator Joe Rogan. In an episode of his widely watched podcast, the host argued that Trump could be targeted by big oil companies for his attempts to lower gas prices. R
ogan accused Big Oil of fraud, arguing that the big groups sell to the highest bidder internationally, thereby keeping fuel prices high in the United States. And then he predicted Trump's demise: “They're going to take him out … you can't cheat them with oil money. And JD Vance is going to find himself crying on TV.” (Material produced with the support of Rador Radio Romania)
