Sebastian Gorka Says Presidents Maintain Succession Letter for VP in Resolute Desk

Deputy assistant to the president Sebastian Gorka said there is a letter in the drawer in the Resolute Desk addressed to Vice President JD Vance should something happen to President Donald Trump. President Donald Trump has faced repeated threats to his life.

An attempted assassination occurred at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner weeks ago. Gorka cast doubts that foreign countries would attempt to take out the president as Trump attends a high-stakes summit in Beijing. He said everybody wants recognition from Trump because he is the most powerful individual since Eisenhower.

This is the most powerful individual we have seen since the likes of Eisenhower. Right? This is a man everybody wants to be at the table with him, to have the state dinner, to have the recognition," Gorka said.

Gorka added that protocols exist regarding succession but he cannot discuss them. "We have protocols, trust me. Not ones I can discuss, but we have protocols," he said of the letter. A White House spokesperson pointed Fox News Digital to a recent Trump interview when asked for comment on Gorka's remarks.

In a January interview with NewsNation, President Trump said he has very firm instructions if he were to be taken out by the Iranian regime. President Trump said if somebody made that threat to somebody like they did with him, he would hit them so hard.

Under the Constitution, the vice president is first in line to the presidency. The Presidential Succession Act of 1947 sets the order after the vice president, beginning with the House speaker and Senate president pro tempore before moving through eligible Cabinet officials.